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Published: February 8th 2007
The Bone Dude
The crafters are meticulously filing their bone carvings into shape.Matt and Gia arrived in the dead of winter, in efforts to uphold their reputation of tropical vacations. They had already been to blazing hot Maine and steamy Ireland beaches, so New Zealand in July was the next obvious choice. They travelled on the North Island for a wee bit to acclimatise to the Southern Hemisphere before they headed deeper south to meet us in Chch. By the time they arrived at our doorstep, they had already formulated their own opinions on what was important to experience whilst in New Zealand. Mashies, for one. KFC in the US is bad enough for your health, but Kiwi ingenuity has taken artery clogging to a new level: deep-fried mashed potatoes in gravy. Mmmm.
Bryan and I had been laboriously accumulating annual leave and saving pennies for our trip back to the U.S.A. in August, and were bummed that we couldn’t take time off of work while the Sweeneys visited. Nonetheless, we awaited their visit like puppies anticipating a walk in the park. As soon as we saw them approaching the house, we jumped outside to meet them in the street.
Laughter comes easy as the stories get rolling with old friends.
Beautious winter greenery
Bryan displays the spectacular growth at the botanical gardens. The longer that we have been mates, the less we need to talk to know what the others are thinking... but the freer the words fly out of our mouths. We have become uninhibited with Matt and Gia, much like one does after a few shots of whiskey. The best part is that we don’t need to impress them, although we did try. We rented “Once were Warriors” - a light fare movie for the casual traveller about racial tension and gang wars in Auckland. And we turned the heat on for them - we created our own tropics.
Our time was limited, so we focused on introducing Matt and Gia to our favourite places in Christchurch, regardless of the weather conditions. We walked along Diamond Harbour in the fog and rain because the views are lovely. We pointed out the so-ugly-they-are-cute kuni kuni pigs on the way. (Laying eyes on a kuni kuni is an experience all in itself. The animal looks like a pig who has had its legs chopped at the knees and its snout pushed in and upward. It makes you wonder what the heck else is living on this earth.)
We continued our
Ginger Toms
Gia and Mindy sip the finest! introspective conversation of the creatures of the world as we filed down cow bones into fine jewellery at the Bone Dude’s workshop. All the while, Bryan raved about the Botanical Gardens and the amazing variety of species habituating in the middle of the city. We went to the Gardens, supporting his enthusiasm by snapping photo after photo of dormant winter plants. When we got too cold, we sat under the sun and hot lights at the Dux de Lux Café and Bar.
Matt toyed with the idea of hiring a camper van to tootle around the South Island, but our flash Honda caught Gia’s eye with its gleaming cracked windscreen and yellow doughnut tyre. We repaired the tyre before they set off on their journey to see the sights and collect classics such as tomato sauce holders and sheepskin rugs. We cringed as we watched a 6’5” man crunch into our compact car. Believe me, we were glad to receive their phone call a couple of days later letting us know the car made it over the pass.
When Matt and Gia came back to town, we enjoyed one last hoorah before sending them on their way home.
Sitting under the hot lights
Matt bakes in the sun with the help of Gia's sunnies. We reminisced about old times and tried to project into the future. Will we move back to America; will Matt and Gia return to New Zealand? We reckoned both are dependent on one thing: Mashies.
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Kathryn
non-member comment
I want a pic of a kuni kuni! Bryan- you look hot with your shaved head. Looks like NZ is agreeing with you both! =)