In the beginning

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So this is probably a late point to start talking about my time in New Zealand as I have already been here for a while. I will probably have to write like two or three blogs a day just to catch up with what I have been doing! But for me this is an experience of a lifetime and I guess I just could not believe that I have not been recording it. My husband had a year sabbatical leave and when he told me at first the NZ was an option well I could not really believe it and that we would actually make it here! It took a week to get our visas through and the excitement bubbled over that of course I had to immediately announce it on facebook (yes one of my many addictions). Our families maybe were not as excited as wary of how far away we were going. Everyone only ever has positive things to say about NZ...what if we like it so much that we never came back. Well pre warning we are falling in love with this place! NZ is far away from family and friends that it does make it a difficult destination to be able to stay forever but it also makes it the reason why it is a trip of a lifetime and I really hope that we can live it to the fullest!

I arrived at the beginning of October fooled into the thinking that the weather would be at least warm...ok so I did not realise that summer had not officially arrived yet! It was pouring with rain and after the long flight we were very happy to have arrived safely at our flat in Parnell. As a diversion we managed to rent a flat over the internet with late night or is that early morning conversations with the agent, a very convenient and friendly service I must admit, especially considering our previous experience with our rental agent in the UK. Of course once safely settled in the flat we realise that Kiwi's don't appear to believe in central heating! Then of course there was no food, no bedding and no towels in the flat, it was Sunday afternoon we were tired with no map but out the doors we wandered. We discovered the wharehouse which was thankfully the answer to most of our immediate problems.

In a nutshell first impressions so far has been everything is relaxed and people have been so friendly that after a few weeks we really settled in. Parnell is great to wander outside for a coffee with a good book. There appears to be some sort of cafe culture here, lunch is always busy anyway and I can certainly cope with doing my business that way. You start comparing it with Glasgow and you get a bit depressed that that is where I have to head back to. Things seem so positive that I constantly hope nothing will make our first impressions proved wrong.

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