Scooterella

So now I have these cute little wheels for me to bomb around on....My electric "scooteretta" has enough power to get me out to those nice beaches at the south end and then back up the steep hills home!

More Out and About....

This time was for practicing driving so we headed way up into the hills!

Out and About

We are enjoying visiting different areas of the city for fun and to help us choose where we may want to buy.

Settling in.....

All is going well here with things moving along quickly.We have organized so much in the two weeks we have been here...banking, vehicles, insurance, blackberry, shelter. We looked at so many places and then rented a great unfurnished apartment in a quiet yet still central area. We have a good landlord, nice neighbours and amazing views.
So we are very happy with it and are quickly acquiring things using “TradeMe” for some items we don’t mind second hand…like the little portable oil heaters. We now have 4. Also a neat wooden clothes drying rack, a couple of good solid tables, a heated towel rail and a bright red computer chair. We have been having fun doing the online auction.(stopping myself from bidding on things just cause its cute and cheap!....keep the focus Swan) We are gradually accumulating the basic things we need to have our flat be functional and comfortable. The challenge is deciding what to buy knowing we will be shipping most of our house contents over so don’t want to get too many things we will then have to get rid of yet not wanting to be “camping out” for the next few months either. Well trade me is fun and we can always sell stuff later!

At home at Roseneath Terrace

Now we have spent a few nights in our new digs where our snazzy Aquacoloured Velour Swivel sofa makes a fine bed.





It is just grand to wake up here with the sun coming up over the eastern mountain ranges.




The sky a stunning mix of pinks, orange and golden swirls glistening brightly off the calm sea in Evans Bay, holds certain promise for another fabulous day in New Zealand!



It seems that even if it has poured rain steadily all night it is clear for the sun rise, and this spot is especially nice as it is in the protected bay and doesn’t get the wild winds that some areas of Wellington are famous for this time of year.













We can see both water and lush gardens from most of our windows and were joyously surprised to find that we are just a short hike from the Mount Victoria lookouts that two years ago we had climbed to from the city side.














How good for me as I like to go for early morning walks alone and these are both safe and incredibly beautiful. Also a nice place for us to watch the sunsets with the stunning 360 degree views.

Wheels and Shelter....with Views!

Its been a very intense week of getting to know our new town....Mosty rainy with some beautiful rainbows and even hail one morning.

After a few days of driving the narrow streets with the wild Wellingtonians we thought it a smart choice to purchace a smaller vehicle.
We bought a great little car: a Smart Forfour. It has been perfect for picking up stuff, tight parking, and negotiating narrow streets where one has to pull over quickly to let others by.......driving reminds us of movies we have seen of Paris!

We have just rented a wonderful two-bedroom apartment: the whole upper floor of a well maintained older house in the fabulous, posh Wellington suburb, Roseneath.
The vistas are breathtaking and the street is spiritually peaceful, yet strangely exciting (must be the views and the narrow, twisting roads up the mountainside). 40A Roseneath Terrace, Wellington, 6011, if you want to google it.

Here we are again....YIS

After weeks of preparing and all the fun farewell parties then the seemingly endless sorting and packing and more goodbyes....we finally were on the plane.... first to Vancouver, then the long flight to Auckland and the last sweet and short flight down to Wellington.
Unusually cold for here, wet and windy for the next two days....we jetlagged, mostly slept anyway...and today the sun is back and it feels great.

We have a rental car for a few days and drove the beautiful coast road around Wellington looking at the many possible places to choose from to eventually buy our house. That was a nice diversion from our currant quest for a rental to live in for the next while.

We have already enjoyed some yummy Thai food and there are many,many more Thai, Asian, Indian, Ethiopian, Lebanese and even Mexican restaurants.

We stretched our calves today tramping about one of the university grounds...this is an extremely hilly city....which has added to the excitement of learning to drive on the left side of the road...narrow and winding streets with steep hills...weeeeeahhhhweeeeee!