Leaving Wellington, NZ (Personal)
I feel remiss. I have not been writing much lately. Those of you who can access your blog know that we have been dealing with a burst water heater. That is resolving; thank goodness we aren’t in a huge rush.
Our last 2 stops have been in New Zealand and I actually feel totally at home here. It is uncanny. We were in Auckland several days ago and as our “outing” we went to visit the air evacuation team that services the entire South Seas. They are so overwhelmed with work that the requested that Carter and Cindy (the head nurse) go out to the airport to see them, rather than they visiting the ship. I got to go along since the cost of the cab would be the same with 2 or 3 passengers. Auckland has grown tremendously since we were last here and our cab ride ended up costing $150 round trip. We were able to see so many different neighborhoods, as there was no superhighway to the airport. It was mainly little winding streets, very reminiscent of driving thru Vancouver, BC. The gardens weren’t quite as nice, but the greenery and houses were similar.
We were impressed by scope of their operation and Carter and Cindy gathered much information which will be helpful for future cruises and possible evacuations. They are expensive, but there is truly no other alternative out here. Carter had someone he needed to get off in Samoa, but there was no plane to take her for a week, so this would have been an alternative. Her illness wasn’t life threatening, but it certainly was life changing if she had not reached a specialist within a day or so. Luckily, she did ok, but it was rather nerve wracking.
Today we were in Wellington, NZ and were met at the ship by some Seattle friends who have decided to move permanently to New Zealand. They joined us for a Sunday Breakfast on the ship and then took us over the mountain to see their new home in Masterton. We even got to stop at the place where they filmed Lord of the Rings. Of course, it was beautiful – but the wrong season, as it is summer here and the vegetation was starting to get dry and brown.
The people here are so friendly and accommodating. We never experienced anyone in a rush or unwilling to be helpful. The smaller towns are quaint and look almost like McMinnville, with the old-time façades on the street fronts. Very charming. I certainly could see being happy here…..Our friends have 6 chickens and 3 sheep. We got to meet them all. The sheep are huge with wool (although she said they were too fat, as well). They are due for their shearing next week. The houses aren’t insulated, so heating costs are prohibitive. Their home was amazingly cool, despite very intense sun…..The roads are a little scary in that they have no shoulders and are mainly 2 lanes, but the local bakery, green grocer, etc. are fun to experience.
Christchurch next.
posted by Hills @ 12:03 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home