Winter - Bucklands Beach

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This afternoon saw the temperature rise from an overnight 2 degrees to a 'balmy' 11 degrees in the sun!  

I took a stroll down the hill to Buckland's Beach which is a mere block away from the house we are renting in Auckland at the moment.

It was peaceful with the wading birds active in the shallows, searching for pip and other shellfish.  The old volcanic cones of Auckland were visible on the skyline.

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Passively Freezing

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It has warmed up to 3 degrees centigrade as I write.  This is a degree warmer than it was just before dawn.  Even the brass monkeys have wisely stayed indoors with the heater turned up to maximum.

Talking of which, one of our first purchases upon our return from Singapore has been an upright column oil heater.

We had one of these before we left to go to Singapore in 2006 so we knew exactly what we needed to buy upon our return. It has been a life saver.

Our new home, which we move into in September, has double glazing, full insulation and underfloor heating in the en-suite bathroom which will mean no more icy cold feet when exiting the shower.

In the winter the home captures and retains any passive solar energy and in summer (which  I hope will come sooner rather than later) the house remains cooler.

Mind you, one can go overboard trying to be 'green' with solar heating.  I am reminded of the the man who has proudly constructed a soda can solar heater.  To do so he needed 100 soda cans which he then proceeded to paint black.  I suspect that he has now contracted diabetes as a result of the over consumption of soda.  At least he will be a few degree warmer in his garage as he contemplates his future health.

Last night I watched my first rugby match for four years on local television.  The All Blacks thrashed the South African Springboks.  I seem to be reverting to type very quickly.

Fresh Bread, Cheese and Breeze

Ah the warm tropical breezes of Singapore which are regrettably a rapidly fading memory as I wander the streets of Manukau city disguised as a clothing blimp.

As of today we are living in Bucklands Beach Road which as its title suggests, is near the beach in Auckland.

We have been making up for time dining on crunchy New Zealand apples, fresh camembert, soy and linseed bread and bags of chippies (the bad stuff!) all at ridiculously cheap prices.

Tonight I intend opening a bottle of Australian Cabernet Merlot to celebrate our fifth day back - any excuse for a sip or two! Somehow drinking red wine in the heat of the tropics was not quite the same.

'Economy rice withdrawal' is an affliction that I am fast developing.  NZ produce is all well and good but I am missing my Malay curries already.

I loved Singapore and made a number of good friends amongst the locals and they will remain friends forever.

But I have also been lucky with close friends from my AUT days who have made us feel most welcome upon our return.

There also some interesting job opportunities on the horizon so we shall wait and see what transpires.

A New Purchase orTwo

'Money going out' is a familiar expression in Singapore and so it has proven to be here in Auckland.

Today we purchased a new Volkswagen Polo 6 which arrives at the end of the month and capped it off with an option to purchase our new home; with a settlement date of September 6th.

We are very happy with both but somewhat poorer as a result.

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Today's Print

NZ Mall in Winter

Day Three

Day three back in NZ and feeling rather jaded but satisfied with progress to date.  We have found rental accommodation at a reasonable weekly rate and we shift into the units on Friday.

It is in Bucklands Beach which as the name suggests is a beach suburb in South Auckland.  Not that we are likely to staying there for long as fortuitously we have also found some brand new two bedroom properties in a mews development which look most attractive and are in our price range.

We will decide on the morrow whether we wish to make the purchase or not.

At time of writing we are still existing in a small motel unit in Botany Downs trying to dry clothes with the heavy, wintry rains blowing outside.

Our next major purchase is a car and today we test drove a Peugot 207 but were not completely convinced. Tomorrow we hope to try out a Volkswagen Polo 6 if one is available.

Umbrellas and Fleece

An umbrella, some warm fleece trousers and a 2,400 watt heater were the first three items we purchased upon touch down in New Zealand today.

The temperature in Auckland as I type is a wet and blustery 11 degrees with promise that the mercury will drop still further.  Oh for the warmth of my 'adopted city' Singapore.

We had an inauspicious start at the Avis counter at Auckland airport when a rather bombastic Indian manager refused to release our pre-booked vehicle to us as we did not have a credit card.

The fact that Avis had accepted our booking and reconfirmed it with out needing credit card numbers cut no ice with him.  Our plan was to pay cash for the rental in advance, as other companies are quite willing to accept this transaction process.

The reason we do not have credit cards at the moment is that we cleared our accounts and cut up our Singapore cards before we left and it will not be until tomorrow when we visit our local bank that we can arrange for an NZ Visa card.

Finally in desperation we rang a friend and got them to provide their credit card details to Avis; only then could we take the car and make our way tot eh Botany Motor Inn in Dannemora, South Auckland where we are no domiciled.

Another friend paid a us lightening visit to welcome us and left us two packets of nuts to much upon.  A good choice of vittles!

Tonight's supper will be a fresh NZ Camembert cheese, pumpkin soup and soy and linseed toast.  I shall be resplendent in my Chinese fleece pajamas that I bought in Singapore's Chinatown.  This is the first time that in nearly forty years that I have worn trousers with fly buttons and my manual dexterity is not what it once was!

The remaining challenges include finding a place to live, buying a car and coming to grips with the difference in time zones.