Hi Guys

I know I keep saying this but I really can't believe how quickly time is passing here.Today marks 6 (six) weeks since we arrived here feeling all jet lagged and tired and now 42 days later things are starting to move and we are feeling settled and feel like we know Auckland a bit better.

Monday 15th December 2008

We knew that the week that was about to commence was going to be busy,strange and a little crazy and we weren't wrong!!!

I called the Land Transport and my worst fears were confirmed and I have to resit my motorbike test here as they changed the rules in September so because my licence is under 2 years old I must sit the practical part of the test before next November which isn't ideal but c'est la vie.The good news is I can still have a bike and ride it for a while before I sit my test,or so I am led to believe this is the case but I will have to double check nearer the time.

The rest of Monday was left to job prep day for Mel,she is on overdrive with interviews at the minute and is getting plenty of them unlike me!!!!

Tuesday 16th December 2008

Not a good night's sleep for either of us and a 6.30am start. The ride across the bridge in rush hour wasn't too bad and we were at our destination way too early.Mel is in full swing now and didn't even appear nervous.An hour later she emerged and we sat in the car and talked through the interview with the aircon on as the day had really warmed up.It was back to the house for lunch before heading off again for appointment two in South Auckland,which went as well as the first in the morning but we have to wait until next week for an answer.

Wednesday 17th December 2008

After a hectic night emailing back and forth to the UK we were hoping today would slow down a gear.It started with an email to say Mel had been unsuccessful for her job in the city but as ever she just shrugged it off and said she was meant to get one of the others instead!!

While all this was going on I just kept on pushing around the vacuum and thinking whats meant to be will be...We had missed the pub quiz last week and were raring to go,so we got excited when we finished mid table we are finally getting the hang of it but now we have a 4 week wait till it resumes in the New Year.

Thursday 18th December 2008

This morning we received a new flat screen TV for the house and a high speed internet connection so this morning turned into a technical time.It was also the day when Mel had references flying all over the planet.To take her mind off things we decided to head to Auckland Zoo for a look around and as the sun was high in the sky and we had a great afternoon wandering aroun the place and listening to the keepers talk and the lions feed.The hippos were great to watch walking along the riverbed and of course the penguins and sea lions are a perennial favourite!!! We even saw an orangutan curl up and pulla duvet over them to have a sleep...Usually we aren't a big fan of zoo's but this place was excellent and very educational with tons of space for the animals.

The only thing we didn't see were the kiwis who didn't seem to be around.

To get us in a festive mood we headed to Windsor reserve in town to watch the carols by candlelight on the way we stopped to pick up coffee,as usual we arrived to find the place full with people on rugs with food and wine flowing,the carols were great fun and we stormed through all the usual ones including away in a manger,once in royal David's city and my personal favourite O come all ye faithful. We really need to get our esky and wine glasses sorted for these outdoor events.We finished off with the NZ national anthem which was a rousing end to proceedings before taking a walk back along the harbour front.

We will let you know which job Mel gets!!!

Lots of Love

M & M

xx