Kia Ora

Friday 23rd January 2009

We had more immigration paperwork to fill in today,but because we had no car it could have turned out to be problematic,fortunately we got the use of our landlady's PC which saved us a walk to the library.The day was so hot again and we were told that it was unusaual to get such a long run of sunshine but we weren't complaining as long as it stayed under 30 degrees!!!

I waited all day for a call about the car but it never came,so when I called late afternoon it was no surprise that no one had looked at it,but he assured me it would be looked at and I would receive a call,that call never came so it will be Tuesday before we know anything as Monday is the bank holiday.

After catching the ferry to the city we discovered that it was heaving and it was only early,we had come in to watch some local bands and the firework display as part of the Auckland Anniversary celebrations that had been planned.We found the right part of "the viaduct" and it was impressive with the large marina and bars and restaurants,so in the name of research we tried out a few to see which we liked.As dusk turned into night we found a great spot to watch the pyrotechnic display and it was a real 15 minutes of flshes and bangs all set to music.People were milling around and the atmosphere was great.

The ferry was in and we timed it right so avoided the wait for the next one.As we walked back along King Edward Parade the water lapped against the rocks towards home and the odd boat bobbed up and down on the calm water.

Sunday 25th January 2009

Just a day by the beach on Saturday,which is always a joy and the water was warm too,which was a bonus.

Sunday started with a bang,after my shower I noticed something on the floor of the bathroom and thought it was a beetle,but on closer inspection it looked like a White Spot spider (we knew this from our visit to Auckland Museum a few weeks earlier) now spiders don't bother me so much and I usually just catch them in a glass and put them outside.But the White Spot bites and on some people can cause necrosis (if you react it eats your skin and it will not heal!!!)so I was wary but my technique didn't let me down.Once in the glass we had a good look at it and checked on the internet,sure enough it was a female White Spot,so out it went,much to the dismay of our landlords who had never seen one but said we should have splatted it.

After that excitement it was back on the ferry for the annual seafood festival in the city,we paid our entrance fee and enjoyed all the festivities.There was around 30 stalls selling everykind of seafood going,from abelone to whitebait fritters and mussels to prawns and paua.they also had raffles for fish hampers and live music all day long.The sun yet again was blazing hot and we split our time between sun and shade.

Some of the yachts in the marina must have been worth millions and will probably be in the regatta tomorrow in the harbour.We were having such a great time,Mel even ate mussels (who said she didn't like fish!!!) and were sad to see it end at 7pm.We topped off our evening back in Devonport with Fish and Chips on the beach with the sun coming down.So all in all a perfect day.

Lots of Love

M & M

xx