6 Months Already

We have lived in New Zealand for six months now! Sometimes it seems longer, sometimes shorter. We are still very much enjoying living here - but we definitely miss everyone from Canada. There are still six months left on my visa (Mark has a visa until 2012), so we have some time to decide what comes next. But not too much! Yikes, life moves fast.

Anyways, after six months in New Zealand, it was time for a haircut. It went well and I'm pretty happy with the new do.

Now, this isn't really that big of a deal but it was a good opportunity to blog about the interesting hair styles that exist here in NZ. I really don't understand some of the style choices - and I don't want to be culturally insensitive. So I'll just link you to a few examples, courtesy of rugby players. They tend to embrace the interesting hair styles.

http://rugbyhair.com/hair-trends/rugby-hair-trends-rats-tail/

Maybe I should have been more adventurous??? Nah.

Hmmmmm, I taste pear?

I have often wondered whether I would find living on an island a bit confining. Especially since I can't swim - not that you should try swimming away to another place anyways. Sharks, you know. But luckily, New Zealand is not that small and living on an island surrounded by many other smaller islands means there is never a shortage of places to visit. This past weekend, we ventured over to one such place - Waiheke Island, just a 40 minute ferry ride from Auckland.

Brenno and Mel were our ever trusty travel companions. We unfortunately chose a rather rainy day for our visit, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Waiheke is best known for its vineyards and you can still taste wine in the rain!

We visited the local farmer's market (it was ok), had coffee at a lovely beach cafe (which would have been even more lovely in the sun), visited an olive oil plant complete with some tastings (yum!), and visited three vineyards (one was a winery/brewery).

We all tried a variety of wines and the boys had some beer. Mel and I tried a delicious ginger beer - so good! I am starting to learn a bit more about wine, but I still have very little clue as to what I am tasting. I usually go with a fruit - you can't go wrong with a fruit.

We also came in contact with some interesting characters. For example, Greg, who rented us a car. He was an overly positive Californian who gave us some great advice and a sweet 1994 Mitsubishi Chariot. All was good in the end and we would recommend going to FUN Rentals should you ever visit the island. We also saw someone walking a pony down the street and a 10 year old "busker" who only had 10 cents and made sure we knew it. I would recommend that he play a real guitar if he wants to make more money, as opposed to his Rock Band like toy.

We had a great time and the weekend was topped off back in Auckland by a brunch and bbq with the "family" (Dale, Amber, Brandon, Kristen, Brenno, Mel and us). We are so blessed to have such great experiences and people surrounding us here - including Greg and busker boy.