100 days! or 8,640,000 secs/144,000 minutes/2400 hours

Hi everyone,

Here's a bit of an anorak-ish thing, but as of tomorrow it will be 100 days since we left Scotland. Not the largest amount of time anyone has ever been away from home but it certainly feels long and the fact that 100days away falls on New Years Day is a bit of a coincidence.

Our house sit is almost at an end which is sad but at the same time it is good because we were getting too used to having a big house and a car - both of which we are not going to have for a while yet methinks (if at all)

We have been looking for places to rent here in Wellington and it is surprisingly expensive especially when measured against the wages they pay here. The houses are also a) Predominantly built on the side of a steep hill, great for views not so good in a place prone to earthquakes b) Made of wood c) Have no heating - no, none d) have no double glazing e) Have all been decorated with left over wallpaper and paint from the UK circa 1970's and f) The cheaper options are invariably sheds in other peoples gardens or basements.

The good news is that we will almost definitely get somewhere bigger than we lived in back home ;o) which will be good news but it may be old, cold and unfurnished which will cause more difficulties. We are already speaking to people about lending us furniture and if all else fails it is off to the charity shop we go - lots of people do that here and there's no stigma attached to it. In fact when my mate Dave McG was over in Nelson he bought all his furniture that way and then managed to sell it a year later for profit. Nice work Dave.

It is Hogmany here and we are just chilling out before going into the city tonight, we were very kindly invited to a barbecue by Steve and Shona but we fancied heading into the city to see what's on. However I am not too optimistic, on Christmas Day I dragged Katie down to the city centre after dinner, convinced that the town would be jumping but alas not a bar was open. At least the bus home was free - that's one thing they are good at here, free, regular, reliable buses on Christmas Day. Why would you need to drink and drive?

There are a few things on in town tonight actually, we just have to decide how much we are willing to spend - Zane Lowe the Radio 1 DJ is playing here but it is more expensive than we really want to pay. Regardless of how well known he is he is just some dude playing someone elses records isn't he? ;o)

Oh, I should also fill you in on my Old Firm online adventure the other day. Basically I was emailing all sorts of Rangers Supporters clubs here in NZ desperately looking for somewhere to watch the game (1.30am kick off here) but with no success - there was a group of guys going to a pub in Auckland but Welly wasn't quite so with it. Anyway, I eventually decided to stay awake, drink some beer and utilise free internet access to try and track down some live coverage online which I eventually managed to do. It was some Afghanistan-ish Tv station showing the game with the British commentary which was great. When it cut to the studio though it was all in the local lingo but i presume they were saying "Stupid infidels! We are so powerful we will enjoy this mighty game of football and then we will kill them all! 'Mon the Hoops!"

Was it worth staying up all night just to see a jammy Celtic win? No, probably not. ;o) (Even Osama Bin Laden admits that the chalked off Gers goal should have counted - if you don't believe me just go and ask him, he's probably still in a London suburb laughing at the Infidels searching Afghanistan)

(By the way, this is funny. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Guh5vrwtC80&feature=related)

More news? We went to Karori Wildlife Sanctuary the other day, it's beautiful and we would definitely go again but unfortunately most of the wildlife are birds and you can't really see them (well if we sat around all day we might have) but apparently it's been single handedly responsible for the repopulation of the Tui (a very impressive native bird that can be rather loud in the morning). Tui is also a brand of cheap Kiwi beer.

http://www.kiwi-wildlife.co.nz/Sounds/tui.mp3

Well, I better go for now and start revving up for the massive party tonight - I will give you a full review in due course but for now I think Katie and i are going to take our new running shoes (Christmas pressies) and go for a jog with Jack the dog.

Speak soon, Have a great New Year everyone!

SB ;o)

Wobbly Welly!!

My god, at 8.45am(ish) this morning I experienced my first earthquake (that I am aware of!) The house and its contents really did shake, rattle and roll, it wasn't at all scary but I just new that things wirny right! Please don't worry though, it couldn't have been that bad as Steph, Jack (the dog) and Leo (the cat) slept right through it ;0)

We've had a quiet and different xmas, which was very nice but reminded us of the importance of family and friends (all year not just at xmas!) Thanks to all the xmas wishes xox

We're going out in the wagon today to scope out areas to rent a house, preferably with a great view, a deck, a heat pump (new zealander's equivalent of central heating - very basic!) a garden and north facing sun (I don't ask for much!) but apparently north facing is best as you get sun all day and some suburbs are much cloudier and windier than others - the weather is a big issue for wellingtonians when considering where to live!

Now that we know where our next pay cheque is coming we're busy planning a wee trip to Lake Taupo and Rotoroua, the big question is.....do we skydive or bungy? - you'll just have to wait and see! Jo, I'll give Auntie Eileen a wee call and hopefully will manage to meet up with her!

Hope you have a cracking hogmanay and will update more as and when it happens!

All the best,
Love K xxxx

All shook up!

New Zealand Earthquake Report
Magnitude 5.1,
Saturday, December 27 2008 at 8:49 am (NZDT), 60 km north of Porirua.

Information about this earthquake:

Reference Number 3021098/G
Universal Time December 26 2008 at 19:49
NZ Daylight Time Saturday, December 27 2008 at 8:49 am
Latitude, Longitude 40.55°S, 174.86°E
Focal Depth 50 km
Richter magnitude 5.1
Region Wanganui Basin
Location 30 km north-west of Otaki
40 km west of Levin
60 km north of Porirua
80 km north of Wellington


Felt widely across the lower North Island and upper South Island.

Katie was up this morning calling home and felt it
Steph slept through it.

Christmas Day - Wahey (as Cheggers would say)

Merry Christmas (for real this time)and we beat everyone back home by 13 hours how great is that? And we will continue to have Christmas until your Christmas is over too!

You will be all tucked up in bed back home right now but we are just heading out for Christmas dinner and before we do I thought I would post some pics on the blog - hope you like them. (the cat couldn't be bothered to pose - surprise surprise)

Seasons Greetings and all that, Merry Presents and all

SB

Merry Christmas from Wellington NZ

Merry Christmas!!! Well, ok, we are not that far ahead - it is actually still Christmas Eve here (I should point out that the NZ clock on this page is wrong we are 13 hours ahead) but I thought while I had a spare few minutes tonight I would write a quick hello and give you an update.

Things are going pretty well here and the house we are looking after is really good (we will post pics really soon so you can see), the couple we are house sitting for are really nice and they left us their car to use for the duration of our stay which has allowed us to do a big Christmas shop today - and lucky we had the car cos, would you believe, it is chucking it down here which is crazy cos yesterday was scorching. Barbecue on the beach tomorrow? Unfortunately we haven't had the West Coast of OZ type weather that we were hoping for so we have booked into a posh restaurant down the road so at least we don't have to cook or clean up. Thanks for the Christmas money Mum, that'll keep us well fed tomorrow and we will be thinking of you all at Aunt Joyce's - loved the photos by the way with cast on Aunt Joyce!

We are just chilling out just now looking forward to tomorrow and we do actually have some presents for each other would you believe - some good (New trainers + clothes) some that aren't really presents as we've had them a week(new mobile phones) and some that aren't really that exciting (we both shopped for each other with a $50 in New World which is a big supermarket - so at least getting a job hasn't went to our heads!! Can't burst the bank yet ;o)

At our house we are looking after Jack (the border collie) and Leo (the cat they forgot to tell us about) - both of whom are actually really pleasant animals and our first impression of Jack was a wee bit wrong he;s just a big baby looking for attention. Luckily my allergies haven't really surfaced and hopefully that's the way it will stay - antihistamines may well be a christmas pressie though.

Before I go here are a few things coming up that may be of interest:

a) We are booked up to see Billy Connolly on his Tour of NZ in February which is great - thanks Dad! I've always wanted to see B.C. live.

b) We are booked up to go to the Wellington Cup which is a big horseracing festival in January.

c) We are planning a big trip in January somewhere before school starts - it might even include a sky dive or something equally mental.

d) I go to immigration on the 6th of Jan to try and get my work visa - apparently it should be ok but isn't really 100% guaranteed on first application.

Ok, well we will hopefully be writing more tomorrow and will hopefully be able to post a christmas photo for you all to see with some photos of our new house and animals.

Merry Christmas.

Steph and Katie

KT Tunstall

Just a quick one.....

Last night we had the privilege of being able to walk 50 yards around the corner to catch an acoustic KT Tunstall gig - she is on her honeymoon at the moment, KT and her new hubbie have obviously decided that life away from music is a bit too boring so they played a short notice gig at Bodega in Welly.

And I must say it was blinkin great - I have obviously heard her most popular tunes before but had never seen her live but she was really impressive. Her put downs of some drunk Scots (not us) in the audience were also rather impressive.

I had my Scotland top on so quite a number of people came up to speak to us which was funny but KT Tunstall was too elusive and we couldn't be bothered hanging about to get a photo - who knows we will probably bump into her at a touristy place anyway somewhere in NZ.

Anyway, over and out - many thanks for all the congratulatory texts, comments and emails regarding the job!

Merry Christmas,

Steph

Wahey!

Thanks Katie that's v. nice of you to say ;o)

It is all pending approval from immigration however - although that's pretty much in the bag apparently.

Two days ago we were planning on eating dog food (or just the dog) for Christmas dinner, sleeping rough for three months and coming home in March due to lack of money but this job has appeared out of nowhere and it will give us extra credit to continue our adventure and see out the rest of the year - which we always planned to do - teach and live abroad for a year and come back next Christmas.

It is such a strange feeling because we just had no idea how easy or difficult this was going to be but we are pleased to have it sorted out before Christmas. The circumstances are a wee bit strange to be honest so let me fill you in -

1st of Dec - Arrive in Christchurch, spend day after day in the library sending off applications for jobs and requesting application packs for other ones. feeling like we are getting nowhere but realise only three days have passed and we shouldn't panic

7th of Dec - or should we? Schools close soon, do they recruit during summer, why haven;t I had any interviews, what's wrong with this country!!!

14th of December - get back in touch with an agency contact from a while ago who invites me to go and meet her.

18th of December - Meet Vicky from Education Personnel in Wellington and after chatting to me for a bit brings in a colleague who has a job description that has just landed on her desk for a school they know well. Mel then thinks phoning the Principal is a good idea. After speaking to him Vicky suggests she take me to the school. The principal is really nice and suggests I come back the next day for a formal interview.

19th of December - Have my interview and I am offered the job - which I accept pending work permit approval. Nuts!

So here's the deal - the job is Head of PE and Sport in Private Primary school. They were looking for someone to stay a while and I have agreed that I would consider longer than one year depnding on how things work out. Katie and I are open minded although we still have a firm eye on coming home - in case anyone is worried about us being away forever- we have a wedding to plan don't forget!!

That;s about it - I feel a bit torn about the job thing - it's great, a fantastic opportunity but at the same time the reality of spending so long away from home is starting to kick in. A bit scary but nothing we weren't hoping for all along so we are looking forward to making the most of it.

The good news is also that anyone who was planning to come out to see us can start looking into making their plans - I wouldn't buy the ticket yet until it is all 100% confirmed but see how much you can get a ticket to Wellington for - it's not cheap but you should be greatly impressed when you get here.

Exciting stuff - never a dull moment just now which is great although I think there may be a few dull moments tonight however when I persuade Katie to go along and watch Wellington Pheonix in their A-League soccer tie tonight against Godknowswho F.C.. Entertaining it may well not be - hopefully they will sell beer though which might make it bearable. ;o)

Another thing we didn't mention is that the other day we visited some more friends of a friend - Shona Schumacher and her fiancee Steve. Shona is a friend of Ewen C's sister and he dubbed her Schumacher after her amazing efforts in getting from Glasgow's South side to Milngavie in about 8 minutes. Shona is from Scotland and they are planning their wedding for July (?) in NZ, which is great - they are a really cool couple with an amazing house with a fantastic view. Hopefully we will catch up with them again soon - for some live music or something perhaps (more about that later)

All the best,

SB

Woo Hoo!

Well, you are now communicating with Mr S Brown, Head of PE and Sport for St Marks School, Wellington!!!! and Ms K Oman - title T.B.C. but seriously thinking about the kind of work she wants to do!!

We've been here for a grand total of 7 days and the work Steph has put in over the last few weeks and months has paid off. I am so proud of him as this is one of the things we/he set out to achieve this year and he has well and truly scored! It's all a bit scary, it now means that the free and easy travelling lifestyle will change but we are ready for the challenge and have vowed that work will remain secondary and that our whole aim of sampling a different lifestyle, exploring New Zealand and generally improving our health will be the number one priority. I'll let Steph fill you in on more of the detail of the job but lets just say - christmas is now back on!!!


We also visited our housesit/dogsit family last night. A lovely couple (both teachers, who by the way rated St Mark's very highly and have friends who work there) Their house is really beautiful and Jack the border collie is a lovely dog (perhaps with a few small issues?!) - We are looking forward to the dog walking and stability of lovely surroundings, but if you don't hear from us after the 2nd of Jan please call in the emergency services as he may have eaten one or both of us!!

I'm going to go now as I suspect another blog entry from my clever fiance will follow shortly......

Love K x

Mobile-tastic

Hello again, Kia ora and all that - we just wanted to let you know that we have hooked ourselves up with a mobile phone deal that has given us new sims and hopefully a new lease of life (released from all the frustration of payphones and multiple phone cards on the go)

Basically we can now call home cheaper than before and from wherever we like (underground probably won't work)which is great news. It is also a lot cheaper for us to text back home than it was so basically feel free to give us a call or send us a text but beware that you should probably check with your service provider (mobile or landline) as to how much it will cost you. It won't cost us a penny to hear from you but it may cost you a few bob.

We are on Vodafone NZ pay as you go (supapay deal) if you want to check out how much it would be - the important bit I suppose is giving you our new numbers so here goes:

Steph: 02 111 07449
Katie: 02 111 06875

I believe the following to be accurate but you may want to double check, I also think that you have to drop the 0 from 02 so to call Stephen it would be:

00 + 64 + 2 111 07449

to call Katie it would be:

00 + 64 + 2 111 06875

If this doesn't work then let us know, but hopefully this will help us a lot - especially calling home and around NZ.

Over and out

S&K

What the Dickens is the time?

I have a mystery for everyone to solve - not quite as crazy as the cockroach photo competition but I am trying to confirm the time - sounds odd doesn't it but it is driving me crazy.

As far as I can see the time here in NZ is 10.33am which is fine (although the computer I am at says 11.33am) - so here lies the problem. The time for NZ on my blog page says 11.33am so I think this is now wrong. The time for the Uk on my blog page says 22.37 so that's 13 hours behind right? (following me so far?)

Ok, so if the time here really is 10.33 as I suspect and if, as every website in the world tells me - and the blog, the time in the UK is currently 13 hours behind then why oh why does the BBC website tell me that the time is currently 11.33 AM????? I have just been to a website that tells world time and it tells me the time in the UK should be 9.33pm and the time in NZ should be 10.33am I don't get it - i may well be being thick but the BBC clock has really thrown me.

Please help.

Another one

Hi folks, yes another blog entry can you believe it? Don't get used to so many entries so close together, I don't think it will be like this for long. The reason for yet another one today is that the hostel has a great computer here for a reasonable price, it also conveniently lets you backup your photos on DVD for nothing! (I supply the DVD of course) But most places charge you for the pleasure so I am quite happy.

Anyway while I wait for that to happen - I have a few discs to burn I thought I would back track a little and give you a short list of the places we have seen in Australia and New Zealand so far and if I can I will give a comment on how it went.

1) First port of call Sydney - Sydney was great and it has the aesthetic that Edinburgh has, the big iconic tourist attraction kind of thing, like Paris too. We both love it although it would be difficult to imagine living in the city.

2) North Beaches of Sydney - Manly etc... These were great too although some were a bit quiet like Collaroy. Palm Beach was where they filmed Home and Away which was fun to see and Manly was the best place where we also met Mairi.

3) From here we went back to Sydney city for two nights and then flew out to Hervey Bay - There wasn't much in Hervey Bay although it was stunning and had nice beaches. We were really there just to do Fraser Island.

4) Fraser Island - biggest Sand bank in the world (and no sand castles in sight!) it's the place that made the "a dingo stole my baby" phrase famous. We enjoyed it but the constant driving in a 4x4 in sand made for quite a bumpy journey. Highlight was getting up for sunrise and seeing a dingo.

5) Next up was Sydney again but just the airport where we stayed all day then flew to Perth. First impression of Perth was that it was stil under construction but we grew to really like it. Tons of Irish and Scottish though so it didn't feel really that Australian. It was in Perth we visited Nicholas and Katherine Peach before picking up our camper van and heading South towards Margaret River.

6) Margaret River - this is big wine country - not big as in "big wine bottles" but big as is "the place to be". We spent time drinking free wine and eating cheese. It was cool and was out first introduction to camper van life. This is the only part of Western Australia that is green and lush, we really liked it - maybe that was just the effect of the wine though. We went as far as Augusta in the furthest south west corner of OZ. We left after a couple of days however as we had to start the journey north and had to get back to Perth for the Red Bull Air Race.

7) After the Air Race we sprinted up the coast to Cervantes and we stayed the night before visiting the Pinnacles.

8) We then went to Geraldton which was unexciting but the road trips were becoming very exciting with Kangaroos all over the place and all sorts of wildlife etc.

9) After Geraldton we headed off to Denholm and Monkey Mia. This was where we watched the dolphins getting fed and old people dropping their digital cameras into the sea.

10) Next up we headed up the coast to Coral Bay which was stunning - and the snorkelling adventures began. Scared at first we grew more confident and I got snorkellers sunburn - where just your back gets fried - nice.

11) Exmouth was the next stop where the heat really started to kick in - apparently it gets over 40 degrees regularly in summer. Exmouth is also the place where the Qantas jet recently had to make an emergency landing - they are now blaming this on the massive communications pylons that the Americans have there to listen in on Submarines (aye, and perhaps the Chinese??????). Then it was off to Cape Range National Park where we explored Ningaloo reef - snorkelling about like a couple of loonies. We camped rough with no facilities for three nights too so we looked like a couple of loonies as well.

11) After leaving Exmouth we headed back to Coral Bay for a couple of nights before making the long journey back towards Perth where we dumped the camper van, met Lewis Peach (the baby) and then headed on a plane to the home of Neighbours - Melbourne.

12)Melbourne - stayed with Vicky and Adrienne and went to Neighbours night, Stefan Dennis was there and it was all very funny. We visited Ramsay street and saw the sights. We borrowed Harold the camper and drove Great Ocean Road down to the 12 Apostles where we about turned and headed back to Mellie.

13) Leaving Mellie behind we flew to Christchurch where we began the hunt for jobs. We didn't get to do too much in C'church but I am sure we will be back at some point.

14) Picked up the hire car and Drove to Nelson from where I am now writing this list - which is probably as much for our benefit as it is yours.

15)......We are headed to Wellington on Saturday - we will try and keep adding to this as we go but probably not at the same pace of contribution as is happening right now.

Well, this has definitely helped me train my memory a wee bit and I hope it's been worthwhile writing it - I would be interested if anyone could total up all the kilometres we have travelled - I think that would be interesting. Glasgow-bangkok-chiang mai-bangkok-sydney and so forth - if anyone is up for it then please do send the results! Perhaps there will be a prize ;o)

There will also be a prize (maybe) if anyone can identify what we photographed in the photo at the top of the page - we saw it in Melbourne somewhere and had to photo it.

Happy Christmas shopping!!

SB

Lovely Nelson

Two posts in one day - a bit excessive but you've guessed it we've found an internet cafe at a reasonable price!

What a whirlwind 48 hours we've had, we returned from a long weekend in Akaroa where we went biking and walking (and ate the best fish and chips by the sea) 8 Orca Whales were sighted off the harbour (not by us unfortunately!) We met some new friends Tim and Nikki (and family) through my friend and colleague Charlie. Tim is Charlie's nephew who has now emigrated to NZ. They looked after us and gave us the lowdown on living and working in Christchurch. It was really nice to be spoilt and in a real house for the first time in ages! We then picked up the car that we didn't actually believe we were getting until the morning we were leaving because it seemed like such a good deal i.e. free! In between that Steph visited 2 schools in Christchurch to 'factfind' and we booked various modes of transport and accomodation for Nelson and Wellington!

The drive to Nelson was jaw dropping, my neck is still sore from looking left to right to left again (Steph was driving!) The countryside is so 'big' and green and yes like Scotland but all so new to us. We had lunch with the seals at kaikoura and then drove through Blenheim to get to beautiful Nelson. In the last 24 hours we have fallen in love with the place - we definitely think we could live here for a few months - maybe its just cos the sun is shining! It is so nice though that it will be difficult to get jobs so we're not holding out too much hope.

We're visiting schools tomorrow and SportTasman and the Cooncil for me, then we're heading to Wellie on Saturday.

Will write more soon - hope everyone is enjoying the run up to Christmas - don't work too hard!

Love K & S

The car we are relocating!

The car we are relocating!
Originally uploaded by katieandsteph88

One other thing whilst I have 5 minutes - just thought I would show you the Toyota Camry we are relocating from Christchurch to Nelson. All we pay is the petrol but it is a bit of a dice roll - if anything happens to it the excess amount isn't pretty. So safe driving is the order of the day - nothing new there then is there - Katie? ;o)

We are now in Nelson and it is really beautiful - and the drive here from Christchurch was as beautiful as we have seen beating perhaps Highway 1 in California and Great Ocean Road out of Melbourne.

Oh, and this is for my Mum - we passed the Oyster Bay Winery - didn't get a chance to stop in but we will next time we pass and get a photo (and of course a couple of bottles)

Ok, we are off out to see if there are any job opportunities arising.

Steph

Ryan Lumsden in Melbourne!!!!

Ryan Lumsden in Melbourne!!!!
Originally uploaded by katieandsteph88

We are only just getting round to this but would you believe we have uncovered another Jordanhiller out in this part of the world.

Well, to tell the truth he uncovered us by sneaking up on us and surprising us - He won't mind us saying that he looks a bit different from at Uni so we had to do a double take before going "oh my God, Ryan Lumsden!"

We should say two things here that are spooky 1) Ryan was on the same course as Mairi McLaren and 2) well isn't the first one spooky enough?

Anyway, got to go for now - if we find any more Scottish Sports scientists lurking about we will let you know.

Kia ora

Kia Ora everyone!

We are still here and although the blog stuff isn't happening as quickly and as recently as before we are still thinking of people back home lots so i have jumped onto the first computer I have seen in days to write a quick update for you all.

We've basically just spent a week in Christchurch sussing out jobs and trying to keep track of job applications, internet spending, places to go next, how many different email contacts we have for various different people (thanks to all those who supplied us with contacts - we will be round them all in no time!)

So, you are probably wondering where we are right now - well we are in a small (real small) town of Barry's Bay which is between Akaroa and Christchurch. We spent a night in Akaroa and then came here for two nights. There isn't a whole lot happening in Barry's Bay but the accomodation is really nice. It's called half moon cottage if you wanted to look it up. Nice old style house with big double rooms - bit of a change from all those bunk beds.

Talking of bunk beds though we are heading back off to Christchurch in about half an hour to go back to the YHA for a night. We are off out for dinner though, one of Katie's contacts back home has a nephew here who has very kindly invited us along for a barbecue tonight although the weather has went all Scottish on us all of a sudden so perhaps it will be more of an indoor meal.

Akaroa was nice by the way and one of the big things to do there is to swim with dolphins - we didn't cos it was expensive but we are planning to do it at some point - it was on the news last night though that one of the trips yesterday bumped into some killer whales which was apparently something that never happens so everyone is all excited about it. We are gutted we weren't there for it although if we had paid a fortune for the trip and then the very next day other tourists had seen killer whales for the same price, needl;ess to say we may have been even more gutted. ;o)

We've been chilling out here, saving money and taking bike rides up and down to various wee villages and things which has been a nice change of pace although the pace here (South island) it has to be said so far is pretty much the same all over - relaxed! (Get me to a city quickly!!)

Anyway, probably should go for now the internet here basically just switches off the monitor so if you haven't finished the next person will come along and finish it for you ;o) probably would be more entertaining that way if the germans finished off our blog entry for us.

Last thing - the plan is to go back to Christchurch - I am visiting some schools tomorrow - we are then picking up a car for free from hertz as we agreed to take it to Picton for them. (we pay the fuel and have three days to drive it the 500km - which is cool.) We are then heading to Nelson for three nights before getting the ferry to Wellington where we will be doing a whole manner of job hunting things and we will pretty much be there until we start our housesitting gig on the 23rd.

All the best everyone! Merry Christmas (it doesn't feel like Christmas here by the way - you can probably imagine)

SB and KO