Week 11 - 'Going North' - A visit to Auckland with Toni & Monica, & embarrassing tea times!

Hello Everyone!

I still haven't seen the Olympic opening Ceremony, but heard great things, so that will be my aim for the next few days! Hope everyone enjoyed the spectacle! I know you did Jen (saw your Fb pics)! The weeks are becoming quite routine now, and I mean that in a good way. I feel like I have been here 6 months rather than almost 3 months, but with friends - Mark & Jenny arriving in the next week or so, I'm sure I'll be reminded of my old life! 

Congratulations to Mr & Mrs Lane on your news, I'll be very sorry to miss out on that development, let's Skype soon! And a little message for you Julia - this week will be mostly pictures, hope that helps ;) ) 

Ok Ok, on to this week. The main focus is kind of work related, but only in part. After heading down to the South Island last weekend, I headed north this weekend and to Auckland (a third or more of the total population live in that part of the country), and so does my former Manchester work mate - Tony, with his partner Monica. Me and Tony worked together at the infamous Kath Locke Centre in Hulme, Manchester in a Community Mental Health Team back in 2007. Funny how we are both now living and working here in NZ for mental health services!  

So early Saturday Morning (And I do mean early - as this photo shows...) 

Early morning @ Wellington Airport

I got another JET STAR flight, and this time I got a window seat, which allowed me to get some great air shots overlooking my home town of Wellington....

Wellington by Air

After arriving at Auckland and being met my Tony at the airport, we drove to his place, where Monica made a lovely cooked breakfast! We made a plan of action and were soon heading off to explore the surrounding areas of Auckland. I have previously spent my time in Auckland pretty much exploring the centre of the city, so having local guides to show the more 'real' side of life in Auckland was a very welcome change. Wellington (my city) is very compact (some would say small), though Auckland is quite the opposite, very spread out, with different bays, and areas, that require car travel to access all the places around...

I think you get the idea that New Zealand is quite a hilly place, which mean plenty of walks, and hills with lovely views to explore! Just like these....

Tony & Me

Views of Auckland

Monica & Me

So after the day exploring the outskirts, we headed into the city for drinks and dinner, but not before a little shower and a city centre rainbow.

On the way to dinner, we walked through the wharf area, to get lovely views of the city by night, see below... and also stumbled across a rather interesting entrance to this particular restaurant.. as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to get a photo for my good friend Mr Lane! Hope you it enjoy it matey! 

Auckland City

For you Carl!

Check out 'level of heat' (Some Kiwi's don't do spicy)

Sunday was another chance to explore the surrounding areas, with Tony & Monica taking me to one of the little bays around Auckland, for bench and a meet up with some of their friends. One of them was a guy called Ian, a mad Manchester City fan, who was also from near Manchester , who entertained us through lunch, with tales of a recent visit home. A post lunch walk along the bay followed...

Tony & Monica

Windy Walks - Me & Tony

EMBARRASSING TEA TIME - the other major event of the week was a meeting with two OT students (Aimee & & Sarah) from Otago Polytechnic. This is one of two educational establishments that teach the OT degree here in New Zealand.  The other being AUT in Auckland. I met Aimee and Sarah at a very brief training session in the hospital last week. So I asked them if they'd meet up with me, (and hopefully didn't sound too odd in the process). Obviously I didn't seem too weird, and they agreed to meet up at a nearby mall. We met, and I had 100 questions in my head I wanted to know about OT education, so we found a cafe in the mall, and started asking questions as we sat down with our drinks, I was about to take a sip of my cup of tea, when Aimee said "stop, you just put salt in that"... as I looked in at the packet, and realised she was not joking, I felt pretty stupid, not quite the impression I had wanted to make! I got another cup, and felt relieved that at least they had noticed what I had done, as they were about 2 seconds away from me spraying a cup tea all over them! 

Having tried to act like nothing had happened, I continued to bombard them with questions about the process to get on the OT course, the costs of studying here (like having to pay for all their own placements costs) which can be a long long way from their University, and some of the on-line teaching that happens on their course, alongside lectures, tutorials and workshops. I was surprised to hear that the 3 year degree is not an Honours course, (you have to do a fourth year for an Honours Degree). I came away with lots of good information from the student's perspective, and I have to say that Aimee, Sarah, and a third student I met Briely at a professional meeting, have given a good account of OT students here. There are some signifiant differences in the education of OT's here, compared to the UK, and other countries, and I look forward to learning more... Hopefully next time, I'll make a better impression! 

Regards from New Zealand! 

Dan 

Week 10 - Surreal Christchurch, the company of strangers, and sleeping on a farm!

Wow! (this might take a while, so get a cup of tea - and a biscuit - and read on...). I used this word so many times in the past 60 hours, that I felt it was the best way to describe an incredible weekend in the South Island of New Zealand! I am loving life in the Wellington, beautiful capital of New Zealand, but the traveler in me saw a cheap flight deal and could not resist the chance to head south to Christchurch and the small town of Ashburton... and the wonderful Lake Tekapo! 

So I took my first day's holiday from work on Friday, and got on board a Jetstar flight (Jetstar is a cheap airline operating in this area, and are allegedly known for delays, flight changes and general messiness... so I had been told). I have to say that they were excellent and well worth the $168 (£85) return trip. I arrived in Christchurch found the bus stop at the airport where I met Garret (or Gareth) - his strong Dublin accent made it hard to quite understand his name. Garret (as we'll call him) was one of those people who could talk to anyone, and never stop. He had told me about his travels through Asia, and his Philippino girlfriend teaching English in Thailand. He joined me as we found my hostel, though it was full, so we found a place for him around the corner. We then ventured into the city, but not before we stopped off at the 'Pegasus Inn' for a burger and the world's best 'chip butty' - see below! 

chip butty @ Pegasus Inn, Christchurch

 After eating well, we headed to look around this beautiful city that was devastated by the Earthquake in February 2011. It was a Friday evening, but the city was quiet, and the area known at the RED ZONE (Central Business District) has been shut off. Garret stared talking to some random people who talked about their experience of the quake, and they explained that the force of the quake, almost pushed up through buildings, causing damage to the foundations of many buildings, as much as shaking them. So some building are being cleared to be brought down due to foundation damage. The lady we talked to, said that after the main event, she and her work colleagues were allowed back into their work place to retrieve computers, personal possessions etc... and have not been back in the building since. The city had an eerie feel, like it was semi-deserted, and the central zone looked like something out of a movie - totally empty...  

Worker taking a break! 

Red Zone Christchurch

Red Zone Christchurch

Red Zone Christchurch

Church Damage

The lady then pointed us to one of the few central streets that was open, and showed us one of the ways they city was trying to rebuild itself. These photos show how 'temporary containers' have been used to replace the shops that were no longer safe...

Temporary Banks!

Temporary Shops

As for the rest of the city, it still remained very picturesque, and the parks and many of the houses looked pretty, and in tact. The Sunset near the Botanical gardens was pretty special, as you can see below. 

Christchurch sunset..

Me and Garret had decided to try and find a place to have a drink though this turned out to be more difficult than you might think. We had been tipped off that we needed to head outside the city centre, and after 20 minutes, we found a 'local' pub that looked more like a Carvary - full of families and older folk eating... not quite what we were looking for. We finally found a place that looked like a bar... and after some beer/ crushed pear cider (classy I know!) we got chatting to some locals, who gave us some more quake stories. We eventually ended up in a make-shift bar (made out of a bus) with some lights and stools around it, before heading off to bed. My room in the hostel was shared with three late arriving older Argentinian women, who helped me to practice my Spanish, and a young guy, who clearly didn't know dorm room etiquette, as he hit his 'snooze' button 3 times (in a bloody dorm room!) on Saturday morning.

On to Ashburton! - a small town one hour drive from Christchurch. I was heading that way to meet someone I had recently met only online, - a girl called Hsinlu, who lived and worked in the town. She had suggested visiting a lake a 2 hr drive away - Lake Tepako! After a 07:45 bus and a full English breakfast, I found my hostel for the night, but not quite what I expected. The owner, Howard, (originally from Zimbabwe) admitted that he had overbooked, and there wasn't enough room for everyone, he said he'd sort something out so off I wondered for a little look around.. not much to see, apart from some gardens... see below! 

As Hsinlu arrived to pick me up from the hostel, the owner explained he had arranged for me to stay with a relative of his on the outskirts of town' so he'd drive us there so we knew where to go later! The "outskirts" turned out to be a farm owned by his relatives, and with a very friendly dog, and some lively chickens! Here's some farm views, including views from my bedroom window this morning! 

My room at the farm! 

So on to the main event... (finally I hear you say!) We drove 2 hours+ to the beautiful Lake Tekapo, had fish & chips, walked around and, up to a stunning view point. Words can not adequately describe it, so pictures will do a far better job!

Fish & Chips at the lake....

Up above Lake Takapo

Lake Takepo

Yoga @ Lake Tekapo 

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo & the Southern Alps

The Southern Alps...

 This is a place where you can see the 'Southern Lights' and stars so clearly! Unfortunately the clouds did not allow us to see much, so after a drink and half of a rugby match on TV, we headed back to my farm dwellings, but not before the following sunset!

Lake Tekapo Sunset

Lake Tekapo Sunset

P.s..... ok I know it's a long post, but I did make a promise to an Australian mate of mine, in a phone conversation tonight, that I'd mention them! So hey you Aussie.. this is what you're missing out on!  

Regards from New Zealand! 

Dan

Week 9 - Hurricanes, drugs & a 2 month review!

Me looking happy with my ticket for the Hurricanes vs Chiefs!

Hey Everybody! As I'm writing this post mid-afternoon, that should tell you all you need to know about the weather here this weekend! (Truly awful - wet & windy)! The event of the week had to be going to watch my first live rugby game on Friday night, though my dealings with a drug company this week at work was very informative! Also realising yesterday was exactly 2 months since I'd been here, made me think a little review of the time so far would be a good thing to share with you all... oh and read on for a great book tip....

The official stadium name...

 THE RUGBY! - So, as the clock struck 5pm On Friday afternoon, I headed to Starbucks to meet my friend Iris, before joining some of my work colleagues for a post-work drink in 'Hawthorns' funky little bar next door to work. A post-work drink was a welcome end to the week, which has been busy for everyone within the team, and a great way to de-stress together. Me & Iris headed off to have a quick look at the Cuba Street 'night Markets' which actually had a bit more going on than last week! Anyway,  after a 'deer (venison) sandwich and a german sausage (insert joke as appropriate), we decided we would join 20,000+ other Wellingtonians and head to the rugby. The official name for the 33,000 seater stadium is the 'Westpac' Stadium, though the locals have affectionally named it 'The Cake Tin'. I think it might be because it's perfectly shaped, and has yellow seats, so does kind of look like a cake tin from the air! You can see from the picture below, to get an idea of the place!

For those non-rugby fans (shhhh.. you have to say that quietly here....) the Hurricanes (in yellow) were the home team, and aren't so good this year... and the Chiefs are at the top of the league, so we were not expecting any big win for the home team. The Hurricane's needed to win this final game of the season to stand any chance of making the playoffs...

The first half was quite exciting with early tries, and a close 18-15 lead at half time. The second half started poorly and the crowd began making their own entertainment by doing mexican waves! Me and Iris watched on hoping for a decent finale!

As the clock ticked down, the Chiefs were leading, though the Hurricanes had a chance to catch up with this kick.... (see video below)

Then with the 80 minutes up, and the Hurricanes needing one more score to win, they kept the ball alive for almost 3 minutes and looked liked they had scored with the last move of the match... It was not clear, if the guy put the ball down, and even the TV referee took almost 2 minutes to decide if the try was scored.... The reaction from the video below, should tell you what happened....

The players shake hands at the end of the game!

DRUGS - I have seen so many events around the city that I have started to think about ways in which 'we' (Mental Health services) could get involved with mainstream events ( as part of a social inclusion agenda - as opposed to using mental health specific services). My main aim was to try and secure funding for some kind of 'Healthy Living' activities or more specifically, the 'Dragon Boat' races later in the year. In the UK, I was really fortunate to get money from a drug company that supplied anti-psycotic drugs... the reason the funding was available, was because many, anti-psychotic drugs have the side effect of weight gain - which is not a good feature to promoting long term drug use.... I thought I'd try the same approach here, and met with an a 'drug rep' (I won't name the company here). I was told that due to 'media intensity & pressures' drug companies were not able to offer financial assistance as it could be interpreted as bribery, or coercion to use their drugs. I was a little skeptical, to be honest, as I think companies like this have a responsibility to support initiatives that counteract the effects of their products. Part of the explanation was given, talked about the fact that many of the drugs available here are obtained from the USA and American Drug companies have strict rules/responsibilities, as they can tried under US law, even off in another country... again I find this difficult to understand the legal stuff. So basically the drug companies would only offer 'approved resources' - booklets related to healthy lifestyles... which I suppose is better than nothing! So, I have to find other ways to get money for my ideas....

2 MONTH REVIEW - Well, yesterday was exactly 2 months since I touched down to this new country, for a new life. I now have an entirely new life, new routine, new places to hang out, and some breathtaking new scenery! What stands out in the 2 months? Well, the fact that I have lost lots of weight is pretty high up on my list, mainly through walking (not driving), going to the gym, and eating less rubbish. Having so many beautiful places to visit is pretty awesome too. I love the fact that I can eat a full lunch for no more than $10 (£5), and the fact I have a bed that folds up/down from the wall! The things I don't love so much are not many, but watching football in the middle of the night isn't great, books are too expensive to buy in paperback form, and the sense that to go anywhere other than Australia requires a lot of effort to plan, time and money is tough to get used to. (Oh the use of American computer spelling really irritates me... you don't spell organisation or realisation with a 'z') Despite these few things, I have no regrets that I moved out here so far, and am enjoying the challenges in both personal and professional roles! 

Oh BOOK TIP: I just finished reading a book called 'Love from both sides' by the author Nick Spalding has had me laughing out loud this week! Now I haven't had chance to consult my regular 'chick-lit' associate (Miss Olivia Vida) but I'm pretty sure this comes under the subject of 'comedy dating' rather than girly book! I do recommend it!

Well, good night from Wellington: 

Regards from New Zealand 

Week 8 - Real Earthquakes & 'cold nose syndrome'

unusual name for wine...

Hello Everybody,

There's only one real story to talk of this week and that's the magnitude 7(!!!) earthquake we had here on Tuesday evening. That's a bigger earthquake than devastated Christchurch last year. The difference being this quake was over 320km deep. Whilst watching TV, there was little rumble, and then the entire building shook for 3-5 seconds, followed by 30-50 seconds of small ground rumbles! Now apparently, the duration of this earthquake was very long, so my colleagues told me. Many of my colleagues who live close to the sea, said they heard it coming before they felt it. People reported small items falling from shelves, or glasses of water being knocked over. A few texts (SMS) arrived from friends and colleagues, asking if i'd felt it and was I ok? - (Thanks to those of you for those messages. It was really appreciated). A friend of mine who worked at a nearby hospital told me they had to find a stretcher to take a patient from the operating theaters, as the lift was not working. Now all these issues came for a quake that was so far below the earth. I can only imagine what the feeling is like to an earthquake closer to the surface. As advised by a friend here, before going to sleep that night I made sure I had a torch, shoes, and warm clothes by my bedside, just incase anything happened in the night.

That wasn't the end of the earthquake drama this week. Whilst speaking to a Vibi on Skype on Saturday morning, another floor shaking quake struck the North Island, this time lasting just a few seconds, but a reminder of one aspect of my new life that might not be so easy to get use to.

Seatoun 

So, the pictures above and below this paragraph are from a little suburb of Wellington called Seatoun. It's quite a nice little area with nice big houses, and as you can see, a gorgeous little beach.  I was here with my colleague Louisa who has become my local tour guide, though is soon to be heading to 'London town', so I hope my London friends will show some good old UK hospitality to her when she arrives. It's so hard to explain in words, and even with pictures, just how fresh the air feels here, and what an unusual feeling it is to be somewhere so open, and where there are big spaces between houses. Speaking of the houses... I've mentioned that the housing here is very different, and as nice as the houses are here, they are not insulated in the same way, and many people have to buy additional heaters to keep the rooms warm.. This has led to an unusual phenomena for me - 'cold nose syndrome'.

It's not just houses that causes this affliction - here is a list of places I have experienced an attack of this syndrome... 1) people's houses, 2) the office, 3) even the cinema!!!! The strange thing is that the temperature is not even low... but when different rooms in the same building have different temperatures, you can really feel the difference!     

I do want to mention one more things this week. I got a tip to go to the Cuba Street night markets. I wasn't really sure what to expect as I heard there were stalls of different types of food etc... so I was a little surprised to find just a few stalls, with some jewelry, a parked caravan with burgers, and a 'Crepe' stall. (There were some other things, but you get the impression!) My totally favorite thing though, was the rather random karaoke set up in the little square, where people with little musical ability were singing their hearts out for the small crowd to appreciate.... and take a look at this guy!

I have to say, this is what karaoke is about for me! I prefer to see people just going for it, and especially when it's not to impress anyone and just have fun! Reminds me of some seriously ear piercing karaoke sessions in Vietnam.... just brilliant! I might even have a go myself next week! Any suggestions of songs to sing on New Zealand's streets???

Regards from New Zealand
Dan