My Adventure in NZ

Saturday – Monday.
Jon drove me up to Heathrow … and between us we found the check-in queue for Air New Zealand. Thankfully, Jon just dashed off back to the car so there was no long drawn out goodbyes, so I was left to get on with queuing, and going through the various palavers of checking in, going through X-ray machines etc.
We boarded the plane at 4pm, and it took off on time. The first half of the flight seemed to go really quickly – I soon became acquainted with the entertainment console and settled back and enjoyed several films, and scoffed plenty of airline food. I had a window seat, and for the first flight from London to LA, and had the aisle (3 seats) all to myself, which was bliss. Had to go through customs in LA, and had approximately an hour in their transit lounge before re-boarding for the 2nd flight. Wasn’t so lucky this time, as I had people sitting next to me. Even worse was that they fell asleep for ages and I was desperate for the loo! After what seemed like an eternity, we arrived at Auckland. The sun was only just beginning to rise as it was 5.30am so all I could see from the aeroplane were the street lights, but was still very exciting.
Another queue to get into NZ, and then I was off to find my ride to Hamilton …

Monday.
The road-cat driver was at Auckland airport to meet me … in my post-flight daze I managed to walk straight past his sign with my name on it, convinced that they were late. Thankfully, I made myself re-check the signs and lo and behold, he had been there all along!!
The drive to Hamilton was pretty surreal. The countryside is soo “English” except for the pampas grasses dotted everywhere. I was very lucky as the driver took it upon himself to be my personal guide and took me around to see the Maori palace, and around suitable residential areas. He also delighted in recommending me places to visit and things to do.

Managed to check into my hotel at 8am, and had grabbed a cup of tea, and a shower to freshen up, and then I hit Hamilton! Managed to discover where the main shopping district was, and then followed that by a relaxing walk along the river. After all that activity I was knackered, so took a siesta before meeting a friend for dinner. She took me out to “Iguana”, which was only about 5 minutes from the hotel. Chatted for ages about emigration, Hamilton etc and before we knew it, it was time to go home!

Tuesday
Interview day! Arrived at Endace at 9.30am, and was greeted by their receptionist. I was directed into a room, and given an IQ test, followed by a psychological test.
Thinking that was it for tests, these were then followed by 2 more!! This was then followed by lunch, and then was interviewed by 4 people. By now it was 2pm and I was starting to flag. After a cup of tea, I was then presented with a laptop, and requested to write some code to perform some timers. By now I’d had enough. I was feeling tired and was finding it hard to concentrate. Needless to say, I really struggled to put some code together, and felt quite frustrated and annoyed with myself that I’d “messed” up. By the time I’d finished it was not 4.30pm so dashed back to the hotel for a quick cuppa before returning to join them for dinner. Dinner was OK, but felt as though it was a bit of a formality, and found it quite a struggle to keep any conversation going. Went back to the hotel after very disappointed, and quite certain that there wouldn’t be any job offer forth coming.
Wednesday.
Lisa, AKA Welshgirl, met me at 10am outside the hotel foyer. Was a little uncertain about spending the whole day with a “stranger”, worried that there would be uncomfortable silences, wouldn’t like one another etc. As it turned out, I needn’t have worried as we had a fab day. Firstly I was taken to their car lot where I was introduced to Taffy – yep, he’s real too! Not at all how I’d pictured him, but very nice none-the-less.

Then it was off to the shopping centre for coffee and cakes with Dawn. Dawn is definitely larger than life, again not at all how I’d imagined, but wonderful. The three of us had a good natter over coffee, before I was whisked off in Dawn’s pose mobile for a tour of the residential areas of Hamilton. I must admit to being a little disappointed in the houses. I was totally unprepared for their proximity to one another, and the sizes of their gardens. Granted, by UK standards they were large, but I had imagined them being bigger and more spread out than they are.

After all that touring we opted for a stroll around Hamilton lake. It was a beautiful day, and the lake was stunning and very relaxing. As Lisa had to rush off, Dawn then took me out to where she lives, which is approximately 10 mins from Hamilton centre but is very rural. As soon as we were outside of the city boundaries, I suddenly realised that I REALLY did want to end up with a rural property – and even more so after seeing Dawns place. Plenty big enough, with land for Willow and the kids to roam, and perhaps even for a vegetable patch.

I got dropped back at the shops, as Jon had texted my his “present” list, so off I went in search of gifts to take back. Didn’t spend too much as whatever I bought, would have to be brought back over to NZ when we finally emigrate.
It was as I was wandering around the shops, pondering about what to get for my dinner, that Lisa offered to take me to hers for dinner, which I gladly accepted. There ensued another gas before back to the hotel for bedtime.

Thursday.
Can’t believe that today is my last day in New Zealand. Although I have only been here for 3 days, it seems a lot longer. Got out early and traipsed around the real estate agents, collecting their brochures to peruse back in the UK. Also picked up some local papers, catalogues and a couple more gifts.
Grabbed a cup of tea, and upon scouring my road map, decided to explore the other side of the river, East Hamilton. Was expecting a similar array of shops that are in the CBD, but instead found a collection of smaller shops. Was another beautiful day, so I was more than happy to just stroll around anyway.

I started heading back at 11.30, feeling a little weary. Just before crossing back over the bridge, I opted to take a closer peep at the paddle steamer. Obviously fate, as just as I got to it, there was a 2 hr cruise about to depart, so I bought a ticket and hopped on. Was very serene and relaxing. It chugged up river for a bit, and then turned around and took me an hour down stream. Had my lunch on the boat, whilst watching the river banks, admiring the expensive houses and feeling very “at home”. It docked at 2pm, so I dashed back to the hotel to collect my belongings before the taxi arrived to take me back to Auckland Airport.

Although only brief, I am so thankful of this opportunity to see New Zealand before we finally settle there. My niggles and second thoughts about our decision to emigrate are now gone, and, assuming I can get a job, I’d really like to settle in Hamilton as it seems to tick all the boxes, and has some fantastic residents! The flights were surprisingly OK, although I think we might fork out for Lauren to have her own seat! What really surprised me was how at home and content I felt there, and now I really can’t wait for our Visas to come through.