Ana&Steve
25th April 2007, 02:29 PM
Hey everybody! We are back home from our 3wk reccy and here is our report, it's a bit long!
We had a bit of trouble in LA, (we flew with Air New Zealand) they loaded us an hour late stating paperwork problems, then left us sitting for FIVE hours, finally admitting there was a hydrolic problem and they needed to fix it. There was no air circulation or food, and the bathrooms were thrashed by the time we took off. We made it, though, and I borrowed a phone to tell Sean and Judy that we were delayed and they checked our flight online and were there in Auckland waiting when we landed.
It was so good to see them and the baby! We stayed with them for a week, and went to Northland for Easter weekend. Judy's Dad and his Kiwi partner Keay also went, and she was an excellent guide. We drove through the Kauri forest and saw NZs largest (not tallest) tree and the Four Sisters www.doc.govt.nz/templates/trackandwalk.aspx?id=36979, and drove around Hokianga harbor. We stayed at the Masonic Lodge in Rawene, a very cute little town http://hokianga.com/rawene/page4.html. The next day we went to Paihia and took a ferry to Russel, and Keay told us quite a bit about the sometimes shady history of the place. Apparently it was NZs first capital city. We headed back to Auckland later that day, tired and happy. It was a great trip with lots of beautiful places. Baby Lochlann did very well on his first road trip!
We flew from Auckland to Wellington, and stayed at the Abel Tasman Hotel for 11 nights. All in all, I give the hotel about a 6 out of 10. It was very centrally located, and we had a nice corner room with lots of windows and a kitchenette. We negotiated a price of $89/night, a pretty ok price for the CBD. On the down side, when I booked I read they had internet access, so we brought the laptop and no phone, thinking to check emails throughout the day. As it turned out, they had two computers in the lobby that they charged 50cents a minute to use and no internet access in the rooms. So we joined an internet cafe that was $30 bucks for 20 hours. (the hotel installed wireless during the time we were there and we didn't find out until we were checking out) They were awful at taking messages for us, we'd find out though emails that people were trying to reach us. ( We really should have found a way to have a cell phone) They were doing construction and revamping the phone lines during our stay (and installing wireless apparently!) so it was a bit noisy and smelled like paint a lot.
Steve went on quite a few interviews, mostly with recruitment agencies, and though we didn't get a job offer, the trip should be considered a success for all the contacts and friends we made. We also learned that meeting people was a far more effective way to get your name out there than recruitment companies seemed to be.
The food was great at all the places we ate, (including Mandy's Sunday lamb roast!) and there is a lot of variety to be had. The veggies are very good, and taste garden picked. We also went to Moore Wilsons and found a lot of deals on food and drink, but I would comparison shop a bit for cookwear and appliances.
We met a lot of very nice people in Wellington. We met up with Mandy and Mark, (Trigirl and MarkS) Jen and Barry, (Jen) Graeme (gpbenton) and Brad (brad103) and they were all very nice and welcoming. We also went to Thursday Night Curry at Daa Wats at Manners Mall www.thursdaynightcurry.com, and The Wellies at The Dog and Bone on Lampton Quay www.wellies.org.nz. We met a lot of IT people there, most with encouraging stories that we gained hope from. We also met Anita (Anita&Marco) at the Wellys Rocks meet, and learned about the Rugby, and met people from other forums, as well.
The weather was mostly good in the time we were there, with 2 cold rainy days (one a week) and a few windy days, but nothing that put us off or ruined any plans. We also met up with Judy's uncle and his family, who on various days showed us around Wellington, took us to the Wellington Museum City and Sea (free!)www.museumofwellington.co.nz, took us up to Mt. Victoria, and showed us suburbs from Johnstonville to Pororua. They had us to dinner at their house in Tawa, and showed us real estate opportunities in their area as well.
We really love Wellington and surrounds, and we hope everything leads us there.
We flew back to Auckland for our last weekend in NZ, and Steve had his last interview on the day we left, with the company Sean works for. We had a tearful goodbye with Sean and Judy, and we hope to see them again soon.
All in all, we had both a fun and a productive trip, but we wish a job offer had come out of it. We'll keep working it from the States, and we will keep trying to get the house sold. We hope to be in NZ for good in a few months.
Ana
We had a bit of trouble in LA, (we flew with Air New Zealand) they loaded us an hour late stating paperwork problems, then left us sitting for FIVE hours, finally admitting there was a hydrolic problem and they needed to fix it. There was no air circulation or food, and the bathrooms were thrashed by the time we took off. We made it, though, and I borrowed a phone to tell Sean and Judy that we were delayed and they checked our flight online and were there in Auckland waiting when we landed.
It was so good to see them and the baby! We stayed with them for a week, and went to Northland for Easter weekend. Judy's Dad and his Kiwi partner Keay also went, and she was an excellent guide. We drove through the Kauri forest and saw NZs largest (not tallest) tree and the Four Sisters www.doc.govt.nz/templates/trackandwalk.aspx?id=36979, and drove around Hokianga harbor. We stayed at the Masonic Lodge in Rawene, a very cute little town http://hokianga.com/rawene/page4.html. The next day we went to Paihia and took a ferry to Russel, and Keay told us quite a bit about the sometimes shady history of the place. Apparently it was NZs first capital city. We headed back to Auckland later that day, tired and happy. It was a great trip with lots of beautiful places. Baby Lochlann did very well on his first road trip!
We flew from Auckland to Wellington, and stayed at the Abel Tasman Hotel for 11 nights. All in all, I give the hotel about a 6 out of 10. It was very centrally located, and we had a nice corner room with lots of windows and a kitchenette. We negotiated a price of $89/night, a pretty ok price for the CBD. On the down side, when I booked I read they had internet access, so we brought the laptop and no phone, thinking to check emails throughout the day. As it turned out, they had two computers in the lobby that they charged 50cents a minute to use and no internet access in the rooms. So we joined an internet cafe that was $30 bucks for 20 hours. (the hotel installed wireless during the time we were there and we didn't find out until we were checking out) They were awful at taking messages for us, we'd find out though emails that people were trying to reach us. ( We really should have found a way to have a cell phone) They were doing construction and revamping the phone lines during our stay (and installing wireless apparently!) so it was a bit noisy and smelled like paint a lot.
Steve went on quite a few interviews, mostly with recruitment agencies, and though we didn't get a job offer, the trip should be considered a success for all the contacts and friends we made. We also learned that meeting people was a far more effective way to get your name out there than recruitment companies seemed to be.
The food was great at all the places we ate, (including Mandy's Sunday lamb roast!) and there is a lot of variety to be had. The veggies are very good, and taste garden picked. We also went to Moore Wilsons and found a lot of deals on food and drink, but I would comparison shop a bit for cookwear and appliances.
We met a lot of very nice people in Wellington. We met up with Mandy and Mark, (Trigirl and MarkS) Jen and Barry, (Jen) Graeme (gpbenton) and Brad (brad103) and they were all very nice and welcoming. We also went to Thursday Night Curry at Daa Wats at Manners Mall www.thursdaynightcurry.com, and The Wellies at The Dog and Bone on Lampton Quay www.wellies.org.nz. We met a lot of IT people there, most with encouraging stories that we gained hope from. We also met Anita (Anita&Marco) at the Wellys Rocks meet, and learned about the Rugby, and met people from other forums, as well.
The weather was mostly good in the time we were there, with 2 cold rainy days (one a week) and a few windy days, but nothing that put us off or ruined any plans. We also met up with Judy's uncle and his family, who on various days showed us around Wellington, took us to the Wellington Museum City and Sea (free!)www.museumofwellington.co.nz, took us up to Mt. Victoria, and showed us suburbs from Johnstonville to Pororua. They had us to dinner at their house in Tawa, and showed us real estate opportunities in their area as well.
We really love Wellington and surrounds, and we hope everything leads us there.
We flew back to Auckland for our last weekend in NZ, and Steve had his last interview on the day we left, with the company Sean works for. We had a tearful goodbye with Sean and Judy, and we hope to see them again soon.
All in all, we had both a fun and a productive trip, but we wish a job offer had come out of it. We'll keep working it from the States, and we will keep trying to get the house sold. We hope to be in NZ for good in a few months.
Ana