MelissaLG
13th January 2005, 02:57 PM
So we finally made it! :raebanana :raebanana
It has been awhile since we touched ground in NZ, but this has been our fist opportunity to get on the forum (since our arrival we have been busy hunting for a car and otherwise getting settled).
We now have an internet connection, albeit a frustratingly slow one. :(
Rick arrived January 2 after leaving me behind in Los Angeles. Since we booked our tickets at different times, we were unable to get the same flight, so I had to stay behind for a few more days. Of course, that also meant that I had to be the one to drop the animals with the pet shipper, which was harder than I thought. The tears were only slight less bountiful than the never-ending rain during my last few days in Los Angeles. :wah
I left LA on January 3 with an overnight layover in Tahiti, arriving in NZ on January 5. No problem at all with the flights, customs, or MAF, except that I badly pulled a muscle getting one of my bags down from the overhead on arrival in NZ. I could not believe it, because I had managed 2 large suitcases, 2 very large “action-packer” boxes which are these huge 35 gallon Rubbermaid contraptions, a backpack, and a carry-on suitcase all by myself in Los Angeles and in Tahiti (yes, they made me clear customs in Tahiti and then re-check in the next morning) without any incident or injury, until the very end when we landed in NZ and I pull this muscle!! What a pain (literally!!).
For anyone wondering about MAF, I did bring in some food which I declared (I could not help but bring some Del Taco “del scorcho” hot sauce and some Walkerswood Jamaican jerk sauce, in addition to some other stuff), and MAF had no problem with it at all. With regard to Customs, since we have been invited to apply but had not yet turned in our application, we entered as visitors. No problem there and Customs did not seem to know me (e.g., it was not like my name came up with an immigration flag or anything, and neither did Rick’s when he went through).
Once in NZ we settled into a B&B in the Clevedon area (only $90 a night which is far cheaper than even most budget hotels in Auckland at this time of year). The B&B is very close to Auckland (about a 15 min drive from the airport) and, more importantly for us, is close to QPS, the quarantine facility where my pets will be staying once they arrive.
Unfortunately, there was a huge screw-up at my vet’s office and/or the lab where the pets’ bloodwork was sent, and so my poor pets have been delayed in Los Angeles until January 19. Originally they were supposed to leave LA for NZ on January 4. This is resulting in over $2000 worth of charges that we had not expected. Needless to say, we are incredibly dismayed and frustrated. We are also so concerned for our babies being kenneled in LA in addition to the time they will have to be kenneled here in NZ. Thank goodness we have the pet shipper who is taking care of sorting all this BS out for us and who is taking good care of our babies in LA, giving them lots of love. So now we have to fight with the vet to get some of our money back since his screw up has cost us so much extra. Unfortunately, us being in NZ makes it hard to threaten with any sort of force. Well, we will see what happens.
We did have a shock with the prices of cars here in NZ, despite the fact that we had been looking online well before our departure. The reality was just worse than we expected. Also, we did not expect the cars to be so gutless. We did find a great car – a 2001 Mazda 626 station wagon with plenty of power, but the price was too high for us. Advertised at $10995, we probably could have gotten it $9500 or less, but even that was too high. We had planned on spending around $10,000, but with our finances being somewhat in a state of shock over the mess with the pets, we had to think even more budget-wise. So we got a 1996 Subaru Legacy TX-S 4WD station wagon with reasonable power for $5200. As this is only about $3640 USD, we felt pretty good with the deal, and we are so relieved to have the car thing sorted out. Although we ended up buying through a private party, we do recommend the Hammer car auctions and Turner car auctions for anyone coming over and looking for a car. We saw many good deals at the auctions, just nothing that absolutely suited us.
We are off this weekend to spend some time on Waiheke Island with some friends who have a batch over there. Just the relaxation we need! The weather has been quite warm, even when raining. It has rained off and on since I arrived on January 5, but the last few days have really been absolutely gorgeous and quite hot.
We leave the Auckland area on January 21 to travel around a little, first heading up to the Northland area (perhaps doing some diving at Poor Knights Islands as we head that way), then back down to Coromandel. The couple we bought our car from have invited us to hang out on their boat when we make it down that way. After Coromandel, we will check out Rotorua and Taupo on our way to Palmerston North.
We plan to arrive in Palmy January 30 or 31, just prior to our house becoming available on February 1. The property manager assures us that the tenants will leave the house as spotless as when they first moved in, so that I won’t need to do a big cleanup. Let’s hope she is right!
Anyway, this message is way too long and probably boring the pants off everyone, so we’ll end now. If anyone has any questions about anything, just drop us a pm or post it here. If anyone recently arrived is interested in that Mazda, we know the guy selling it, so you can drop a pm about that too. Cheers everyone!
Melissa & Rick
It has been awhile since we touched ground in NZ, but this has been our fist opportunity to get on the forum (since our arrival we have been busy hunting for a car and otherwise getting settled).
We now have an internet connection, albeit a frustratingly slow one. :(
Rick arrived January 2 after leaving me behind in Los Angeles. Since we booked our tickets at different times, we were unable to get the same flight, so I had to stay behind for a few more days. Of course, that also meant that I had to be the one to drop the animals with the pet shipper, which was harder than I thought. The tears were only slight less bountiful than the never-ending rain during my last few days in Los Angeles. :wah
I left LA on January 3 with an overnight layover in Tahiti, arriving in NZ on January 5. No problem at all with the flights, customs, or MAF, except that I badly pulled a muscle getting one of my bags down from the overhead on arrival in NZ. I could not believe it, because I had managed 2 large suitcases, 2 very large “action-packer” boxes which are these huge 35 gallon Rubbermaid contraptions, a backpack, and a carry-on suitcase all by myself in Los Angeles and in Tahiti (yes, they made me clear customs in Tahiti and then re-check in the next morning) without any incident or injury, until the very end when we landed in NZ and I pull this muscle!! What a pain (literally!!).
For anyone wondering about MAF, I did bring in some food which I declared (I could not help but bring some Del Taco “del scorcho” hot sauce and some Walkerswood Jamaican jerk sauce, in addition to some other stuff), and MAF had no problem with it at all. With regard to Customs, since we have been invited to apply but had not yet turned in our application, we entered as visitors. No problem there and Customs did not seem to know me (e.g., it was not like my name came up with an immigration flag or anything, and neither did Rick’s when he went through).
Once in NZ we settled into a B&B in the Clevedon area (only $90 a night which is far cheaper than even most budget hotels in Auckland at this time of year). The B&B is very close to Auckland (about a 15 min drive from the airport) and, more importantly for us, is close to QPS, the quarantine facility where my pets will be staying once they arrive.
Unfortunately, there was a huge screw-up at my vet’s office and/or the lab where the pets’ bloodwork was sent, and so my poor pets have been delayed in Los Angeles until January 19. Originally they were supposed to leave LA for NZ on January 4. This is resulting in over $2000 worth of charges that we had not expected. Needless to say, we are incredibly dismayed and frustrated. We are also so concerned for our babies being kenneled in LA in addition to the time they will have to be kenneled here in NZ. Thank goodness we have the pet shipper who is taking care of sorting all this BS out for us and who is taking good care of our babies in LA, giving them lots of love. So now we have to fight with the vet to get some of our money back since his screw up has cost us so much extra. Unfortunately, us being in NZ makes it hard to threaten with any sort of force. Well, we will see what happens.
We did have a shock with the prices of cars here in NZ, despite the fact that we had been looking online well before our departure. The reality was just worse than we expected. Also, we did not expect the cars to be so gutless. We did find a great car – a 2001 Mazda 626 station wagon with plenty of power, but the price was too high for us. Advertised at $10995, we probably could have gotten it $9500 or less, but even that was too high. We had planned on spending around $10,000, but with our finances being somewhat in a state of shock over the mess with the pets, we had to think even more budget-wise. So we got a 1996 Subaru Legacy TX-S 4WD station wagon with reasonable power for $5200. As this is only about $3640 USD, we felt pretty good with the deal, and we are so relieved to have the car thing sorted out. Although we ended up buying through a private party, we do recommend the Hammer car auctions and Turner car auctions for anyone coming over and looking for a car. We saw many good deals at the auctions, just nothing that absolutely suited us.
We are off this weekend to spend some time on Waiheke Island with some friends who have a batch over there. Just the relaxation we need! The weather has been quite warm, even when raining. It has rained off and on since I arrived on January 5, but the last few days have really been absolutely gorgeous and quite hot.
We leave the Auckland area on January 21 to travel around a little, first heading up to the Northland area (perhaps doing some diving at Poor Knights Islands as we head that way), then back down to Coromandel. The couple we bought our car from have invited us to hang out on their boat when we make it down that way. After Coromandel, we will check out Rotorua and Taupo on our way to Palmerston North.
We plan to arrive in Palmy January 30 or 31, just prior to our house becoming available on February 1. The property manager assures us that the tenants will leave the house as spotless as when they first moved in, so that I won’t need to do a big cleanup. Let’s hope she is right!
Anyway, this message is way too long and probably boring the pants off everyone, so we’ll end now. If anyone has any questions about anything, just drop us a pm or post it here. If anyone recently arrived is interested in that Mazda, we know the guy selling it, so you can drop a pm about that too. Cheers everyone!
Melissa & Rick