tigerlily
1st January 2008, 03:29 PM
First I have to thank this forum for allowing me to meet so many kind people. A dear friend from this board met us at the airport in Wellington this morning, had groceries ready for us to see us through, took us to the beach for the kids to play and the playground for yet more to keep us awake! Truely the best first day anyone could ask for.
The kids did great on the plane, slept most of it, watched playhouse disney on the inflight entertainment system the rest of the time. I thought it was quite bumpy. The sunrise was as beautiful as I remember it from last time. The landing in Wellington was nice and smooth! I never want to see one of those baggage trolleys again, it was quite a task with the kids often "helping out".
I'm very happy to be here, feel it was the right move for us. This is a lovely city. I adore old houses and this town seems to be full of them. The weather was perfect, everything is blooming and I can't imagine a better time to be in Wellington. Except maybe 2 days from now when you could get a mobile phone because the bank holidays would be over.
For some reason, seeing the photo I took of the boys at the playground today makes me a little sad. It's that they really are here, far away from their many loved ones in America. But they are having lots of fun, wearing their little toolbelts and hammering on the deck outside. It's really my issue, not theirs. They are used to living far away from extended family.
Culture shock is partly the exhaustion of dealing with so many things conciously that you normally don't need to think about. Like how the stove works, why the fridge is freezing your lettuce and how to make strange faucets give you hot water. There is a complete barrage of new information coming in, and the natural tendency is to hide under the covers. Come to think of it, that's a great idea.
Bonus of the day! We saw a penguin on the rocky beach.
The kids did great on the plane, slept most of it, watched playhouse disney on the inflight entertainment system the rest of the time. I thought it was quite bumpy. The sunrise was as beautiful as I remember it from last time. The landing in Wellington was nice and smooth! I never want to see one of those baggage trolleys again, it was quite a task with the kids often "helping out".
I'm very happy to be here, feel it was the right move for us. This is a lovely city. I adore old houses and this town seems to be full of them. The weather was perfect, everything is blooming and I can't imagine a better time to be in Wellington. Except maybe 2 days from now when you could get a mobile phone because the bank holidays would be over.
For some reason, seeing the photo I took of the boys at the playground today makes me a little sad. It's that they really are here, far away from their many loved ones in America. But they are having lots of fun, wearing their little toolbelts and hammering on the deck outside. It's really my issue, not theirs. They are used to living far away from extended family.
Culture shock is partly the exhaustion of dealing with so many things conciously that you normally don't need to think about. Like how the stove works, why the fridge is freezing your lettuce and how to make strange faucets give you hot water. There is a complete barrage of new information coming in, and the natural tendency is to hide under the covers. Come to think of it, that's a great idea.
Bonus of the day! We saw a penguin on the rocky beach.