Figuring out my itinerary for when I go to the States. It's now been a month since Bryce has left, only 2 more months to go! It makes me feel good to know that I'm already a 1/3 of the way into this. I know 2 weeks of it was when Tara was here, but I'm pretty hopeful that the next two months will be fun and will go quickly. Talked with Bryce, Laura, and Geoff forever today, it was good to just hang out.
Had a great Mexican dinner of enchilladas made with refried beans with chipotle, imported from Mexico. mmm.
I was pretty happy to wake up in my own bed this morning, and I've been pretty ecstatic all day just to be home. I would have an eventful sail across the Cook Strait in front of me tomorrow, if I was still on the sail boat.
Update as of 1/7/11: I can now say that this was the day that Laura and Geoff told me they were expecting!! Due in September :-)
Monday, January 24, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Sailing Race to Nelson
I can't tell you how happy I am to be snug in my house right now. woooooeeee! What a weekend.
I couldn't have done everything without the help of people around me. Jacquelyn took me in after work so I could change, and drove me to the marina. Murray and Roger loaned me gear. Roger let me onto his boat for a race even though I'm pretty inexperienced on keel boats still. And I managed to hitch a ride by boat and then by car all the way from The Middle of Nowhere, NZ, direct to the Nelson airport.
On Friday evening I reported to the boat for our overnight race to Nelson. I had already stowed my gear the night before. I tried on a coat that a crewmate had lent to me, but it was a large and went down to my knees. Off I went to the Marine Supply to buy a coat. Altogether my storm gear cost $500. Unfortunately they're sized for men, so although I got xsm, I still swim a bit.
Anywhoo, we set off on the race but immediately were delayed by mild winds.
Check out this picture of the entrance to Wellington Harbour, which usually has very choppy seas. The mirror glass is an indicator of zero wind-- incredibly weird for any part of Wellington, much less this turbulent section.
Night fell and we were far behind the rest of the boats. It was very choppy in the notorious Karori Reef; it was so fun! I Whoo hoo'd but was told by the captain that that scares some of the crew, so I had to shut my trap. Being on that race in the Cook Strait was one of the coolest things I've ever done.
I was the first group allowed to take a 3-hour nap, until midnight. Around midnight, very strong winds came up. In my berth, I passively reflected that I could die. I say passively because I figured there was nothing I could do about it so I just, literally, held tight and enjoyed the ride. The captain came down to the hold and told his partner that he was pulling out of the race, after discussing it with the rest of the crew. The strong winds were too much for everyone, and we were going to hole up in a cove, wait out the winds for a couple of days, and then sail out to Wellington. I had a flight from Nelson to Wellington Sunday evening, but there was nothing to be done about that.
I had taken two dramamine, because the rest of the crew made it sound like everyone would be seasick, and I didn't want to be the novice wuss puking over the side. Well I forgot dramamine make people drowsy, so while sitting near the cockpit I fell asleep (hand firmly clenching a handle), for about three hours, waking up every once in awhile when a particularly hard wave hit. It was one way to get away from the reality of my cold, wet, feet and hands though. At one stage I was woken up by the captain yelling, "Dolphins! Wake up, dolphins!" I finally woke up and everywhere around me were cresting black dolphins coming out of the moonlit water in a big white spray of water. They followed the boat for several minutes. Some of the dolphins were very small. I stayed awake for a few minutes after that. In front of me was the almost full moon in the sky over a pointy island, with the moonlight coming towards the boat along the water. I was too tired to take a picture, but was aware of how lucky I was to see such a thing. The stars were out and I could see Orion's Belt and the Southern Cross quite clearly. We were in the Sounds of the South Island by that point.
Finally, at 5:30am, we found a buoy at a cove and we all went to sleep. I couldn't believe that 6 of us fit so nicely in the boat, but I was actually quite comfortable. I've never been so grateful for how short I am. In the morning, this is what I awoke to: The Marlborough Sounds.
We decided to spend the day going to a restaurant, and then Sunday trying to sail towards Wellington. The winds were not in our favor to head up to Nelson so that I could catch my plane. As soon as we started out, we spied a pod of porpoises; they look so much like small orcas.
I also saw two penguins around the same time.
We heard by radio that there was bad weather at the restaurant, so we sought shelter from the strong gusty winds in a cove that had a few bach's rimmed around the shore. We found a buoy quite close to the largest bach that looked like it was a compound of three or four houses. We broke out the Captain Morgan and had a great time talking. The captain made tuna spaghetti which was surprisingly much better than it sounds!
I woke up the next morning to cold gusty winds, even stronger than the day before. Our boat had circled and rocked quite strongly during the night. The captain said that because of the winds we'd be sailing nowhere today, and that we might get into Wellington Tuesday night.
I noticed that the bach next to us seemed to be loading their motor boat; I decided that I wanted to get on that boat. My crewmates joked with me and told me how unlikely it was that this boat would be going to Nelson, about 70 miles away (where I wanted to go to catch my flight). Nonetheless, I got dressed and packed up my bags, just in case. I didn't eat breakfast so that I could watch for when the boat came closer. Finally it left its mooring and I waved at it, luckily it came over. Roger explained to the two men on the boat that I had a plane to catch in Nelson; and guess what? One of the men on the boat had a flight to catch in Nelson at around the same time as me, and they were happy to take me to the airport. Whooo hoo!!
I jumped on their boat and we were off to French Pass, and then hopped in a car for Nelson. The road was narrow and steep, I was happy to look at the gorgeous views of the sounds below us. The guys were really nice, lawyers with kids my age. I even got to grab a shower at their parents' beautiful home in Nelson, and then caught a ride to the airport. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world to be making my plane.
Home in Wellington, I grabbed the bus and then a taxi home. I can't tell you how relieved I was to be at home. The sail had been wonderful, but it was hard to not know when the weather would let up-- that's the problem with New Zealand, is that the forecast always changes. In the end I had an amazing experience. My fb post today:
I couldn't have done everything without the help of people around me. Jacquelyn took me in after work so I could change, and drove me to the marina. Murray and Roger loaned me gear. Roger let me onto his boat for a race even though I'm pretty inexperienced on keel boats still. And I managed to hitch a ride by boat and then by car all the way from The Middle of Nowhere, NZ, direct to the Nelson airport.
On Friday evening I reported to the boat for our overnight race to Nelson. I had already stowed my gear the night before. I tried on a coat that a crewmate had lent to me, but it was a large and went down to my knees. Off I went to the Marine Supply to buy a coat. Altogether my storm gear cost $500. Unfortunately they're sized for men, so although I got xsm, I still swim a bit.
Anywhoo, we set off on the race but immediately were delayed by mild winds.
Check out this picture of the entrance to Wellington Harbour, which usually has very choppy seas. The mirror glass is an indicator of zero wind-- incredibly weird for any part of Wellington, much less this turbulent section.
Night fell and we were far behind the rest of the boats. It was very choppy in the notorious Karori Reef; it was so fun! I Whoo hoo'd but was told by the captain that that scares some of the crew, so I had to shut my trap. Being on that race in the Cook Strait was one of the coolest things I've ever done.I was the first group allowed to take a 3-hour nap, until midnight. Around midnight, very strong winds came up. In my berth, I passively reflected that I could die. I say passively because I figured there was nothing I could do about it so I just, literally, held tight and enjoyed the ride. The captain came down to the hold and told his partner that he was pulling out of the race, after discussing it with the rest of the crew. The strong winds were too much for everyone, and we were going to hole up in a cove, wait out the winds for a couple of days, and then sail out to Wellington. I had a flight from Nelson to Wellington Sunday evening, but there was nothing to be done about that.
I had taken two dramamine, because the rest of the crew made it sound like everyone would be seasick, and I didn't want to be the novice wuss puking over the side. Well I forgot dramamine make people drowsy, so while sitting near the cockpit I fell asleep (hand firmly clenching a handle), for about three hours, waking up every once in awhile when a particularly hard wave hit. It was one way to get away from the reality of my cold, wet, feet and hands though. At one stage I was woken up by the captain yelling, "Dolphins! Wake up, dolphins!" I finally woke up and everywhere around me were cresting black dolphins coming out of the moonlit water in a big white spray of water. They followed the boat for several minutes. Some of the dolphins were very small. I stayed awake for a few minutes after that. In front of me was the almost full moon in the sky over a pointy island, with the moonlight coming towards the boat along the water. I was too tired to take a picture, but was aware of how lucky I was to see such a thing. The stars were out and I could see Orion's Belt and the Southern Cross quite clearly. We were in the Sounds of the South Island by that point.
Finally, at 5:30am, we found a buoy at a cove and we all went to sleep. I couldn't believe that 6 of us fit so nicely in the boat, but I was actually quite comfortable. I've never been so grateful for how short I am. In the morning, this is what I awoke to: The Marlborough Sounds.
We decided to spend the day going to a restaurant, and then Sunday trying to sail towards Wellington. The winds were not in our favor to head up to Nelson so that I could catch my plane. As soon as we started out, we spied a pod of porpoises; they look so much like small orcas.
I also saw two penguins around the same time.We heard by radio that there was bad weather at the restaurant, so we sought shelter from the strong gusty winds in a cove that had a few bach's rimmed around the shore. We found a buoy quite close to the largest bach that looked like it was a compound of three or four houses. We broke out the Captain Morgan and had a great time talking. The captain made tuna spaghetti which was surprisingly much better than it sounds!
I woke up the next morning to cold gusty winds, even stronger than the day before. Our boat had circled and rocked quite strongly during the night. The captain said that because of the winds we'd be sailing nowhere today, and that we might get into Wellington Tuesday night.
I noticed that the bach next to us seemed to be loading their motor boat; I decided that I wanted to get on that boat. My crewmates joked with me and told me how unlikely it was that this boat would be going to Nelson, about 70 miles away (where I wanted to go to catch my flight). Nonetheless, I got dressed and packed up my bags, just in case. I didn't eat breakfast so that I could watch for when the boat came closer. Finally it left its mooring and I waved at it, luckily it came over. Roger explained to the two men on the boat that I had a plane to catch in Nelson; and guess what? One of the men on the boat had a flight to catch in Nelson at around the same time as me, and they were happy to take me to the airport. Whooo hoo!!I jumped on their boat and we were off to French Pass, and then hopped in a car for Nelson. The road was narrow and steep, I was happy to look at the gorgeous views of the sounds below us. The guys were really nice, lawyers with kids my age. I even got to grab a shower at their parents' beautiful home in Nelson, and then caught a ride to the airport. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world to be making my plane.
Home in Wellington, I grabbed the bus and then a taxi home. I can't tell you how relieved I was to be at home. The sail had been wonderful, but it was hard to not know when the weather would let up-- that's the problem with New Zealand, is that the forecast always changes. In the end I had an amazing experience. My fb post today:
Thursday, January 20, 2011
tired and busy, things are always changing
Pretty exhausted today after staying late all night prepping for the sailing race to Nelson tomorrow.
I've been writing back and forth to my landlord trying to figure out my last day in the house. Goodbye comfy, cute, warm house! You've been so good to us on the tui-filled hill high above the harbour. It's still a few months away, and it's always been hard to stay here since it's far from work and the city, but it's still sad to take steps towards leaving it.
I've been writing back and forth to my landlord trying to figure out my last day in the house. Goodbye comfy, cute, warm house! You've been so good to us on the tui-filled hill high above the harbour. It's still a few months away, and it's always been hard to stay here since it's far from work and the city, but it's still sad to take steps towards leaving it.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Not exactly off to a running start.
A wee bit tired this morning from being up until 3am last night. I was pretty useless for awhile which wasn't fun as I was starving but too lazy to get anything for myself to eat. Finally I got motivated and got a nice house-clean in. Made Dutch Ginger Cake too. It's quite ginger-y. This chick is ready for bed. Tara arrives tomorrow morning!!
Friday, December 31, 2010
Yet another gorgeous day. Mowed the lawn for the first time; took care of the car. Jeez housework takes way longer now that B isn't here to split the chores. I made ginger kisses out of my kiwi baking book for the New Years get together this evening. I was exhausted all day but couldn't sleep (I was up late the night before researching Great White Sharks). ;-) Poor Laura (sis) was messaging me--4am her time and 1am my time-- she works nights now so she tries to keep to the same schedule even when she's not working.
Arrived at Josien and Marc's in time for a fantastic sunset. The South Island was clearly visible.
Doug and Laura were rained out of their camping trip and arrived home late last night after driving 14 hours to get home. We all talked until midnight, and then watched the fireworks in Auckland on tv. We had to laugh when the New Years' tv programming abruptly ended at around 12:10am. 21 more hours until Seattle gets its New Years'.
Arrived at Josien and Marc's in time for a fantastic sunset. The South Island was clearly visible.
Doug and Laura were rained out of their camping trip and arrived home late last night after driving 14 hours to get home. We all talked until midnight, and then watched the fireworks in Auckland on tv. We had to laugh when the New Years' tv programming abruptly ended at around 12:10am. 21 more hours until Seattle gets its New Years'.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Beaches
Woke up to a gorgeous morning. Here's the view outside my front door, I took this picture to send to Grandma after she sent me a picture of the snow she woke up to at her place.
Met Josien in Porirua at Spotlight. I had to buy some tea towels of course; I got the cutest campervan ones, perfect for summer. You wouldn't believe how big those campers are inside that the kiwis camp in. Huge and roomy. Anyways.
I made sure to buy a journal while I was near the Porirua mall; I'm on my 3rd journal now. I like writing in it as I just don't feel comfortable being too open over the internet in this blog.
We stopped to say goodbye to friends before they left on their road trip up north (everyone seems to be going up to the northlands for the holiday). Then finally we were off to "shell beach." That's not it's real name, just the name I gave it.
Josien did great walking the very steep trail down to the tide pools despite being almost 6 months pregnant and wearing sandals. We found lots of pretty paua shells for her. We found live crabs, and even a starfish.
Josien told a great story about how when she was camping in France (I can't get over when my friends talk about "camping in France") she found a ton of starfish on the beach. Before she went to bed she laid them out to dry, but in the middle of the night she heard tons of cats. The cats ate all of them except for a tiny starfish that she saved for years. I like starfish story.
After the beach and a few other random chores (it's fun to be with a pregnant woman when she buys 4-5 bottles of wine-- for guests) we went to her house. Their house is amazing, right on the beach.
When her husband Marc came home, we all went out for a swim. The water was waist deep for several dozen yards out to sea. I jokingly asked Josien if there were sharks in the water, and she said "yes." Then she said that they were great white sharks. (!!) She said not to worry though, that the sharks keep to the island across the way (The island that was clearly visible-- maybe 5 kms away). Naturally I promptly got out of the water. When I got home I researched whether the area really has Great White Sharks and apparently it's true, one was even spotted this time last year on the same part of the beach I was swimming in, in waist-deep water. aaaaagh
Met Josien in Porirua at Spotlight. I had to buy some tea towels of course; I got the cutest campervan ones, perfect for summer. You wouldn't believe how big those campers are inside that the kiwis camp in. Huge and roomy. Anyways.
I made sure to buy a journal while I was near the Porirua mall; I'm on my 3rd journal now. I like writing in it as I just don't feel comfortable being too open over the internet in this blog.
We stopped to say goodbye to friends before they left on their road trip up north (everyone seems to be going up to the northlands for the holiday). Then finally we were off to "shell beach." That's not it's real name, just the name I gave it.
Josien did great walking the very steep trail down to the tide pools despite being almost 6 months pregnant and wearing sandals. We found lots of pretty paua shells for her. We found live crabs, and even a starfish.
Josien told a great story about how when she was camping in France (I can't get over when my friends talk about "camping in France") she found a ton of starfish on the beach. Before she went to bed she laid them out to dry, but in the middle of the night she heard tons of cats. The cats ate all of them except for a tiny starfish that she saved for years. I like starfish story.After the beach and a few other random chores (it's fun to be with a pregnant woman when she buys 4-5 bottles of wine-- for guests) we went to her house. Their house is amazing, right on the beach.
When her husband Marc came home, we all went out for a swim. The water was waist deep for several dozen yards out to sea. I jokingly asked Josien if there were sharks in the water, and she said "yes." Then she said that they were great white sharks. (!!) She said not to worry though, that the sharks keep to the island across the way (The island that was clearly visible-- maybe 5 kms away). Naturally I promptly got out of the water. When I got home I researched whether the area really has Great White Sharks and apparently it's true, one was even spotted this time last year on the same part of the beach I was swimming in, in waist-deep water. aaaaagh
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Sailing and Ice Cream
Well today showed me that I wasn't an idiot afterall for staying in NZ while my hubs ski bums around the West Coast. It was social sailing today. About 5 hours of fun. We sailed a double handed dinghy, a 420-- I took turns crewing and skippering. My boat mate was a little nervous about jybing and I couldn't figure out why; I had never ever worried about jybing before. Well, naturally on my first jyb the boat tipped over. It didn't just tip over, it turtled! Agh! At least Evans Bay, where we were sailing, is deep enough that the mast didn't get stuck at the bottom like it used to in Garbage Bay (Union Bay) at U of WA.
With two other boats, we sailed to nearby Oriental Parade for gelato.
We parked right up on the sand.
We took a leisurely sail back to Evans Bay. I've learned that when it's Sailing Day, you keep the whole day open for the sail, you never know how long you'll be out and there's usually beers at the yacht club afterwards.
With two other boats, we sailed to nearby Oriental Parade for gelato.
We parked right up on the sand.
We took a leisurely sail back to Evans Bay. I've learned that when it's Sailing Day, you keep the whole day open for the sail, you never know how long you'll be out and there's usually beers at the yacht club afterwards.
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