The front yard, well part of it.
Looking toward the street (really it's there behind the trees) from the house.
The walkway down the leftside of the house that leads to the main entrance.
OK a tour of the inside of the house. I promised Grandma Mary I would get them up today.
Looking into the dining area from the back/main door. We don't have a front door, which isn't that uncommon here.
The kitchen from the dining area. That door leads to the rest of the house.
Our bedroom. Our window looks out the front of the house. It is really nice though that we have a line of tall trees and the fence that blocks any peepers from the street and gives us privacy.
The sunroom/office/3rd bedroom when needed.
The guest bedroom, now occupied by Lydie, in the back corner of the house.
And the lounge occupied by a bunch of our friends gathered for Charisa's surprise birthday party. Well almost a surprise. Lisa and Shauna were meant to pick Charisa up at 2:30, but didn't show until 2:45. Not a big deal except one of Charisa's coworkers arrived at 2:40. Surprise thwarted. But it was not suspected by Charisa until that point. Which is really good on my part, because Charisa gets so curious (scientists) she has figured out the others I have attempted. Notice Henry being well behaved on only his second day with us. He did steal a cookie from a 1 year old though, but he did it very gently.
Henry and Charisa, I mean Charisa and Henry. Funny how pets can take up so much attention, especially energetic, attention hungry dogs. He REALLY likes to be near you or on you, no coaxing ever required. Good thing Charisa is a cuddler herself and I'm not too cold of a guy either.
Us with friends Hamish and Kim Chalmers, their cat, Roger, and Chuck. Chuck Norris has a bit of a cult status here. Maybe I missed out on that in the US. But they really like him here. Hamish jokingly said Chuck inspired him he's a guy with no acting talent whatsoever who was able to be successful. We really like these folks and have just started to get to know them, but they are moving up to Auckland at the end of the year. Sad.
And Henry. Have you heard we got a dog?
I have a wonderful wife. I really needed some time to myself to gather my thoughts and refocus and recognized that and sent me packing for some alone time. This past weekend was Labour Day weekend here. So, I took off Friday after work on the motorcycle and headed to Hanmer Springs. A little resort town in the mountains about two hours northwest of Christchurch. I stayed at a little hostel for nice and cheap. It's always fun staying at those places because you meet people from all over the world. I chatted with a nice young couple from Manchester, England while we watched an American TV show of course. It is amazing how much American media gets around this world. A majority of the TV shows are American and then British after that. I hate hearing people talk about what was on South Park.
Leaving Hanmer Springs Saturday morning. Headed for the coastal town of Kaikoura. Hanmer Springs is nestled up against the mountains in the background. The Springs in the name is for the huge natural hot mineral water area the town is known for. I actually didn't visit them, but I heard they are quite nice. I just went to bed when I got there.
There are two ways to Kaikoura from Hanmer Springs. I took the way past Mt Leyford, no picture sorry. It was recommended by the mechanic at the petrol station. I had to make sure what a tar sealed road was though. I first thought of a gravel road that had been coated with tar, which they used to do in some areas to keep dust down. That's not a motorcycle type of road. Once again a little language hiccup. The road was completely paved and safe for me. I stopped at this river for an hour or so and just sat at the river's edge and did nothing.
What a great ride! Look at that road! All curves and hills! The whole way between Hanmer and Kaikoura looked like this, even the lack of cars. I saw maybe ten cars total for the two hours it took. Wonderful!
The Pacific Ocean at Kaikoura.
I woke up to much rain on Sunday morning, boooo. I waited until almost noon hoping it would pass, but no such luck. I had to get going though, so I got cold and wet. Similar to a bad day fishing, a wet day on a motorcycle is better than any day at work. It did dry out eventually but was still cold. I did get to enjoy some of the roads I had drooled over when we drove them when Charisa and I visited this area on our vacation to NZ two years ago.
When are you all coming to visit? We would love to share our home and new country with you all.
No comments:
Post a Comment