Is there a carrot in your stocking, or are you just pleased to see me?

Up the road for Christmas with the family. Only one missing is the brother whose wedding we will attend in March 08. Subject to copyright we may yet post photos.

The old fella in red was very good to us. We had a techie year replete with Barbie Girl (not your ordinary blond bimbo), a PS3 (for the YC and his warbling sister) and a Squeezebox for les parents. The YC has a penchant for discovering and chewing our Cds so we had to commit our musical history to a greater memory than we'll ever have. It all slots in well with the wireless broadband router we already have in situ, but with this new installation of gear I have a feeling we're going to need a Wii for personal health reasons...or maybe just a tinfoil hat.



Enamoured with, and still under the spell of new technology we went for a walk to the Heritage District of this provincial New Zealand town. A not-tooo-bad snack at the Milford Whisky distillery and then a wander back home to mes parents. With some trepidation at purchasing new technology we thought 'what better place to test the depth of penetration' than the local video store.

A quick sweep of the store found us lost and low and behold (or quel horreur), the Cook actually asked for directions!!!! "Do you have any Blue Ray movies?" and low came a curt, abrupt and contemptuous snap back: "No!! The air from her lungs was so haughty that it pushed us towards the door like naughty school kids where a till assistant wished The Cook a hearty 'see ya later.' The Cook, on stumbling out the door in mirth felt like he'd need a cold shower when he got home.

I reinforced blond stereotypes and am forced to admit I didn't catch the drift of what had just gone down (so to speak) until The Cook educated me outside the door. I laughed all the walk home, interspersed with cringes at the thought that the woman had made presumptions of what WE do with our Boxing Day!

2007 comes to a close....

Decided to restart the blog after a long absence. Wanted to be able to host some of the fandamily stuff up here for the crusties....so here goes. The OC finished her year at the school breakup in the Kapa Haka group. She spent half the year calling it "Maori Singing" but has got the knack of it and is fully immersed now and rarely misses a rehearsal. And of course it was the YC's last day at Kindergarten. What an occasion. How far he has come! He is 'ready' for school. But is school ready for him? Although non-verbal, he is starting to show a lot of 'character' and is extremely entertaining when dancing in front of his television. He's coming up to six years old in January and it seems a long long way from this
to this:



- a little boy with a passion for the computer. His parents are giving in and have advised the fat guy accordingly. There just might be some software coming for him from the North Pole via the sweatshops of Asia. We shall see...

The OC takes on "What Now"

The OC and her best mate headed out to Port Chalmers on a cold and wintery Dunedin day to meet up with the "What Now" TV crew. Both girls were extremely excited to have their photo taken with Tamati! Although Tamati looks more excited to be in the photo of the girls in this one! ;-)

City life through music and dance...

Manchester: Found the guy's voice so arresting that I bought their cd. I think they're singing a cover here and if anyone could tell me the original artist I'd be most grateful.

And these people were lovely to listen to on a hot Friday evening in Manchester. Amongst all the conference work I was doing it was lovely to chill out in the bustling city


Then of course, the wonderful Durham. Not the most steady of cameras but a little snatch of what we saw as we approached the cathedral. The OC was very good with doing the coin in the hat thing.

Home again, home again, jiggedy jig

There has been some severe sleeping going on. Not necessarily jet lag, more deflation - Though not of the 'it's all over I'm sad' kind, just fatigue.

If we had a lotto win behind us, I'm sure the crusties could have sustained another six weeks but the OC was missing her cat and her friends, and the YC needed his own bed. We're glad to be home even if the wintery weather was a shock to the system. The last day in Singapore was clear and sunny and so very very hot. Spending our last two nights in luxury at the Furama complete with swimming pool was the ticket. The beds were starchy but unremarkable and again we hung with the locals preferring good old fashioned noodles to Starbucks and Swensons when it came to the food.

We went out and had dinner around the corner from the hotel on the first night and had some Tiger beer, soft drinks and lashings of food for 32 dollars Singapore. Then we came home to the hotel in order to see the band. Three stunning Singapore women and a chap with a pretty cool computer sound system were playing. It was good on the ear but the two g and t's and the two lemonades were 42 dollars Singapore! Given that the NZ to Singapore dollar is pretty close to parity, it brought a tear to our eye. It strengthened our resolve to continue going native!! We didn't even bother looking at a menu from any of the hotel's restaurants from then on.

We considered food on the hop........literally.


The OC was offered a chance of frogs legs and instead of appearing squeamish and doing the faux horror thing, she was suitably circumspect, considered it for a minute then chose the pork dumplings. Perhaps we've entertained her with too much Dr Who. She's just become a little too complacent...even when she watched the Singapore chef 'preparing' the legs at the side of the shop. What HAVE we done? ;-)

Singapore to ChCh was odd in that it was a night flight. Hardly anyone slept and the flat screen tvs in everyone's seats were glowing around the plane. The people in front were ordering Singapore Slings at 4am but we just went for juice. Must be groupthink. The YC was given his (prescribed) melatonin which at least gave him a decent night's kip while the OC, The Cook and I watched as many movies as we could be bothered. Eregon met with the OC's approval for those parents out there who want something for 7 to 12 year olds...even The Cook enjoyed it. Moi? I dined out on "Children of God," "The Last King of Scotland" and two thirds of "Babel" which I'll have to watch on Sky to give the final verdict.

It was two degrees in Christchurch when we landed and has been misty and drizzly at home all day today. All the heaters in the house have been turned on and the lekky blankets are being overhauled for the winter. Och..it's good to be home! Truly!

Final notes:
Firstly we came home to some welcome home signs, some kai and grog on the dining room table and a very clean house. Friends are worth more than a trip overseas and are up there with the Mona Lisa, Eiffel Tower and Amsterdam Canals.

Bless!

There is a tail to this blog. There is more to be said mostly because our posts were necessarily constricted by time limits, internet availability and circumstance so there will be more posts as thoughts are collected and retrospective impressions are formed and the fun stuff as well as the original theme of this blog are acknowledged.

It aint over till it's over....

Last day in the Northern Hemisphere...

Sitting in a Chinese restaurant using free wifi for the last time in London. We're down the West End having ambled via The Thames, Fleet Street and The Strand from the Tower of London.

We've pounded the streets of London a lot over the past few days and have taken in the bustle of the tubes and trains with aplomb.
Yesterday we spent the day at Brighton which was a surprise and a delight. On one side of the hill lies the posh shops of Laura Ashley et al and on the other weave the bohemian type wares of the more hippy district. One of the more crazy things we saw was this:

We asked the woman where they got the name from and of course she replied 'it came from New Zealand.' When we explained that there was in fact no such place she argued spiritedly saying 'oh no...we've had a postcard from there' *sigh* Further up the street there'd been a shop called "Pokeno Pies" - there must have been some New Zild influence here at one stage!

Coveted this wee find but just know it would never fit in the suitcase. Don't know whether there's anywhere in NZ which would sell this, but I'd be in!


Have had a very literary week with a trip to the Globe where I spent not only an entertaining time on the tour, but also in the 'shop' where I bought a couple of things to take back to add to the Eng dept library. I watched the actors rehearse their closing 'jig' for Othello which was amusing given that it has such a sad and hopeless ending.


And now the OC is finely and freely initiated into the world of Dr Who after watching another two episodes of late. She espied this yesterday at Brighton and asked her mother to take this photo:

And what has this got to do with Shakespeare? Well quite a lot actually. Apparently the third series of the new Dr Who has a visit to Elizabethan England and these are the monsters we'll see:




So now we head homeward via Singapore full of new insights and visions, a litle bit of credit card overload and a bucketload of enjoyment. It will be good to get home. We are at the stage where we are looking forward to our own country again and our own bed...and the bedroom floor instead of suitcases ;-)

London Aye

Sitting in a cafe outside St Paul's in London. Decided not to spend the $60 entry fee to see St Paul's not wishing to tempt fate should Jesus pop by and throw another tizz at the money making activities in and about the church. Silly and unnecessary given that Durham was free, this is just a money making venture. And I recommend Durham as the one to see rather than this rort!!! We will instead invest the money on an open bus tour of London today with my brother who has lived here for nearly eight years and is yet to see all the sights himself - as you do!

Managed to see a fair bit of London over the last few days on foot and by underground much to the OC's pleasure. In fact is it the OC who takes us from A to B via the underground - she never looked back from the train spotting in Holland and was totally fluent on Sneltrains, The Stop train, the Intercity and the Sprinter - and is now nearly a licensed train guard.

And remember my snort about the London Marathon!? Well we were in amongst it on Sunday by pure chance. We have a tendency to follow our noses and just go where the spirit moves us, and on Sunday we ended up near the finishing line late in the day. We dipped and dived and wove in and out around crippled runners and walkers on their way to the nearest pub.


Intend on using snippets from Speaker's Corner in my lessons about the language of Oratory. This will be a study of the language and delivery rather than the mindsets of the orators (because frankly I think most were minus a few sheep in the top paddock ). This woman was a case in point:

Yesterday was St George's Day and they're trying here to revive a sense of occasion in celebrating the patron saint of England. It appears everybody celebrate's Ireland's patron saint without any problem. And while we saw some effort made yesterday including a celebration of classic English comedy at Nelson's Column, it appears that there's still some way to go.


And off we go now..Tally ho..as we search for the best deal in Big Red Bus rides.

See you anon

London reprise

In London ensconced at the hotel in the Docklands. Seems we've gone from Coro St to Eastenders! A glorious sunny day here with the promise of 23 degrees tomorrow for the London marathon (all of us have been in training for it of course - that's secretly why I'm here *snort*)

We're at a cyber caf in Beckton having just bought some necessaries and some microwavable dinners as our room has only a microwave - where is Tom when the Cook needs him? ;-)

We plan to do a bit of site seeing in amongst the final 'work' stuff. Hope to get to the British Museum. The OC has developed a real interest in historical artifacts so where better but the repository of some of the best looting an empire can do.


We're having a bit of a rest day today - it's a bit too hot to just walk aimlessly around and London is an expensive place to do things on an urge.

Talking of urges - we managed to spend some money in Rotterdam. We all went shoe shopping and it was a spirited affair. The OC and I were going neck and neck and we've called it a draw. I may have the edge in numbers but the OC has more of the cowhide! The Cook made a commendable attempt but faded on the main straight. I fear his hormones were against him.

What's The Cook whipping up for the last supper?

Our last day of rural living




Fresh air and a range of fresh food to choose from...

And of course we couldn't go past this...

The puzzles

Why are there so many Argentinian Steak houses in Amsterdam? It is baffling - I don't know the connection between this city and loads of beef and cowhide sofas!




The second quandary is this - what's the channel about?


We have 35 channels at T'Eekhhornnest and most of them are in a foreign language - Spanish, French, German, Italian and Dutch. They're entertaining and fascinating but Sterren is just odd. It seems to be a highlight package of all the most crazy music videos to come out of Holland or Europe in the last 35 years. I say 35 because I saw a video of Mississipi in a run of assorted bad hits. It's intriguing and we haven't really met any locals who we feel comfortable enough with to ask them about it. I think it's a talent show but when you watch it you feel that you've been thrown into the past and given a good whack around the head with a pair of pastel lemon shorts and a banana clip. And we watch this so you don't have to!
And then there are the mannequins. I never quite got over mannequins in shop windows after watching Carry on Screaming circa nineteen seventy something.

Found this at a prestige car firm on the Champs Elycee


And then this on the road through Switzerland
And then there are the moments when you really know we live a world away when you look to the sky of a morning and this is the foreign thing you see...

Imagine having all these flight paths to choose from!

Of course there are times when it all gets a bit much and all one wants to do is sleep...and some of us can do it anywhere



Especially after a chocolate fix and some tele with your big blister


We've found Holland very beautiful and very relaxing.



We leave for England again tomorrow night so today is our last day around Soest. We've gone on walkabouts to family haunts although we haven't caught up with any family member directly. It's enough for the OC to know that her father once cycled these streets as a young whippersnapper and that his mother before him paved out her early life here.


We had our last ramble today along to Soest to catch a few last bargains before we pack up and head to Rotterdam tomorrow lunchtime. We say goodbye to the rural life! Rotterdam to Harwich Friday night. To the city of London then, for one final burst before the return to the southern hemisphere!

We are hopeless shoppers...

Found this opposite us at the bus stop at De Birkt. She's obviously an important icon for some families - perhaps they're over run by Van Gogh and want a refreshing change???

We went into Amsterdam on Monday morning expecting it to be quieter - it was but only by smidgeon. It felt hotter than Saturday and the hustle and bustle of the shops wore us out. It was still a fascinating trip, it's just that we wanted to 'go shopping!' and we came away with a snow shaker toy for The OC with a windmill scene and another souvenir of a pink hue (quel surprise!) for around her neck to adorn her Tamagotchi. We'll try the shopping thing one more time when the weather turns, as it appears to be doing this morning.

The Cook perked up his ears at one point in the shopping melee and heard strains of a Dutch Organ percolating through the alleys and so we followed him through to find it. It was unique and added a bit of colour to the experience that was down town Amsterdam. I took a video of it if anyone's at all interested when we return - tis quite a wee... errrr monstrous marvel.

We may yet do a post of some of the busking that we've taken time to record. We bought a Cd in Manchester of a young band who had great voices and mean guitars. It subsequently got a good hearing in the campervan moreso than the freebie the previous occupants had left behind in the cd player. ACDC's greatest hits. Needless to say, The Cook and I laughed for a full 73 kilometres while it thrashed around the van. The OC just looked bemused and not at all alarmed by the music. Found myself thinking of circa 1984 and the parody "Bad News on Tour" with Adrian Edmondson et al.


This was us a week ago. It's nice to be lounging around drinking coffee and having the kids watch CBeebies again as we read the Sunday paper - in English. We're doing the days one about at the moment just that we don't get too burnt out doing the big city thing. So, today we will wander into the little town of Soest for a looksie. This is where The Cook's mother grew up so the OC is to get a wee tour of her Oma's old patch

Sunday, at home.

Saturday: A quick bus ride into Amersfoort where we hopped into the train for Amsterdam little knowing that people had been hopping into things and arriving in Amsterdam for at least a solid 12 hours before we got there at lunchtime.

The place was chocker. It was stinking hot in the very high twenties without a cloud in the sky and no wind. There were gazillions of people who’d come to town for the fine weather and a Saturday out. More obvious were the teams of people identifiable by the fact that they all stuck together and spoke with a Scottish accent and tried to arrange seating for 17 at a restaurant or those wearing naff printed t-shirts advertising that they’re out on a hens night. This lot sounded like they came from England. And then there were the four mad kiwis in amongst it all…suffering from the heat and hunger and just the bustle of the streets. It took us at least an hour of walking around until we finally found a restaurant with a table free.

Pizza, beer and Coke Zero suited each individual and shortly after that we went on a quick scoping mission for our hopefully more leisurely return tomorrow Monday – Imelda must have more shoes.

And now we sit out in the evening heat of Sunday night...the kids are tucked up in bed and we're reviewing our day. We trekked the paths in the neighbourhood of our cottage today and just hung out together. A family ritual has evolved where I now download whatever pictures we've taken for the day and I arrange them as a slide show on the lappy.

We’ve been caught short here today with only a couple of beers in the fridge and absolutely no shops open all day. Fortunately we have some kai for tea but if we had a cat it would have gone hungry. The supermarkets close early on a Saturday night too so you have to be prepared with provisions tucked away.

We had another lovely day and managed to go to bed with quenched thirsts and full tummies due to The Cook’s dash on a borrowed antique bike from the office for chocolate milk and fizz and his spicy chicken (prepared the night before).

A little video from the OC

Took this on Wednesday - The OC may yet follow in Hillary Barry's footsteps. I'm having a few technical problems with it, but bear with me. Again, make a cup of coffee while it plays through the first time (with the sound down) and then come back and watch when it's all in.

Back in Holland for a cup of tea and a wee lie down...

Spot the new accessory?

Had a lovely last morning in Paris catching a quick coffee with a dear friend from days of yore and her new bebe. It seemed completely natural to be sitting chewing the fat over a cup of coffee in the Bois de Bologne camping ground - all was right with the world.
Later in the morning we put on our armour and negotiated our way out of Paris, this time avoiding driving around famous landmarks camouflaged in a metallic whale suit.
We headed for Belgium and a night in whatever turned up - we were aiming to be south of the Dutch border ready to drop off the Whalesuit the next morning. Instead we went off the beaten track as we are wont to do and found ourselves in the Netherlands just out of Breda at a place called Liesbos.

We seem to be on a Mona Lisa kick at the moment with this lovely example complete with clogs suffice to say the OC doubled over with glee and mirth when seeing this:
And it seems that there’s quite a stiff competition going on for window displays – each more extravagant and kitschy than the next:


We were indeed fortunate to be in the countryside opposite a farmer who was ploughing about 40 kilos of ‘compost’ per square metre in to his field. The entire area smelt of the best and worst of country life, which didn’t really matter as it was lovely and mild, and truly just another means of remembering a place you once stayed at.


An uneventful trip to drop the campervan off, the Cook reverting to his bottle washing duties giving the van a good clean inside before we dropped it off. The inspection on return is a little nerve wracking and imagine our surprise when we were told of 130 Euro extra cost for cleaning the interior (which was seriously, a few footprints on the floor from entering and exiting over the last couple of hours). A sharp intake of breath was heard by all while moi….well I just started giggling nervously and the OC joined in although she didn’t know why, while The Cook muttered that he wasn’t bluddy paying that! A quick reference to our copy of the agreement which stated the payment would be for ‘extra interior cleaning’ resolved the matter promptly and everything ended with a smile and a handshake…..which is perhaps just as well.

Then to Rotterdam for half a day in the sun while we worried why the luggage storage at the central railway station wouldn’t accept Aunty Visa. For some hours there we worried that the card had been skimmed somewhere in France perhaps and it wasn’t helped when it appears the system went down when paying for lunch. However dear readers, we have used it since and all seems well. We are now at the Eeekhoornnest which translates as the squirrel’s nest although we have yet to see one. We did see a squirrel and a perky wee beggar he was too but that was in Stratford Upon Avon close by Shakespeare’s grave….uncanny really.

The weather here is warm. It is ten past ten in the evening and I am outside sitting in a t-shirt basking in the warmth. Apparently it is the hottest 13th of April in forty years…and we have three more days of temperatures in the high twenties if the forecast holds true.

Tomorrow we visit Amsterdam