Sounds a bit like a pregnancy...
But, its just wedding planning!
Things are going well, mostly. We are quite well organised overall with most of the big things, its the smaller details to sort.
As an advantage, Mark has two other weddings in his immediate family before ours, so by the time I have to worry about a meddling Mother in Law, we will have made all the decisions she could have had some say in!
But, by the same token, I feel like I cant plan anything for the next 6 weeks while we wait for his youngest brothers wedding, because it sounds like they are doing the same colours we had planned... Its ok, we are still flexible. And at least our invites will be out more than 6 weeks in advance! Yep, still havent got an invite to my Future Brother in Laws wedding... Perhaps I'm not actually invited and I should go to Stacey & Mikes instead?? (same day, different city)
Well, I guess that with so little notice of a wedding registry, we can be forgiven for not getting anything from it... I have other plans for my FBIL's very Christian wedding... A honeymoon preparedness kit. And Mum and Dads friends are going to help us out with it! As an added bonus, the morning after BBQ is going to start about the same time we will be leaving, so I get to not be there to try and explain it to the oldies!!!!!!!!!! hahahahaha :)
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Sydney in September
Yikes,
Its been over 3 months since Sydney, and I still havent written it up... Oops!
Well, we had a GREAT time I have to say!
Thursday
On Thursday we had a relaxed morning, sleeping in at home then packing, cleaning up and taking Mark for a haircut before having lunch with Dad who was taking us to the airport for our early afternoon flight. We tried to use the Air NZ electronic check-ins because we had been told that we would have to collect and re-check our bags at Auckland due to changing airlines, but turned out that we could check all the way through at Wellington. Sweet!
Nice weather in Auckland, we wandered over to the International Terminal and looked around for a while before deciding that we may as well clear Customs and wait on the other side for our flight. A Note: If you dont like Burger King (and I dont), make sure you get food BEFORE you clear customs, as BK is almost the only food on the other side!
Our flight to Sydney was on an Emirates A-380
And in honesty, the plane (and the cheap ticket price) had been the entire motivation for the trip! It did not dissapoint. We had a great flight, it was so smooth and the descent caused NO ear issues for me, which was great. Headroom and legroom were great, the food divine and the entertainment system fantastic!
Arriving in Sydney was awful though. I dont like Sydney airport at all - the queues for customs and immigration were horrific, as if they only had half as many staff on as they should have... Once out though, it was a short wander through the terminal to the train into the city, where we discovered that it was still 32 degrees at 8.30pm!! HOT!! Walked around two extra blocks trying to find the hotel because Mark was certain we didnt want to take this block (oh, yes we did!), checked into the hotel, went across the road to get stuff for breakfast and had a reasonably early night.
Friday
After an early wake-up (bodyclocks still on Kiwi time) and then an extra sleep in, we were still up and out of the hotel by 9am to walk down to Circular Quay for the ferry across to Taronga Zoo for my birthday.
We spent the entire day wandering around the zoo, and I took well over 200 photos!
After the zoo, we headed home to freshen up and grab something warm since we would be out for the rest of the evening and wandered down to the Sydney Tower to watch the sunset.
Eventually once it was dark, we went wandering down to Kings St Wharf in hopes of finding dinner, and by the time we sat down for food at Casa Del Nico (very nice!) it was nearly 9pm!! (11pm according to my very hungry stomach!)
Saturday
On Saturday, we wandered over to Central Station with day bags, as we were off to Olympic Park for a swim and then up to Parramatta for some shopping! It was a LONG day, the mall was packed, and it was very hot at Olympic Park. The pool was well worth it, and I just wish I had been able to justify spending some money to make the trip all the way to Parramatta worth it! We wandered down to the river from the mall and caught the cat back to Circular Quay, where we then grabbed the last free tourist bus back to the motel. Dinner was at the pub on the next corner, and was very nice! I have some photos from this day, but they havent been edited and put online yet, so they will have to wait!
Sunday
Again, we picked the wrong day to do things here! Sunday was Syndey Marathon / half Marathon / 10km bridge run day... Our Motel was on the main route, and our destination for the morning was the end - the Opera House!
We went for a tour, just the cheaper one, but it was well worth it, I got to see lots of the inside, and it was stunning (again, photos once I have edited them!). After that, we wandered around to the Rocks for lunch, stopping at a great Turkish Place with a lovely rear courtyard and yummy kebab! Wandered through one of the markets and found some things I would have loved to buy, but I had no cash left and they didnt take credit - and the nearest ATM was... actually, the stallholders couldnt even tell me, which means it was a long way away!
From there we wandered up the hill to the bridge access, so we could walk across, and we also went up the inside of one of the pylons to the very top, which was really neat - again, photos to come! - and well worth the $10 per person we paid to get in! Once all the way across the bridge, we found the nearest train station and took the lazy way back to town!!!
Dinner was at the local Indian Restaurant with Marks Aunt and cousins, which was a LOT of fun! Then it was an early night for us before...
Monday mornings 4am alarm so we could catch the first train to the airport for our morning flight home. Again, Sydney airport was awful! On the flight to Auckland, my down jacket had something milk-like spilt all over it in the overhead locker. Yuck - thankfully no lasting damage! Clearing Auckland airport was MUCH easier than Sydney, they seemed to be a lot better set up for a large influx. Even dealing with Quarantine was ok, although a sniffer dog signalled on my jacket, while Mark was holding the duty-free and carry ons and I was collecting our checked bags! Once explained, that was all ok.
Then all we had to do was wait 4 hours at Auckland airport for our flight home. We could only assume that we picked such a late flight because it was so much cheaper than anything sooner because that was a VERY long wait!!
Its been over 3 months since Sydney, and I still havent written it up... Oops!
Well, we had a GREAT time I have to say!
Thursday
On Thursday we had a relaxed morning, sleeping in at home then packing, cleaning up and taking Mark for a haircut before having lunch with Dad who was taking us to the airport for our early afternoon flight. We tried to use the Air NZ electronic check-ins because we had been told that we would have to collect and re-check our bags at Auckland due to changing airlines, but turned out that we could check all the way through at Wellington. Sweet!
Nice weather in Auckland, we wandered over to the International Terminal and looked around for a while before deciding that we may as well clear Customs and wait on the other side for our flight. A Note: If you dont like Burger King (and I dont), make sure you get food BEFORE you clear customs, as BK is almost the only food on the other side!
Our flight to Sydney was on an Emirates A-380
And in honesty, the plane (and the cheap ticket price) had been the entire motivation for the trip! It did not dissapoint. We had a great flight, it was so smooth and the descent caused NO ear issues for me, which was great. Headroom and legroom were great, the food divine and the entertainment system fantastic!
Arriving in Sydney was awful though. I dont like Sydney airport at all - the queues for customs and immigration were horrific, as if they only had half as many staff on as they should have... Once out though, it was a short wander through the terminal to the train into the city, where we discovered that it was still 32 degrees at 8.30pm!! HOT!! Walked around two extra blocks trying to find the hotel because Mark was certain we didnt want to take this block (oh, yes we did!), checked into the hotel, went across the road to get stuff for breakfast and had a reasonably early night.
Friday
After an early wake-up (bodyclocks still on Kiwi time) and then an extra sleep in, we were still up and out of the hotel by 9am to walk down to Circular Quay for the ferry across to Taronga Zoo for my birthday.
We spent the entire day wandering around the zoo, and I took well over 200 photos!
After the zoo, we headed home to freshen up and grab something warm since we would be out for the rest of the evening and wandered down to the Sydney Tower to watch the sunset.
Eventually once it was dark, we went wandering down to Kings St Wharf in hopes of finding dinner, and by the time we sat down for food at Casa Del Nico (very nice!) it was nearly 9pm!! (11pm according to my very hungry stomach!)
Saturday
On Saturday, we wandered over to Central Station with day bags, as we were off to Olympic Park for a swim and then up to Parramatta for some shopping! It was a LONG day, the mall was packed, and it was very hot at Olympic Park. The pool was well worth it, and I just wish I had been able to justify spending some money to make the trip all the way to Parramatta worth it! We wandered down to the river from the mall and caught the cat back to Circular Quay, where we then grabbed the last free tourist bus back to the motel. Dinner was at the pub on the next corner, and was very nice! I have some photos from this day, but they havent been edited and put online yet, so they will have to wait!
Sunday
Again, we picked the wrong day to do things here! Sunday was Syndey Marathon / half Marathon / 10km bridge run day... Our Motel was on the main route, and our destination for the morning was the end - the Opera House!
We went for a tour, just the cheaper one, but it was well worth it, I got to see lots of the inside, and it was stunning (again, photos once I have edited them!). After that, we wandered around to the Rocks for lunch, stopping at a great Turkish Place with a lovely rear courtyard and yummy kebab! Wandered through one of the markets and found some things I would have loved to buy, but I had no cash left and they didnt take credit - and the nearest ATM was... actually, the stallholders couldnt even tell me, which means it was a long way away!
From there we wandered up the hill to the bridge access, so we could walk across, and we also went up the inside of one of the pylons to the very top, which was really neat - again, photos to come! - and well worth the $10 per person we paid to get in! Once all the way across the bridge, we found the nearest train station and took the lazy way back to town!!!
Dinner was at the local Indian Restaurant with Marks Aunt and cousins, which was a LOT of fun! Then it was an early night for us before...
Monday mornings 4am alarm so we could catch the first train to the airport for our morning flight home. Again, Sydney airport was awful! On the flight to Auckland, my down jacket had something milk-like spilt all over it in the overhead locker. Yuck - thankfully no lasting damage! Clearing Auckland airport was MUCH easier than Sydney, they seemed to be a lot better set up for a large influx. Even dealing with Quarantine was ok, although a sniffer dog signalled on my jacket, while Mark was holding the duty-free and carry ons and I was collecting our checked bags! Once explained, that was all ok.
Then all we had to do was wait 4 hours at Auckland airport for our flight home. We could only assume that we picked such a late flight because it was so much cheaper than anything sooner because that was a VERY long wait!!
Friday, December 18, 2009
meme 2009
Again, inspired by Jane Yehs blog from Stuff...
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
Ohhh… I did heaps of different things this year! Stayed in a 4 star hotel (Rotorua), got engaged (yay!), walked on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, lived with a partner and… yeah, more stuff J
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
hahahahaha. No. I almost kept the year before lasts resolution, to pay off my credit card (we are nearly there!), but more organized, be healthy and do something new and challenging each quarter? Not quite. Almost with the last one at least!
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My fiancés sister had a baby boy. He is very cute, and now both sets of parents have a grandchild, so no pressure! Sweet J
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yep. My step-grandad. Charlie had been married to Nan for as long as my parents have been married. At least we got enough warning to all say goodbye.
5. What countries did you visit?
Australia, and that’s it. Although, that’s a vast improvement on the last ten years… Since that’s how long it has been since I last went overseas!
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
Money to play with! The end of this year is hitting us hard, with various issues that just make Christmas so depressing, and mean we are really pulling a long way back from what we would really like to do for our wedding next year.
7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
18 July – Engagement! Its such a big thing that everything else this year is kinda blown out of the water
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Joining a gym and actually managing to go on a semi-regular basis. Halving my debt, and having a manageable credit card.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Getting a bit lazy on it when work was 6 minutes walk from home and putting on 6kg in 6 months. Still haven’t managed to shift any of it back off yet!
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yeah, I had a fantastic accident up the Mountain at winter solstice! Came off the toboggan funny and wound up giving myself whiplash, then slipped on a patch of ice as I was leaving Happy Valley and compressed my spine to go with it. Ouchies!
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Holiday in Sydney.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
The All Whites. And Marks, for asking me to marry him. J
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Has to be that dickhead Clayton Weatherston. Cant quite believe he is appealing. And appealing what? Not the sentence, not an error in law, but the fact that they found him guilty at all. He so did it.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Bills, debt, food, holiday overseas
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going to Sydney, getting engaged and planning a wedding and marriage to a wonderful man.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?Love Story - Taylor Swift.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) Happier or sadder?
Happier mostly. Much sadder about work – I just don’t like it there anymore
b) Thinner or fatter?
Fatter. Bugger.
c) Richer or poorer?
I have less debt, but also feel like I have less money to play with, especially with the issues we are having, I feel bad when I want to spend money!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Tramping, job hunting (the recession put me off, and I think I have been here probably 6 months longer than I needed to)
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work!
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With my family this year, since we went south to Marks family last year. Much more relaxed affair all around.
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Nope. I fell MORE in love. Different, entirely!
22. What was your favourite TV programme?
I really enjoy Piha Rescue. Good, quality home-grown reality TV.
23. Do you dislike anyone now that you didn't dislike this time last year?
I’m frustrated at the bully-boy tactics of my employer over their staff. Making people redundant and not giving them an end date in the hopes they quit so their redundancy doesn’t have to be paid out… Not nice.
24. What was the best book you read?
Definitely “the Time Travellers Wife”. Only read it last week, and it far surpasses ANYTHING else I have read this year – and I’ve done a LOT of reading! I was seriously sobbing at the end of it, and I gather from friends that this is entirely normal for this book… Cant wait for the movie. Perhaps I should wait till it comes out on DVD so I don’t embarrass myself, and have to walk out of the movie theatre with bright red eyes…
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The fact that Mark has rhythm and can use it on the dance floor, he just needed a little confidence J
26. What did you want and get?
Pretty jewellery (see Q30 here)
27. What did you want and not get?
A new job. Oh well, working on that one again now!
28. What was your favourite film of this year?
Zach and Mirrie was actually quite funny… It’s the only movie that sticks out in my mind from this year… We didn’t go out much!
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Went to Taronga Zoo, then up the Sydney Tower for sunset, followed by dinner at a really nice Italian restaurant on Kings St Wharf. Great day…
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Not having all these money concerns at the end of it. Apart from that, everything has gone really really well this year!
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
If it still fits, wear it.
32. What kept you sane?
I don’t know that “sane” would describe me at the moment… :P
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Johnny Depp. Forever and always
34. What political issue stirred you the most?
Probably a recent one – all this crap around Traffic Cops being “Less than cops”… Cheers for denigrating my Dad and his team who work hard to run traffic safety for events, attend traffic accidents and only ticket people who ARE BREAKING THE LAW.
35. Who did you miss?
My happy self. It seems to be missing at the moment, and I am stuck feeling miserable, fat and depressed.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
The girls at Ceroc that started about the same time as me. Great fun and I look forward to spending some nights dancing in town this summer
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009
When wedding dress shopping, ignore the size label. Totally. In some dresses, I am a size 22. In real life, I’m a 14-16!!
38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year
Right now, its very much Rob Thomas’s Her Diamonds…
"Oh what the hell, she says,
I just can’t win for losing.
And she lays back down.
Man there’s so many times
I don’t know what I’m doin’,
Like I don’t know now"
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
Ohhh… I did heaps of different things this year! Stayed in a 4 star hotel (Rotorua), got engaged (yay!), walked on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, lived with a partner and… yeah, more stuff J
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
hahahahaha. No. I almost kept the year before lasts resolution, to pay off my credit card (we are nearly there!), but more organized, be healthy and do something new and challenging each quarter? Not quite. Almost with the last one at least!
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My fiancés sister had a baby boy. He is very cute, and now both sets of parents have a grandchild, so no pressure! Sweet J
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yep. My step-grandad. Charlie had been married to Nan for as long as my parents have been married. At least we got enough warning to all say goodbye.
5. What countries did you visit?
Australia, and that’s it. Although, that’s a vast improvement on the last ten years… Since that’s how long it has been since I last went overseas!
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
Money to play with! The end of this year is hitting us hard, with various issues that just make Christmas so depressing, and mean we are really pulling a long way back from what we would really like to do for our wedding next year.
7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
18 July – Engagement! Its such a big thing that everything else this year is kinda blown out of the water
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Joining a gym and actually managing to go on a semi-regular basis. Halving my debt, and having a manageable credit card.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Getting a bit lazy on it when work was 6 minutes walk from home and putting on 6kg in 6 months. Still haven’t managed to shift any of it back off yet!
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yeah, I had a fantastic accident up the Mountain at winter solstice! Came off the toboggan funny and wound up giving myself whiplash, then slipped on a patch of ice as I was leaving Happy Valley and compressed my spine to go with it. Ouchies!
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Holiday in Sydney.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
The All Whites. And Marks, for asking me to marry him. J
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Has to be that dickhead Clayton Weatherston. Cant quite believe he is appealing. And appealing what? Not the sentence, not an error in law, but the fact that they found him guilty at all. He so did it.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Bills, debt, food, holiday overseas
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going to Sydney, getting engaged and planning a wedding and marriage to a wonderful man.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?Love Story - Taylor Swift.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) Happier or sadder?
Happier mostly. Much sadder about work – I just don’t like it there anymore
b) Thinner or fatter?
Fatter. Bugger.
c) Richer or poorer?
I have less debt, but also feel like I have less money to play with, especially with the issues we are having, I feel bad when I want to spend money!
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Tramping, job hunting (the recession put me off, and I think I have been here probably 6 months longer than I needed to)
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Work!
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With my family this year, since we went south to Marks family last year. Much more relaxed affair all around.
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Nope. I fell MORE in love. Different, entirely!
22. What was your favourite TV programme?
I really enjoy Piha Rescue. Good, quality home-grown reality TV.
23. Do you dislike anyone now that you didn't dislike this time last year?
I’m frustrated at the bully-boy tactics of my employer over their staff. Making people redundant and not giving them an end date in the hopes they quit so their redundancy doesn’t have to be paid out… Not nice.
24. What was the best book you read?
Definitely “the Time Travellers Wife”. Only read it last week, and it far surpasses ANYTHING else I have read this year – and I’ve done a LOT of reading! I was seriously sobbing at the end of it, and I gather from friends that this is entirely normal for this book… Cant wait for the movie. Perhaps I should wait till it comes out on DVD so I don’t embarrass myself, and have to walk out of the movie theatre with bright red eyes…
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The fact that Mark has rhythm and can use it on the dance floor, he just needed a little confidence J
26. What did you want and get?
Pretty jewellery (see Q30 here)
27. What did you want and not get?
A new job. Oh well, working on that one again now!
28. What was your favourite film of this year?
Zach and Mirrie was actually quite funny… It’s the only movie that sticks out in my mind from this year… We didn’t go out much!
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Went to Taronga Zoo, then up the Sydney Tower for sunset, followed by dinner at a really nice Italian restaurant on Kings St Wharf. Great day…
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Not having all these money concerns at the end of it. Apart from that, everything has gone really really well this year!
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
If it still fits, wear it.
32. What kept you sane?
I don’t know that “sane” would describe me at the moment… :P
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Johnny Depp. Forever and always
34. What political issue stirred you the most?
Probably a recent one – all this crap around Traffic Cops being “Less than cops”… Cheers for denigrating my Dad and his team who work hard to run traffic safety for events, attend traffic accidents and only ticket people who ARE BREAKING THE LAW.
35. Who did you miss?
My happy self. It seems to be missing at the moment, and I am stuck feeling miserable, fat and depressed.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
The girls at Ceroc that started about the same time as me. Great fun and I look forward to spending some nights dancing in town this summer
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009
When wedding dress shopping, ignore the size label. Totally. In some dresses, I am a size 22. In real life, I’m a 14-16!!
38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year
Right now, its very much Rob Thomas’s Her Diamonds…
"Oh what the hell, she says,
I just can’t win for losing.
And she lays back down.
Man there’s so many times
I don’t know what I’m doin’,
Like I don’t know now"
Friday, November 20, 2009
Wedding Dress Shop Fail...
Some days, it just isnt worth it! Today I went to Astra Bridal, hoping to find a dress I loved to help me make my dress decision... At the moment, I have two dresses I like which I cant decide between, so my dream is to find THAT dress so the decision is easy!!
Instead, I came home feeling fat and frumpy. I was put into a torsolette that was at least three sizes too small and then only managed to actually try on ONE dress because everything else that was reasonable was in smaller sizes! GAH!!
At least our venues are sorted... next stop caterers, celebrant and photographer!
Instead, I came home feeling fat and frumpy. I was put into a torsolette that was at least three sizes too small and then only managed to actually try on ONE dress because everything else that was reasonable was in smaller sizes! GAH!!
At least our venues are sorted... next stop caterers, celebrant and photographer!
Friday, November 13, 2009
Hate this feeling...
Have to say, the words to the Rob Thomas song "Her Diamonds" really sums up how I am feeling right now...
"Oh what the hell she says
I just can’t win for losing
And she lays back down
Man there’s so many times
I don’t know what I’m doin’
Like I don’t know now"
Yep. This week, I have felt like a failure, and for no good reason. But I'm just having such trouble shaking it. Fingers crossed a good nights sleep and a pretty hair-do (trial for the wedding) on Sunday might help me feel better...
"Oh what the hell she says
I just can’t win for losing
And she lays back down
Man there’s so many times
I don’t know what I’m doin’
Like I don’t know now"
Yep. This week, I have felt like a failure, and for no good reason. But I'm just having such trouble shaking it. Fingers crossed a good nights sleep and a pretty hair-do (trial for the wedding) on Sunday might help me feel better...
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Weekend in Rotorua
So, back in July Mark and I went to Rotorua for a long weekend. Taking two days off work, and having two short weeks was exactly the holiday I needed!!!
We started well, stopping in Taihape for a really cheap lunch at a really old-school kiwi cafe - pie and sweet slice each plus a bottle of water to share for $10!!!
Then we continued on through to Taupo where it was raining. In fact, it had been kinda miserable all the way round the side of the mountain and the lake. This put a damper on our plans to get out of the car and go for a walk to break up our drive, so we went and found the AC Baths instead... We both agreed that these were far superior to the more touristy De Bretts, being more simple, partly enclosed and FAR cheaper!!!
Our advice?? If you only have an hour or so anyway, book yourselves in to a private spa. You get 45 minutes in the spa, and they are really hot so you wont need it all. They will tell you when you arrive that you dont have access to the main pools, but no-one polices this, so wander to your hearts content! :)
We both agreed that we should visit Hanmer in the winter next year, as it was so nice being in the hot pools with the cooler air around. In fact, both of us had the same idea - Hanmer in the winter would be a cool place to get married...
Soon we were on our way to Rotorua, arriving just on dark to our hotel. We got it cheap on wotif.com. Our hotel room was REALLY warm because it had thermal heating. We dropped our stuff in the room and took the car down the road to Breakers for dinner. Its a lot like cobb n co used to be, really. Nothing that flash, but the meals were HUGE. We both had burgers, and I didnt manage to eat my bun at all!
Saturday dawned cold and drizzly. We wandered down the road a block to the visitor information centre to check out what we could do for the weekend. Its a cool old building I have to say! We bought a pass that got us in to Te Pui, up the Gondola, discount Luge Rides and entry in to the Lake Spa at the Polynesian Spas.
We figured we would head to Te Puia first, since the pass we had was a come and go all day ticket, including a marae show and a tour. I was a bit stupid and didnt bother putting on warm clothes before we headed out, and so made do through until after lunch with just a t-shirt and my goretex coat... We got to see their Kiwi, and watch the geyser, and laugh at their signs which need some editing...
We wandered back in to town for lunch, heading to the mall to get take out. The curry was ok, but nothing fancy. The garlic naan was a plain naan with a bit of garlic butter.
After that, we headed back to the hotel to change into warmer clothes, and because the weather had cleared, we went for a wander through the gardens, past the Museum (Horrendously expensive to get in to! We skipped it this time around) and back to the car, before heading back to Te Puia for another wander to fill in the afternoon.
After that, we went for a soak in the hot pools at our hotel. These were nice, apart from the fact that we had to walk back through the dining room to get to our room... Not so cool!! Mark had decided he wanted to go somewhere "nice" for dinner this night, so we went through the restaurant guide we had picked up in the morning and selected a nice-looking place with a decent menu. It was SO quiet the whole time we were there - we were the only guests!! The food was DIVINE. I had lamb rack and it was definitely memorable.
At the end of dinner, Mark started looking a bit fidgety, which I wasnt surprised at, given he had told me to dress Nicely, and he was wearing one of his nicer outfits, and had shaved... I had a suspicion what was about to happen, and when he started reading me a poem, I knew for sure!! Eventually, through my laughter at his quite fun poem, out popped a box with a very pretty ring in it!!!
So, after that it was time to do the round of phone calls. First person we wound up telling was my brother, Jared, as Mum and Dad purposely handed him the phone to answer it... Then Mum and Dad, and a few other people. It took us until almost 10.30pm to get hold of Marks parents to tell them about it... Considering they knew it was coming!!!
So, by the end of the evening, I could totally understand why Mark had insisted that we do dinner out on Saturday rather than Sunday - He was probably a bit stressed about the looming proposal and wanted it out of the way!!! We ended up going to Lone Star for Champagne and Dessert since there was nothing on the menu at Rendezvous that we liked the look of...
Sunday morning dawned quite clear, so off we went to Skyline Gondola and Luge for the morning. We arrived nice and early to avoid the queues, which wound up being great, as we got a good carpark too, away from the flooding caused by Saturdays rain. We both did the easy track and the medium twice (once on each of the two options). Mark then went and did the advanced - by this stage the queue was long enough that it was a 35 minute wait for a 5 minute ride, so I decided not to bother.
After lunch back in the hotel room, we wandered through the gardens and eventually found our way to my appointment at The Polynesian Spa. We had used both of our multi-pass vouchers to get Mark in to the Lake Spa because my entry in to the spa was included in my massage. I had to arrive an hour before my massage, and Mark came with me then. It was a bit odd... "here is a towel, your robe and your disposable g-string"... What??!? So, the g was because I was getting a hydrotherapy massage and I guess I wouldnt want to get my own knickers wet in that. It was a bit odd going in to the massage room - it looked a bit like that room in Shawshank Redemption where they de-louse the guys, only it had a heater and a bed in it!! They use shower heads above you for the hydro therapy, and if you ever get the chance, I thoroughly recommend it!!!
So, after several hours at the spa, we wound up just getting fish n chips from the first place we could find, and grabbed an early night.
Monday it was time to head south again... Had some interesting driving experiences, like the guy who got angry at us when we came up close behind him and went to look at overtaking, so he slammed on his brakes at us... And the two oversized trucks we had to follow around Lake Taupo...
The intention was that if the weather was nice we would head up the mountain for Mark to do some skiing... It WAS nice, until we got halfway around the mountain on the Desert Road - you can see the cloud creeping in from the south in this shot!
We had checked in at the i-site in Turangi, and the snow report said there were high winds and nearly everything was closed, so we wound up skipping the mountain, and headed straight home. The only other thing that happened was we stopped at Bulls for lunch (yep, we got that far by 1.30pm!) and then in Otaki for shopping, where I discovered that the Bendon shop there doesnt do cubicle service, which sucks when you arent sure what size you are!!!
Home to Mum and Dads for dinner and a glass of nice bubbly to celebrate, and then it was back to work on Tuesday... (Mores the pity!)
So, on to wedding planning now - details to follow!
We started well, stopping in Taihape for a really cheap lunch at a really old-school kiwi cafe - pie and sweet slice each plus a bottle of water to share for $10!!!
Then we continued on through to Taupo where it was raining. In fact, it had been kinda miserable all the way round the side of the mountain and the lake. This put a damper on our plans to get out of the car and go for a walk to break up our drive, so we went and found the AC Baths instead... We both agreed that these were far superior to the more touristy De Bretts, being more simple, partly enclosed and FAR cheaper!!!
Our advice?? If you only have an hour or so anyway, book yourselves in to a private spa. You get 45 minutes in the spa, and they are really hot so you wont need it all. They will tell you when you arrive that you dont have access to the main pools, but no-one polices this, so wander to your hearts content! :)
We both agreed that we should visit Hanmer in the winter next year, as it was so nice being in the hot pools with the cooler air around. In fact, both of us had the same idea - Hanmer in the winter would be a cool place to get married...
Soon we were on our way to Rotorua, arriving just on dark to our hotel. We got it cheap on wotif.com. Our hotel room was REALLY warm because it had thermal heating. We dropped our stuff in the room and took the car down the road to Breakers for dinner. Its a lot like cobb n co used to be, really. Nothing that flash, but the meals were HUGE. We both had burgers, and I didnt manage to eat my bun at all!
Saturday dawned cold and drizzly. We wandered down the road a block to the visitor information centre to check out what we could do for the weekend. Its a cool old building I have to say! We bought a pass that got us in to Te Pui, up the Gondola, discount Luge Rides and entry in to the Lake Spa at the Polynesian Spas.
We figured we would head to Te Puia first, since the pass we had was a come and go all day ticket, including a marae show and a tour. I was a bit stupid and didnt bother putting on warm clothes before we headed out, and so made do through until after lunch with just a t-shirt and my goretex coat... We got to see their Kiwi, and watch the geyser, and laugh at their signs which need some editing...
We wandered back in to town for lunch, heading to the mall to get take out. The curry was ok, but nothing fancy. The garlic naan was a plain naan with a bit of garlic butter.
After that, we headed back to the hotel to change into warmer clothes, and because the weather had cleared, we went for a wander through the gardens, past the Museum (Horrendously expensive to get in to! We skipped it this time around) and back to the car, before heading back to Te Puia for another wander to fill in the afternoon.
After that, we went for a soak in the hot pools at our hotel. These were nice, apart from the fact that we had to walk back through the dining room to get to our room... Not so cool!! Mark had decided he wanted to go somewhere "nice" for dinner this night, so we went through the restaurant guide we had picked up in the morning and selected a nice-looking place with a decent menu. It was SO quiet the whole time we were there - we were the only guests!! The food was DIVINE. I had lamb rack and it was definitely memorable.
At the end of dinner, Mark started looking a bit fidgety, which I wasnt surprised at, given he had told me to dress Nicely, and he was wearing one of his nicer outfits, and had shaved... I had a suspicion what was about to happen, and when he started reading me a poem, I knew for sure!! Eventually, through my laughter at his quite fun poem, out popped a box with a very pretty ring in it!!!
So, after that it was time to do the round of phone calls. First person we wound up telling was my brother, Jared, as Mum and Dad purposely handed him the phone to answer it... Then Mum and Dad, and a few other people. It took us until almost 10.30pm to get hold of Marks parents to tell them about it... Considering they knew it was coming!!!
So, by the end of the evening, I could totally understand why Mark had insisted that we do dinner out on Saturday rather than Sunday - He was probably a bit stressed about the looming proposal and wanted it out of the way!!! We ended up going to Lone Star for Champagne and Dessert since there was nothing on the menu at Rendezvous that we liked the look of...
Sunday morning dawned quite clear, so off we went to Skyline Gondola and Luge for the morning. We arrived nice and early to avoid the queues, which wound up being great, as we got a good carpark too, away from the flooding caused by Saturdays rain. We both did the easy track and the medium twice (once on each of the two options). Mark then went and did the advanced - by this stage the queue was long enough that it was a 35 minute wait for a 5 minute ride, so I decided not to bother.
After lunch back in the hotel room, we wandered through the gardens and eventually found our way to my appointment at The Polynesian Spa. We had used both of our multi-pass vouchers to get Mark in to the Lake Spa because my entry in to the spa was included in my massage. I had to arrive an hour before my massage, and Mark came with me then. It was a bit odd... "here is a towel, your robe and your disposable g-string"... What??!? So, the g was because I was getting a hydrotherapy massage and I guess I wouldnt want to get my own knickers wet in that. It was a bit odd going in to the massage room - it looked a bit like that room in Shawshank Redemption where they de-louse the guys, only it had a heater and a bed in it!! They use shower heads above you for the hydro therapy, and if you ever get the chance, I thoroughly recommend it!!!
So, after several hours at the spa, we wound up just getting fish n chips from the first place we could find, and grabbed an early night.
Monday it was time to head south again... Had some interesting driving experiences, like the guy who got angry at us when we came up close behind him and went to look at overtaking, so he slammed on his brakes at us... And the two oversized trucks we had to follow around Lake Taupo...
The intention was that if the weather was nice we would head up the mountain for Mark to do some skiing... It WAS nice, until we got halfway around the mountain on the Desert Road - you can see the cloud creeping in from the south in this shot!
We had checked in at the i-site in Turangi, and the snow report said there were high winds and nearly everything was closed, so we wound up skipping the mountain, and headed straight home. The only other thing that happened was we stopped at Bulls for lunch (yep, we got that far by 1.30pm!) and then in Otaki for shopping, where I discovered that the Bendon shop there doesnt do cubicle service, which sucks when you arent sure what size you are!!!
Home to Mum and Dads for dinner and a glass of nice bubbly to celebrate, and then it was back to work on Tuesday... (Mores the pity!)
So, on to wedding planning now - details to follow!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
An Update
So, since it has been rather a long while since I last wrote here, I thought I should really do a summary of the year so far...
JANUARY
Mark and I returned from holiday in the South Island, back to work and moved into our little CBD apartment together. Cue me cooking 6 nights a week, a significant decrease in dinners out and date nights, but no driving each other nuts. Yet, at least!
FEBRUARY
Waitangi Weekend was spent in Auckland visiting my very cute niece. We picked up a northbound return vehicle and drove up, staying in Ohakune for Thursday night and visiting the Waitomo Caves on Friday before going to MOTAT on Saturday and up the Sky Tower on Sunday (where we watched a few people jump off). We also visited Sylvia Park (not really that cool at all) and drove to the top of One Tree Hill (which still has NO TREE!!)
MARCH
Mark and I went to the beach for the weekend to celebrate his birthday with a spot of relaxation, which was lovely (and relaxing!). Later in the month I finally crossed another hut off my must-visit list and went to Sunrise Hut in the Ruahines
APRIL
We spent Easter at the beach house with my parents. On the Friday we went for a walk at the Karori Sanctuary and had a great day in the sunshine!
On Saturday we drove out to the beach, to be greeted with a surprise - my brother and his family had driven down from Auckland for the weekend!! Baby and all!! It was very very cool! :)
MAY
May was a very very quiet month. We went tramping at the start of the month to Paua Hut, the club hut in the Orongorongo River valley, which was a rediculously easy trip, and a lot of fun to go with it!!
JUNE
In June, we went to the club lodge for Winter Solstice. The weather was pretty good really, although a bit windy further up the mountain where the lodge is. We went tramping on Saturday to Taranaki Falls, and then to Lake Rotoponamu before heading for a swim in the hot pools at Tokaanu.
We got some stunning views of Ruapehu at dusk on the way back, although they were nowhere near as cool as the sunset shots the others already back at the lodge got! We only just managed to get back to the lodge before it was completely dark, which was lucky, as no-one in our group had a head torch!
On Saturday night there was an 80's themed party, which was tough for me, as I was only in primary school still at the end of the 80's, so my icons of the time are cartoon characters, and I couldnt afford the costumes!! As a plus though, there was a disco ball!
On the Sunday, a group of us went down into Happy Valley to play with some toboggans. I managed to come off mine wrong and gave myself whiplash and concussion... Then, when I had decided to head back up to the cafe, I slipped on a patch of ice and compressed my spine... Needless to say, that was the end of my winter season this year, tramping AND snowboarding!!
JULY
The major event of July was a long weekend in Rotorua. Mark proposed while we were out for dinner on Saturday night. It was really sweet and lovely. We had a great weekend, and it would have been memorable for all its fun even without that piece of excitement... Its been a month now, and I have been so busy with work and stuff, that I havent even edited any of the photos from that weekend... yikes. Perhaps I should do that tomorrow night, since Mark is still away having a week up the mountain...
Anyway, thats most of this year covered off... I promise to start keeping this better from now. Honest.
JANUARY
Mark and I returned from holiday in the South Island, back to work and moved into our little CBD apartment together. Cue me cooking 6 nights a week, a significant decrease in dinners out and date nights, but no driving each other nuts. Yet, at least!
FEBRUARY
Waitangi Weekend was spent in Auckland visiting my very cute niece. We picked up a northbound return vehicle and drove up, staying in Ohakune for Thursday night and visiting the Waitomo Caves on Friday before going to MOTAT on Saturday and up the Sky Tower on Sunday (where we watched a few people jump off). We also visited Sylvia Park (not really that cool at all) and drove to the top of One Tree Hill (which still has NO TREE!!)
MARCH
Mark and I went to the beach for the weekend to celebrate his birthday with a spot of relaxation, which was lovely (and relaxing!). Later in the month I finally crossed another hut off my must-visit list and went to Sunrise Hut in the Ruahines
APRIL
We spent Easter at the beach house with my parents. On the Friday we went for a walk at the Karori Sanctuary and had a great day in the sunshine!
On Saturday we drove out to the beach, to be greeted with a surprise - my brother and his family had driven down from Auckland for the weekend!! Baby and all!! It was very very cool! :)
MAY
May was a very very quiet month. We went tramping at the start of the month to Paua Hut, the club hut in the Orongorongo River valley, which was a rediculously easy trip, and a lot of fun to go with it!!
JUNE
In June, we went to the club lodge for Winter Solstice. The weather was pretty good really, although a bit windy further up the mountain where the lodge is. We went tramping on Saturday to Taranaki Falls, and then to Lake Rotoponamu before heading for a swim in the hot pools at Tokaanu.
We got some stunning views of Ruapehu at dusk on the way back, although they were nowhere near as cool as the sunset shots the others already back at the lodge got! We only just managed to get back to the lodge before it was completely dark, which was lucky, as no-one in our group had a head torch!
On Saturday night there was an 80's themed party, which was tough for me, as I was only in primary school still at the end of the 80's, so my icons of the time are cartoon characters, and I couldnt afford the costumes!! As a plus though, there was a disco ball!
On the Sunday, a group of us went down into Happy Valley to play with some toboggans. I managed to come off mine wrong and gave myself whiplash and concussion... Then, when I had decided to head back up to the cafe, I slipped on a patch of ice and compressed my spine... Needless to say, that was the end of my winter season this year, tramping AND snowboarding!!
JULY
The major event of July was a long weekend in Rotorua. Mark proposed while we were out for dinner on Saturday night. It was really sweet and lovely. We had a great weekend, and it would have been memorable for all its fun even without that piece of excitement... Its been a month now, and I have been so busy with work and stuff, that I havent even edited any of the photos from that weekend... yikes. Perhaps I should do that tomorrow night, since Mark is still away having a week up the mountain...
Anyway, thats most of this year covered off... I promise to start keeping this better from now. Honest.
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