27/09/2008

Holidays?

School
Life at school is getting a little bit hectic lately. All the assignments need to be handed in at the last moment and a lot of the information needed was only available just in time. So, not able to plan a lot ahead and this has forced me to get into the Kiwi-style of organising – I must admit that I am getting better and better at it. My desk at home, however, looks great these days with some tulips from the landlord's garden.

I have mentioned before that the subjects for this semester are not the easiest, most ‘sexy’ ones and therefore we struggle a bit at times. It will be interesting to see how many of our class of 25 will pass all of the exams and be back for the second year in Feb’09.

Finally, on Friday 19 September we have a break in our schedule and I really feel like holiday, I organise a basic wine tasting at our house. It was again a very enjoyable gathering, but unfortunately we have to send the guests away around midnight to not annoy our landlord too much. For me that wasn’t bad anyhow, since I have to get up early to fly to Wellington

My week in Wellington
Saturday
Since I have the car in Blenheim, Marco rented a car for two days so we could explore the Wellington region. On Saturday he picked me up from the airport (what a luxury in stead of having to go on two buses) and we headed for the Wairarapa. Here we started with some coffee at the Martinborough Hotel and spent the rest of the day tasting wines at different wineries. For me it was very interesting to hear the different philosophies and types of wines. This area is especially famous for its Pinot Noir and – although I am not a real lover of Pinot Noir – I have tasted some really good ones here!


In the evening we had dinner with a Spanish friend of Marco’s who comes from a huge wine growing area and family in the wine industry in Spain. We had a nice meal with good Spanish wine!
Sunday
On the Sunday we went to Eastbourne to let the wind go through the hairs. It was a typical Wellington day: grey, windy and some drizzle. Oh, how lucky I am to live in Sunny Blenheim. We also went for a walk on the beach on the Kapiti Coast before heading back to Wellington and to spend some lazy time at home.

Monday
Then it was time for me to do a bit of housework, not too much though, since I had scheduled some meetings. First met up with a good Dutch friend living in Wellington and later on I had a good time – while having a few Daiquiri’s – with three girl friends. We had good laughs and my belly and jaws were still hurting the next day. But a good start of the week, I must admit!

Tuesday
On the Tuesday I even managed to fit in another catch up with an American girl friend, which I had not seen since a while. Another very enjoyable evening out in town! And very relaxing after all the housework.

Wednesday
On the Wednesday I travel out to the Kapiti Coast on the train. I had never done this train trip before, but unfortunately, it was real Wellington weather again, so I did not get a good look at the Kapiti Island etc. I visited good friends in Paraparaumu, whom I had not seen since a long time either. I spent a very enjoyable afternoon and evening and ate ‘Erwtensoep’ (Pea Soup) for the first time of my life. Lovely!

Thursday
Then on the Thursday it was back to assignment writing, but luckily we had an invite at the Spanish friend’s place, so we enjoyed a nice Tortilla (Spanish omelette) and some more Spanish wine.

Friday
On the Friday I had to finalise my schoolwork (I nearly managed to finish one of the three assignments) and after that I headed to the Police Bar where Marco was already having some beers. We were even able to catch up with friends for a little while in the Belgian pub in town before we went to the Town Hall to see the famous Wellington band “Black Seeds” perform (they are heading to the UK soon), see: http://www.theblackseeds.com/hifi.html

Saturday
On Saturday it was brunch time with our neighbours/friends in town which is becoming a kind of ‘tradition’ in the mean time. After which I had to do some shopping in the big smoke. However, some stuff I wanted wasn’t even available in the capital of NZ.

Sunday
Now it is Sunday and the weather looks nice. We might go to Tulip Sunday in the Botanic Gardens before heading to the pub for another Welly Rocks Meeting. After that it will be time for me to fly back to Blenheim!

I could definitely use a holiday now……….. but back to ‘business’ tomorrow. Another two weeks of classes, a week of study and then it is exam time.

Cheers,
Anita

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