Cheeserolls!

The morning we left for the airport we stopped into an iconic café called Little Hut and finally got to indulge in Dunedin's finest junk food: cheeserolls and corn rolls. Little Hut is one of those places that looks like 1975 -- it's so cool. The food was great, though it wasn't the best timing. It was only 9.30 in the morning!

Botanical Gardens and Lunch at Glenfalloch

Yesterday it started out a little chilly but quickly warmed up. The weather here changes on a dime - it's crazy. So when it's nice out, you don't waste any time. We headed over to the Dunedin Botanical Gardens where we had a coffee, and then over to the Otago Peninsula for lunch at Glenfalloch. Loads of people get married here, and you can see why. Despite numerous applications of sunscreen I still managed to get burnt. Great.



After lunch, Iain and I drove over to Carey's Bay, which looks like a fishing village out of 1910. The only indication that it's not is the massive cruise ship that routinely docks there, dumping out heaps of fat tourists.

Speaking of fat tourists, we ended the day's adventures with a Dundedin feast from the local chips shop: fish, chips, fried hotdogs, spring rolls, and fried corn. Delish!

Dunedin pictures

Here are some pictures of the coastline of Dunedin. We had lunch with the Patefields at this really neat little restaurant called Swell. It's one of a number of newer, upscale restaurants that have opened along the coast. We got cheeserolls, but they were gourmet and therefore not what we wanted, the way any gourmet version of favorite junkfood is inevitably disappointing. Iain and I, still in "house mode" checked out their carpets, their bathroom fixtures, their skirting boards, and paint colors.

Worlds Collide!

The in-laws have met the in-laws!

Thanks to Skype, Iain's parents "met" my parents for a Christmas convo. It was actually really fun! And the kids opened their gifts on camera, which is the next best thing to actually being there. Good times all around, which of course made me homesick.

Christmas Day

We went to Gary and Carol's house for Christmas. I should've taken pictures of the food - it was an absolutely incredible spread. Lamb chops, sausages, shrimp kebabs, chicken kebabs, fish, pasta salad, cheese, shrimp dip. The weather was spectacular, as well.

Cat Burgler in Dunedin

We saw this sign a few doors down from the Patefields.

Christmas Morning

We went for a long walk on Sandfly Bay, where we saw sea lions and penguins! The penguins were really far away, because you're not supposed to get close to them or you'll scare them off. The hike was an attempt to burn off some calories before settling into the massive Christmas BBQ at Iain's brother Gary's house. Sadly, we would've had to walk back to Auckland to make up for the food we ate!

Here are some pictures of our walk:


Penguin tracks!

Sea lions!

Dunedin!

Yesterday, after a bit of house-related drama over whether or not to stain our hardwood floors (we chose not to), we packed our bags (Blue helped) and hopped on a plane to Dunedin for Christmas.


Li'l geography if you're interested: Dunedin is on the South Island and Auckland is on the North Island. It's a distance of roughly 1430km / 888 miles (according to Google maps).


Dunedin is like Buffalo, and not just 'cause it's Iain's hometown, boasts inexpensive real estate, and gets snow. It also has awesome food. The best burger in NZ - here in Dunedin. Cheese rolls - a South Island speciality -- we're having those for lunch. We celebrated in style this morning with mince and cheese pies for breakfast.

Last night Iain's parents picked us up at the airport and we headed to their house for a bottle of red and a quick catch up, before retiring to our motel for the night. The weather is supposed to be in the mid-high 20s (~75˚F) tomorrow which is PERFECT for a Christmas BBQ at Iain's brother Gary's house.

We're Back!

I returned home from the US last week. I enjoyed almost two weeks with my family and friends, attending reunions, happy hours, dinners, and BBQs. My mom cooked all of my favorites: crab legs, sausages, steak, devilled eggs, French toast.... I met old friends in NY for an afternoon of mojitos and burgers. In Buffalo, I had lamb souvlaki and fries with gravy. My high school reunion was a blast. I indulged in the best fish fry ever. I hung out with old coworkers and had wings and tequila shots. I got to meet kids who were born while I've been away. Watched reality TV and ordered pasta at 10pm (only in NYC!) On my last night, I ate huge scallops and two fantastic cocktails. I gained 7 lbs. That's okay. It was totally worth it. I'm already super psyched for 2010 (although I'll have to skip the NYC portion next year).

A few things I learned from this first trip home:

1. Pack light. Airline regulations are super strict about excess baggage, and this left me virtually unable to shop for fear of going over my weight limit.
2. I forgot how awesome shopping in the US is. Perhaps I'll arrive with an empty suitcase next year!
3. Rent a car so no one has to chauffeur me around (thank you Mom, Dad, Kate, Och, and Alex!!)
4. Buy shampoo, etc. when I get there to avoid the extra weight.
5. Leave behind extra jewelry, pairs of high heels and bathing suits -- I never wore any of it.
6. Try to schedule the trip a bit further into the summer -- I arrived during a cold spell and had only packed sun dresses and t-shirts. One pair of jeans and two long-sleeve shirts had to suffice for like 5 days.
7. If possible, fly Air New Zealand over Qantas. Qantas is cheaper and it shows. No online check-in, long lines, rude employees.

I returned home with mild jet lag. Basically, I'd feel absolutely fine all day except for one or two periods where it felt like someone had slipped an Ambien in my coffee. But I'm doing much better now, which is good since we're absolutely swamped.

Fambily

So, two weekends ago we flew to Dunedin for what was supposed to be a big family celebration. Unfortunately Iain's mom, Pat, caught a horrible case of the stomach flu and was totally wiped out the entire weekend. She was devastated. The good news is, we live here now so it's not like we were here from the US or something -- we'll be getting together again when they come up in November. But it was a shame to miss the big dinner. We're glad that Pat's fully recovered!

In lieu of a classy dinner, Iain and I headed to the local pub with Iain's brother Gary, his wife Carol, and Gary's daughter Andrea and boyfriend Dwayne. We had entirely too much to drink.

We spent the weekend threatening everyone with the DVD slideshow of our USA/NZ roadtrip. After a few drinks at Gary's, we finally brought it out, only to discover that the DVD wasn't in the case. It was really funny -- everyone was SO relieved (except us!)

Dunedin!

Here are some pictures of Iain's hometown, Dunedin. It's:
1) on the South Island
2) a lot colder
3) prettier than Auckland

A Real Dog and Pony Show

No, seriously -- it's a pony chasing a dog around a yard. I could've watched this all day.

Pictures of Dunedin

The water was a little too chilly to swim in (but barely) - think Florida in the winter - but it was still a beautiful day outside. The best part is how everything smells -- it's so amazing.