Lamb Shank Baby!

We all know that the sheep population is large here in New Zealand.  I have heard that there are four sheep for every person.  On the South Island it is ten to one.  As you can imagine there is lots of lamb to eat.  On Sunday, I gave it a go by cooking Braised Lamb Shanks.  As per usual of my cooking experience, I did not have all the proper ingredients so I had to improvise.  Even still this dish was one of the most delicious things I have ever put into my mouth.  I think we are going to try it again for next Sunday, this time with all the right ingredients.

 Here is the link to the recipe if anyone wants to try it:
Braised Lamb Shanks with Caramelized Onions and Shallots

Wellington Fern Globe.....

Or whatever they call it......

The Saga of the Beard

So even before I left the States I started growing out my beard.  I started it to please Mallory who has been asking me to grow a beard for years.  Today, because the darn thing was feeling like a sock around my cheeks and chin, I decided to shave it off.  But I could not do it.  Instead it got a good trimming.

Beard.......

Less Beard.......

 

Guess What This Might Be? (#2)

Here is our next contestant!

Click the photograph to find out what it is.  Its names is in the file name.

Guess What This Might Be? (#1)

Click on the photo and the answer is in the file name......

An Update on the Flat

Here are some new photos of our flat.  Thanks to Salvation Army and other stores the place is coming along nicely.  It is interesting because we want to buy what we need but remember how just recently we sold all of this stuff and someday will probably do it all again.

We made a deal with ourselves that whatever we bought from Salvation Army we would just donate back - so in a way we are just renting the furniture.

Bedroom - shaping up

Kitchen - looking good

Would You Like To Be My Neighbour?

Here are a few more shots of our neighbourhood as well as our flat.  Our flat is coming along nicely as far as decorating is concerned, thanks largely to the Salvation Army and the Warehouse, which is a cross between Target and Wal-Mart.

This is our house - our flat is around the right in the back.

Here are a few photographs of our street and neighbourhood streets.  Everything is basically on a hill/mountain.  From the water level/city center everything goes up.

 This is a shot walking down to the Museum and Adjacent Park

Finally here are a few photos of our "front door" and our backyard

Most homes in New Zealand have no heat, insulation or clothes dryers - although washing machines are pretty standard.  So anytime there is a sunny day everyone rushes to get their laundry done.  In this case the laundry is all ours.

Botanical Garden: Our First Fun Thing

We finally decided to go out and do something touristy yesterday! Thus far we've spend most of our time searching for a place to live, jobs, cheap thrift stores and the best place to buy groceries... oh and sleeping. Since we have successfully crossed of all of the above (well, we've got one job between the two of us) we figured it was time for fun. Here is our walk through the Botanic Gardens in Wellington.

Market Day!

Each Sunday morning until the afternoon there is a great Farmer's Market just down the road from us.  There are many vendors selling fruits and vegetables.  We have tried honey, peanut butter, bread, and sausage.  It is fun trying out new things and trying to figure out what they call things.  It is pretty amazing how fresh things are here.

Here is a look at one of the vendors

Our New Flat - Finally!

After about a week and a half and two days of really sweating it out, wondering what the hell we were going to do next we finally landed a place to live.  It is a small two room (kitchen. bathroom and bedroom) flat in a great neighborhood - walking distance to the center of town.

Mallory in the Kitchen

Our lovely and functional bathroom - but new!

And our bedroom

First Order of Business - A Place to Live

We spent about a week and a half looking for a flat.  It was a bit adventurous because we do not have a car.  So we had to use what ever mode of transportation we could find: walking, bus, taxi and even getting rides from the people showing us the places.

These are some photographs of the views along the way.

Our First Day In New Zealand

After nearly two days of travel and many flight changes we finally arrived in Wellington, New Zealand, a bit tired but excited to check out our new city.

This is a picture of Mallory down by the waterfront - our only picture of the day.