One big difference between Timaru last year and now in Auckland is that I have to provide my own housing here. A cozy three bedroom house just across the street from the hospital and Botanic Garden was NOT included. Fortunately, we had spent some time in central Auckland before, and booked a comfortable one BR apartment for the first week to give us time to search. We were greeted by headlines like those above and found the rental market quite tight. The population in Auckland is growing, perhaps in part due to people relocating from Christchurch to escape the damage of the quakes.
Fortunately, just around the corner a one-bedroom apartment was available at the
Waldorf Tetra, an 11-story hotel/apartment rental.
We are on the 9th floor, somewhat ominously in unit 911. It isn't exactly what I had fantasized about before coming to Auckland.The micro-environment on the street is mostly mini-marts and small snack shops amidst the buildings of two large schools, the University of Auckland and Auckland University of Technology (so we don't quite match the demographics of the neighborhood). But it is a 15 minute walk to work, affordable, and very close to interesting things in all directions, so it will do nicely.
Let's take a tour.
It is my guess that the two rooms were originally two separate hotel rooms, which would explain the unusual configuration of one-bedroom, two bathrooms (no tubs, just showers: tubs are few and far between in NZ). When you enter, you are immediately in the kitchen space, with a dorm-sized fridge, two burner stove, and microwave (we bought a toaster-oven to broaden our cooking options)..
The living room is quite basic, a love-seat, chair, small table, desk, and cable TV.
One of the two bathrooms is off of the living room.
The bedroom is pleasant with a small table and an armoire.
The best thing about the unit is the view of the ubiquitous Sky Tower, by day
and night.
There is even a peek at the Auckland Harbour Bridge over Waitemata Harbour.
It can get awfully stuffy in the afternoons since there is a lot of pm sun,only two windows in each room open a crack, and there is no AC. But enough complaining.
We are enjoying the advantages of living in the major city in New Zealand. Many acts on their way to tour Australia pass by here. We saw singer-songwriter Nick Lowe last week (I saw him before in 1971 in Munich!),
and Lucinda Williams and Steve Earle will be performing separately this week at venues just a short walk from here.
Easter weekend is a big holiday here. Most people have a four-day weekend, Friday through Easter Monday. I got Friday off (but work Monday). We walked the 6 miles to the top of
One Tree Hill, a site important in NZ history and also a title of a U2 song.
The view from the top was spectacular, to the north overlooking Hauraki Gulf opening eastward to the Pacific,
and looking south to Manukau Harbour emptying west to the Tasman Sea.
Another Easter tradition in this part of the world is the Easter Show. I first heard of it last year when we were in
Sydney, where it is a really big deal. There is one here too, and you could see it from the top of the hill.
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| See the white tents in the center |
It is like a large county fair, with agricultural exhibits mixed with carnival rides, junk food, and random other entertainments (acrobats, strong men, lumberjacks, etc.) ie: good old-fashioned fun.
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| Competitive sheep shearing |
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Adorable piglets
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Easter Sunday we were invited out to Waiheke Island for brunch with the Clinical Director of General Medicine, Dr. Robyn Toomath and her husband John. We feasted on smoked fish cakes, salad, orange cake, and local wine on their sunny deck overlooking the Gulf. It was a gorgeous, perfect day.
We had time to pick up a few seasonal treats on our way back to the apartment.
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| Happy Easter Everyone! |
Next post, I'll write about work a bit.
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