'I can clearly see you're nuts...'

We’ve been blessed by beautiful Autumn weather again here in Auckland.
The leaves are turning gorgeous shades of orange, brown and red, and the sky is blue and crystal clear. I know it’s not going to last forever, so we’re making the most of it while we can.
K’s busy at work, with more travelling coming up. One place he’ll be visiting is Whakatane, which, in the NZ way, is pronounced Fuck-a-tane. As you can imagine, the kids delight in innocently mentioning it as much as possible. There’s also a town called Whakapapa. (Pronounced with the ‘F’ sound rather than ‘Wh’, it sounds like … oh I’m leaving that one alone!) The kids are looking forward to their last few days of school before the Easter holidays. The final day of term has been dubbed Lazy Day, where the students are allowed to bring pillows, blankets and toys, and will spend the day playing games, watching movies, eating popcorn and relaxing. Something tells me that will be one morning I don’t have to nag them to get ready for school!
I’ve been lucky enough to pick up some freelance writing with the much-loved Kiwi magazine, New Zealand Women’s Weekly. I went in to meet the team at their Auckland offices during the week, and they seem like a really nice bunch of people. I’m really looking forward to it – guess I’ll have a reason to throw myself into more Kiwi television now (research purposes of course).
And as the Tastes Of New Zealand experience continues, this week we tried Feijoas for the first time. Also known as pineapple guava, they actually taste a bit like a tart strawberry, and are really lovely.
Unfortunately, not all our Kiwi Cuisine experiences have been positive. New Zealand is home to the world’s first purple sausage. (No I did not make that up!) Imaginatively named named ‘purplos’, they are like cheerios but purple. They’re made from beef, mutton and honey, with a purple casing. They’re supposed to be a perfect snack, and very popular with kids.
Not with my kids though, who pronounced them ‘’disgusting’. And K’s face when he tasted one was priceless. After such a damning verdict, I couldn’t even bring myself to try one.
Luckily, I’m more adventurous when it comes to wine.
The Wine Of The Week isn’t actually a NZ one this time, but with a label like this, how could I refuse?
It’s one of series of Punchline Wines, and comes from South Australia. It was seriously good too. Cheers!

We try Feijoas at last. They're popular in fruit juices and smoothies.

This is what they look like inside.

Purplos. Er ... What The?

Wine of the Week

Their motto is: Life's short. Eat well, drink well, have fun.

Couldn't have put it better myself!

Flu, Fire and Rain

The Little Dude finally went back to school today, after nearly a week off school thanks to flu. We've both been miserable together, with red noses, hacking cough, and aching bodies, heads and faces. Though overall the kids have been healthier since we moved here, Husband and I certainly seem to be coming down with more bugs more often. And when we do get sick - any of us - it certainly hits us hard.

Hence, we're making an effort to be healthier: getting plenty of exercise, eating well, and drinking less alcohol. (Yep, even wine. Haven't you noticed there have been no Wines of the Week lately?)

However, yesterday at the supermarket, my love for a bargain found me purchasing a bottle of Montana Pinot Gris, which came with a free keyring. And since Husband had just been been awarded with a pretty important and hard-to-get qualification for work, there was cause to celebrate. (He's so clever!)

The wine, blended from Gisborne and Hawke's Bay vineyards, was aromatic and delightfully pineappley (is that a word?) It was accompanied by K's famous Japanese Curry and steamed rice. Perfect.

Best of all, Husband chose to toast his achievement with a NZ beer, so there was more for me!

In other news, we're constantly being caught out by Auckland's impulsive weather!

For example, as we left for work and school this morning, the sky was clear and blue. By the time we reached school, a few minutes away, it was raining. "Just a sun shower" said K hopefully. By the time we reached K's work, another five minutes on, the skies burst! Rain hammered down, traffic became chaotic, the skies turned dark, and there was flash-flooding all over the roads. It was horrid!

Just two hours later, the skies cleared. Now we're having a sunny summer-like day, without a cloud in the sky. By this evening it will probably be hot and humid, and the kids will be pestering me for a swim!

As I type this blog, sirens are going off and we're surrounded by fire engines and fire fighters. The building at the front of our complex houses several companies, as well as a gourmet kitchen which runs regular cooking classes. Apparently, someone left the stove on overnight and the place caught fire.

The building was evacuated, with the workers all hanging around on the lawn outside our townhouse while they waited for the all-clear.

What's really funny is that I was completely oblivious until the plumber arrived to fix our broken loo (that's another story!), and brought me up to speed on the drama unfolding just outside our door. Looks like I'm so used to sirens going off in the city, that I tune them out.

Maybe I'm turning into a true Aucklander?

Note: It did turn out to be humid and warm that night. Talk about Four Seasons In One Day ...