Before I update ya'll on the last couple weeks, I want you to take a moment and ponder something: Groundhog day.

Got that? Now imagine trying to explain this day to people who have not grown up in a country that for some reason or another, has decided it is perfectly acceptable to have a nationally recognized day in which the duration of winter is determined by whether a burrowing, oversized rodent catches sight of its shadow.... It’s an experience, let me tell you. They have seen the movie and they have questions.  “No we don’t get school off for it.” “No we don’t believe the groundhog actually has control of the weather” “yes there is an actual groundhog and yes they do often print the results in the newspaper the next morning.” You guys, groundhog day is doing little for America’s credibility. 

It has been an exciting couple of weeks! Last Friday I had the opportunity to volunteer at the Wellington Brewery Festival: Beervana, and was provided with free entrance to one of the sessions. Coming from a town with a decent sized brewery, I was really excited to learn more about the companies and micro breweries in Wellington and surrounding areas. I was able to attend a couple of seminars and hear from the brewers as well as sample some specialty brews and local food. I have never witnessed so many beards in all my life. We’re talking the-traitor-known-as-Brian Wilson style beards. I wish I had pictures...but that seemed uncomfortable. It was a really nice way to spend a rainy afternoon (the festival, not the beard watching, although that was cool too) and a genuinely cool experience. That evening, I met up with a couple of friends and we headed downtown to listen to a live jazz trio at a local cafe. After a chai and some time listening to the group, we headed to Cuba street for the Friday night food market. We hadn’t made it to the market before and it was only a matter of minutes before we all agreed that it would become a weekly event for us. A delicious roti wrap, chimney cake and some time spent listening to street musicians and chatting later, and I was a very happy girl. After so many weekends out of town, it was great to be able to stay and enjoy Wellington for the night. 

Saturday I woke early for swim practice. I make note of this for one reason: for the first two minutes following my alarm, I hate, hate, hate mornings with an absolute, furry filled, burning passion. I am pretty much a raging storm of anger and disappointment... just a vey sedentary one. After two minutes, I’m totally fine. That said, I believe it is a great accomplishment that I have managed to make it to the pool in the morning at all and just feel the need to publicly congratulate myself for this feat. 

climbing things 

After an earth shatteringly productive morning in which I managed to swim, shower, get produce from the market, clean my room, and do laundry, I headed out with some friends to the far end of the Wellington region for a nice walk at the Red Rocks Reserve. The name is pretty self explanatory: there is a formation of red rocks sticking out of the ocean and its a protected reserve. The walk/hike was a bit longer than we anticipated as the trail head was 4.5 km from the bus stop and not the 2 that we had read online. Regardless, the trail wound along the coastline and was, like everything here, absolutely gorgeous. I would say rain clouds came in as we were walking but to be honest, they were pretty well established before we even got on the bus to begin with. Luckily, the weather remained pleasantly dry and we were excited to find lively tide-pools and fun climbing rock formations along the trail. There is a surprisingly large seal colony that lives a little past the red rocks during the winter and with the wind picing up, I was incredibly jealous of how comfortable they all looked sprawled out on the rocks, protected from the cold by their large blubbery midsections (do seals have midsections? I feel like they are composed of one oval of furry warmth with a face smashed in...). It was a great hike.   

seal! so cute! 

the walk to the rocks/seals 

tide pools! 

Sunday I was scheduled to spend 5 hours helping with the tear down for Beervana but was sent home after just two hours of washing dishes. Considering I had been expecting five hours in the rain, hauling beer stained folding tables and bar stools, this was pretty much the best news I could have received. My early excusal meant I got to go to the market for groceries before it closed (yes, that is in fact three days of markets in a row, but the grocery stores are so much more expensive!), make it to church, and work on an essay for class; because, despite appearances: I do actually go to school.

Wellington wind turbine

The rest of the week was relatively uneventful: swim, class, bible study/surprise engagement party, swim, run, more class and writing of papers: a pretty normal week. Friday morning I turned in an essay and then walked up to the botanical gardens for some quiet time. I had been wanting to hike up the Wellington Wind Turbine but the weather was supposed to be pretty ugly. By the end of my quiet time however, the skies had cleared, the sun was out and it had turned into by far the nicest morning of the week. I decided I really had nothing better to do (other than write another paper...which could totally wait) and set off in what I assumed was most likely, maybe-kind-of, more-or-less-so, in the right direction. This is pretty much my go-to philosophy for getting around and so far, it has worked out quite nicely. The benefits of this flawless form of navigation are twofold; (1) I often get to see a different side of town than expected (on this occasion I toured the not yet visited, lovely Karori suburb), and (2) when I make it to my destination, I consider it a genuine accomplishment and am able to believe I have achieved something worthwhile for the day.  From the top of the hill/mountain, it’s possible to see the entirety of the city as well as a view of the other side of the ocean and harbor. It too-I know this is going to surprise you- was gorgeous.  

 The earthquakes started back up within an hour of my arriving back to my flat. I was in the kitchen making fried rice for lunch and suddenly, could not figure out why in the world the stovetop was making so much noise (if you’re not expecting the ground to move, it can be pretty disorienting). It took me a couple of seconds before I put it together, and then a few more before I realized I should probably do something other than stand in the middle of the kitchen filled with knives and frisbee shaped ceramic plates sitting at face level in not so sturdy shelves. I walked to our common room (don’t worry, I ensured my rice was a safe first...), dropped to the ground and immediately sat back up upon realizing I hadn’t dropped underneath anything. Naturally, the shaking and rolling stopped as soon as I made my way to under the kitchen table. The aftershocks were a fairly consistent fixture for the remainder of the day, with one or two measuring at 6.0 or higher. I’m not going to lie, the whole earth moving of its own accord is getting old real quick.  Earlier tonight, there was a 5.5 shake and my reaction was more or less to sigh heavily as I decided whether diving under my desk was really necessary. This is not a thought process I ever imagined I would have, let alone one I would have several times a day. 

So many beautiful books!

I joke, but in reality, I cannot think of anything I have ever experienced more unsettling than earthquakes. Unlike other natural disasters and storms, there is absolutely no warning when a quake starts. I have a slightly irrational fear that I will be in the shower next time there is a big one and will have to evacuate in a towel... With an earthquake over 6, we are told to expect at least a few days of aftershocks so I’m back to sleeping with a clear path to under my desk, a headlamp next to my bed and a severe aversion to all elevators and scaffolding. I have never been so aware of exactly what hangs over my head, where the nearest sturdy object to “DROP, COVER AND HOLD” with is located, or the precise number of steps to the nearest exit. If I were not doing the exact same thing, it would be highly comical to watch as people walk into a room and survey the ceiling and wall shelves before entering completely. There is a book fair this weekend with over 90,000 (NINTY THOUSAND!) books. They told us we were all brave and resilient for making our way into the city to support the fundraiser. I didn’t tell them that the entire city could be on fire while being attacked by the previously mentioned seal colony grown to Godzilla size,  and I would still be there. There were 90,000 books for the taking! I was in heaven as I spent a solid hour and a half with an equally book happy friend, combing through the tables. Unfortunately, it was in one of the sports arenas and as such, the flooring is the kind that you can move around depending on what the space is being used for. This means anyone who steps with even a little bit more pressure than normal causes the ground to vibrate slightly. Between this and people bumping into tables as they browsed, my experience at the fair involved a good deal of freezing in place, preparing to drop to the floor, and making awkward eye contact with everyone else as they did the same. Paranoia is real. As I have moments of not being able to tell if the building is moving or if I just breathed a little louder than usual, I have developed a highly sophisticated piece of technology that helps me determine the difference...a glass of water sits on the ground and if the water shakes I take comfort in knowing I’m not insane. 

signs downtown. Some are typed...

...some not