How long?
21 January 2009
Lollygagger: Sunny seventies
"How long?" We'll be in New Zealand about six months. Opua is a gorgeous spot, but the basic services are spread out over several towns and there is alsoa shortage of yacht repair facilities. An overnight sail south + two hours up river brought Argonaut to the town of Whangarei (Whong-ga-ray) wherewe can more easily whittle down the list of boat projects.
First on the list is a new mainsail. The old one is twenty years old and like most of us of a certain age - is getting a little baggy and wrinkled. The quote I recieved was a shocker. It was so reasonable I had to hide my glee at the risk of seeing the price suddenly escalate.
Wages in New Zealand are low by US standards and the Kiwi dollar is fifty eight cents to our buck. All told, the cost of living is a lot lower than I expected, especially after the pillaging we suffered in French Polynesia! Holy... #*%!!!
I think that the Kiwis are finally living down their near legendary reputation for serving blah cuisine. What you can't find here, though, is a good burger joint. Other than that, the meat and fish is terrific. Far ahead of the flavoured cardboard and smelly fish found in US markets. Produce is also top quality... and cheap! I've been going crazy in the galley. Mussels, rack of lamb, Snapper... Yum.
We just bought a van for exploring farther afield in the coming two months. Used vehicles are dirt cheap and I'm getting the hang of driving on the other side of the road. It was really tense for the first few days. I still turn on the wipers every time I go for the turn signals, but that just warns everyone that I'm a Yank behind the wheel!
I'll try to update the blog weekly from now on. We have a new camera and will be taking the van on a big road trip next month.
Ta-ta,
Lollygagger