Fishing How To

Having never really tried fishing before, I've been very keen since my arrival in New Zealand to try my hand at fishing. However, it really was a Fishing how to?

We set off from Hamilton at 5am, yes a very early start so I was up at 4am! Ouch! My Father-in-Law has a lovely boat called Ankame and we hooked her up to the ute and drove West to a place called Raglan where we launched on what appeared to look like a perfect summers day.

However, once we'd launched, we soon released that the water was very choppy to say the least! I was holding on for dear life and was extremely grateful that the Lord gave me good knees to adsorb some of the bigger swells. After we'd traveled out roughly 20 odd nautical miles, to a depth of around 45 meters, we dropped anchor and set about our days fishing. 

My Father-In-Law commented that lately they've been catching their quoter pretty early on and have sometimes been back on dry land by noon! Therefore although I was a complete novice, I had a hint that they knew what they were doing and felt quietly confident that I'd come up trumps and at least catch a fish. In fact at that stage, I'd have been happy to catch a little one, because then I'd have at least saved face! 

My Brother-in-Law who also attended gifted me a rod! I was stoked with excitement by this time and couldn't wait to get stuck into whatever was thrown at me.

We baited up and dropped the line in. No sooner had I cast my very first cast, I'd got a bite! It was a Snapper! Sure, it wasn't going to win any prizes for size, but I was over the moon! I'd broken my duck (Cricket term) and felt sure I'd now be able to catch more. As the morning progressed, I became more and more confident with the different techniques that both of them taught me. I wouldn't fishing was a hard task to learn, however I would say that it's a hard sport to master! By now I was cutting off my own bait, trying to remember to cut flesh side up, towards the skin. Snapper also love Squid so I even tried some of that too.  You hold the bait in your left hand, assuming you're right handed, and push the hook through, twist, then come back through. So the bait's firmly on the hook. We were using two hooks on the fishing line. So once you'd baited both hooks, you just dangled the line into the Ocean, released the reel, remembering to keep your right thumb over the spool. So as not to get the line all tangled! Of course, I messed that up a couple of times, being a true to form rookie! However, it wasn't such a big deal, as I'd realised my error and caught it before it caused too much of an issue. 

After about an hours fishing, I surpassed all my own personal expectations and scored what I'd call a double hat-trick! Whereby I'd managed to pull out six fish, a mixture of Snapper and some rather beautiful looking fish called a Gurnet or Gurnard (pictured below), in only three casts!

A Gurnet or Gurnard Fish.

Things did go a little quite after that, so we decided to move a bit further out to a depth of 50 meters. In hope we'd catch a few more. My Brother-in-law wanted to have enough not only for normal eating, but also to try out his new smoker!

It was a good call, we anchored now with a small group of other boats. A mixture of small boats and some more larger charter boats. Although the Garmin technology Sonar didn't pick up any specific hits on a shoal of fish, we hit more and more with every single cast. I think all in all, I only lost a couple of the bites I had all day. By now my reeling in action was being timed to perfection and I was pulling up about halfway, then winding the reel on the downward motion and was feeling more and more confident of my own abilities. 

The highlight of the day has to be the sighting of a couple of Sharks! My Brother-in-Law sighted a Blue Shark before we moved to the new 50 meter depth, then about an hour after we'd arrived at the 50 meter mark, a Mako Shark started to hound the boat! It was dead exciting! Just knowing that we were the focus of his attention was amazing. He was clearly attracted to the tiny bits of fish bait we were using, that were being wiped off the deck. So then each time we had a bite, we'd have to frantically reel in because it he'd seen/smelt the fish we were landing, it would have been history! In all the excitement I managed to catch it on a 3 minute video (See below). 

After all that excitement, we decided we'd got enough catch (well within the 10 fish each, plus gurnet, as they don't count towards your quoter), So we headed back to Raglan Bay and took a lovely shot of the sun overlooking the bay.

We then headed back to my Brother-in-Laws house to count up the catch, gut and skin the fish and clean the boat, rods and tackle.

We literally filled up a whole chilly bin full of fish! 

My Father -in-Law with a lovely Snapper!

Some of the lovely Snapper!

The day's catch!

We rounded off the rather knackering day buy stopping off at the local fish and chip shop, where they provide a battering and frying service! What a perfect way to try the fish that I'd caught, literally a couple of hours earlier! I really can't wait for the Christmas holidays now as we're taking the boat to the beach house at Hahei, for many more fishing adventures!

All the family enjoying the day's catch! Straight from the newspaper (as it should be!)

New Zealand Lonely Planet Review

Although we are currently living in Hamilton on the North island, by far the best scenery can be found on the South island. the guidebook starts by profiling New Zealand's history, culture, indigenous people, and environment. Written by quite a diverse bunch authors, including American Tony Horwitz who writes about Captain James Cook, this section provides an extensive introduction to life in New Zealand.

The rest of the book, written by three seasoned Lonely Planet writers, is location specific and focuses on all the South Island has to offer. Well, almost. For some reason, known only to the team at Lonely Planet, the location-specific section starts in Wellington, yes that's right I'm scratching my head too! This does seem a tad bizarre. If this guidebook is all about New Zealand's South Island, why in the world does its opening chapters focus in great detail on the capital city of Wellington, which, as far as I know, is still in the North Island?

Whatever the reason, it means except for a dozen pages discussing 'Active South Island' in the profile section, you will be a third of the way through the book before they've even reach the South Island. But believe you me, it's worth the wait (or read) because the rest of the book is absolutely jam-packed full of South Island goodness, ranging from where to find the cheapest crayfish in Kaikoura to how to bike your way around the wineries of Marlborough, from bone carving in Hokitika to glacier climbing the Franz Joseph and anything and everything in between.

This is an essential read for any would be traveller to New Zealand's South Island!

Immigration To

According to UN statistics, a stagering 200 million people globally lived outside of their native country of birth in 2005. Approximately one-third of these international immigrants resided in Europe. When talking of European migrants, approximately 254,000 immigrated to Africa. 8,730,000 immigrated to the Americas. 6,830,000 immigrated to Asia. 35,395,000 decided to immigrate within Europe. 2,813,000 immigrated to the Oceania region. Finally around 2,149,000 chose to immigrate to Southern hemisphere countries that are still developing.

Taking a closer look on how exactly this translates to the regions of Europe:

Northern Europe - 1,868,000 resided in the Americas. 309,000 resided in Asia. 3,406,000 resided in Europe. 1,605,000 resided in Oceania and 60,000 in the developing South.

Eastern Europe - 2,275,000 resided in the Americas. 5,620 resided in Asia. 18,609,000 resided in Europe. 183,000 resided in Oceania and 1,806,000 in the developing South.

Western Europe - 109,000 resided in Africa. 1,704,000 resided in the Americas. 726,000 resided in Asia. 4,659,000 resided in Europe. 368,000 resided in Oceania and 109,000 in the developing South.

Southern Europe - 100,000 resided in Africa. 2,883,000 resided in the Americas. 183,000 resided in Asia. 8,723,000 resided in Europe. 656,000 resided in Oceania and 173,000 in the developing South.

Source: Migration and Remittances Factbook 2011.

By far the biggest immigration to, has been a shift from the Eastern Europeans to other areas of Europe. Clearly for someone like myself who's only just immigrated from London to New Zealand, It's all too clear to see that the influx of Eastern Europeans has been the most noticeable. It's also interesting to see that in relative terms, African countries still only account for a minuscule amount of European immigration. Also I've noticed a few surprises in respect of Western Europe immigration to the Americas. Figures from a decade or two show an actual decline in those that immigrate to the Americas. Also a levelling out of migrants that immigrate to Oceania countries.

So, where are you thinking of immigrating to? Could it be that you're an Eastern European that's tired of inferior earnings and you want to try your luck over in Western Europe? Maybe your a European that will immigrate to Asia and take advantage of the Chinese market and quite possibly reap the rewards of totally fresh emerging countries like Burma. Perhaps you intend to migrate from Southern Europe and potentially escape the austerity measures countries like Spain and Portugal have to implement and therefore immigrate to Western Europe.

However, you could always do what I decided to do and try your luck in Oceania! Clearly anyone with a trade under their belt will always find decent work options open to them. I'm lucky in the respect that my own personal immigration to New Zealand was allowed under a Partner Visa. Whatever you decide to do, make sure you really think it through.

When Admiral Wellington decided if he should choose that particular time to strike his foes, he'd always write a list of pro's and con's. He'd then add up the list and go with the column that had the shorter list. You could start off making your own list. Get your family and friends to help you decide what should go on the list. After all, what could be important to them, could be immaterial to you, and vice-verca. Absorb as much information about the region you want to immigrate to. Think about your needs today, but also think about the future too.

Well it's a lovely summers day in Hamilton today. I'm still a practical virgin when it comes to immigration, but this adventure has surely begun on the right footing. With family around me that care, and will make the difference when all is said and done!

Wherever and with whoever you decide to immigrate to, I wish you the very best of luck with your very own adventure. The ex-pat community will help you settle in and in no time, you might wonder why you didn't make the big move sooner.

As ever, I thank you for reading and your precious comments are always welcome.


God bless.

Alan

New Zealand, A Place To Visit? Definitely!

Okay, so many of you might be wondering why exactly it's taken so long for me to write my latest blog update! Well, we arrived as expected on the 2nd December without the expected issues at London Heathrow with regards to the Public Sector strikes. Apart from some pretty minor jet lag, we've been catching up with my in-laws and other friends and family.

We're here for the long haul and although I personally feel I'm adjusting into the New Zealand way of life better than I'd expected, clearly it's far to early to even begin to say I've adjusted. But, on first impressions, I  won't say I like New Zealand. I love New Zealand.

Complete strangers talk! For a Londoner, that's a pretty big deal! We're so used to living in such a confined space, but seldom take the time to even get to know our immediate neighbours. Of course, during the London war years, this wasn't so much of an issue. As Londoners spent many an evening hunkered down avoiding the worst that Hitler could throw at them. However, with the pace of life in London set to one speed, pretty dam fast, it's harder to get into the mindset that basic communication banter won't break the time-bank!

At first glance, the pace of life is much much slower than you'll most likely be used to. Of course for some people this might not be what 'rocks your boat', however for a mid-thirties chap like myself, it's an out right God send!

But, getting back to the people here. They do seem very welcoming to the British. Clearly we share the same values and our cultures are very intertwined because of our Commonwealth connection. I'm also aware that you can't judge a book by the cover too much, but I've learnt over the years to trust ones own judgement with new people that enter my life. It's also been said that we, as human beings 'pigeon hole' someone new within 7 seconds. Therefore I gage my initial comments on my personal Anglo-Kiwi nano conversations.

A closing thought for this post is an observation I made earlier today. It involved a simple honey bee going about it's daily business of gathering all that plant goodness, that goes into producing arguably the best honey you can buy in the world. You see, the gardens here are breathtaking! I'm not exactly the green fingered type, but the quality of the gardens, public and private are awesome. Therefore, it's not exactly hard to see why the humble honey bee finds the process of producing great tasting New Zealand honey a breeze! I'll have to get the camera out and show you next time!

As ever, thank you for reading.

God bless.

AL

Farewell To My Family And Friends.

Farewell dear friends and family...

It's really not goodbye...

You'll see us all again, when I'm not sure, but you know I'll try...

I take with me all our happy times...

And some we wished we'd forget...

But deep inside you'll be there...

Waiting for us, so be kind...

Let us go and take this adventure...

We'll build a better life...

You'll see a different person...

Although we're the other side...

Happiness and joy, are all we behold.

To give to thee more memories, and to hug and hold...

Alas we're departing now...

I wish you could come too...

We'll speak to you shortly, and I pray that you find your way too.

Cost Of Living In New Zealand

Generally, although this isn't through first had experience, as we don't fly out to New Zealand until November 30th. The cost of living in New Zealand is relatively speaking, the same as it is where we're living now in London. If, for arguments sack you're in a household of 2 people, you should be able to get by on $130 for food. However, that's not with any what I'd call luxury items like biscuits and cake or anything pre-packet.

This isn't a massive problem for us as a family because I'm quite adept at rolling my sleeves up and backing a batch of cookies for everyone every so often. So, I'll guess I'll just have to do that a little more regular once we arrive in New Zealand.

GST or goods service tax in New Zealand runs at 15% which for someone used to 17.5% VAT in England, then a whopping 20% VAT since January 2011 isn't too sad at all.

So, what exactly is taxable in New Zealand?

In essence, it's the same principle as in the UK and most other nations of the world. Good's and services are taxable. You can get a full flavour for GST on the New Zealand Inland Revenue's website and I'd highly recommend you pay it a visit here.

I point to note though. My mother in law, who lives in New Zealand has mentioned that dairy products like  milk and cheese are a little more expensive than you might have thought. Now, from a country that is famed for having arguabally the best dairy market in the world. I did find that quite hard to fathom out! I love dairy products so I might smuggle a cow into the garden if it does get too costly!

I have heard that clothing costs can be a little more expensive too, but if you're not into high fashion then that shouldn't be a problem. I'm going to conduct some research into online UK companies that deliver to New Zealand over the next couple of days, so keep checking back!

As ever, have a productive day.

God Bless

Alan

How To Use Your Skills Volunteering, To Aid Your Visa Application

Now, because I'm lucky enough to have a New Zealander for a wife, I've not had to use my qualifications, skills and experience for my New Zealand visa application. I'm applying for a partner visa instead. One of the down sides is that I cannot conduct any paid work whilst I'm waiting for my application to be processed.

This has given me the idea to use the experience that I gained when I worked for an organisation based in Dagenham, Essex that work with disabled, elderly and vulnerable people. If you're not already aware 2011 is the international year of volunteering. So, what better excuse to roll up your sleeves and help your fellow man!

This doesn't just apply to my own personal New Zealand emigration, this can apply to you too. There's organisations that can point you in the right direction, so that you too can not only volunteer your own experience and skills and get a personal reward from helping those less fortunate than yourselves, but also it tells the relevant immigration service in the country you want to settle in that you're community spirited! That has to help with your visa application! Right?

So it's a win/win situation! You get out and about, helping others and explore much more of your new surroundings earlier on than you might have done otherwise. You'll most likely make a heck of a lot of friends too in the process. Also, if you're an 'outdoors' type of person you might even get fitter in the process. Not only that, but, It'll help with anxiety and 'post emigration blues', in that it'll keep your mind occupied and lessen pining you may have when missing your home country.

If you've never volunteered before, don't let that put you off! Organisations won't expect the earth from you  and will really value any time you can help. Even if that's just an hour a week that's 52 hours a year! Right? Imagine if everyone you know did this for their fellow man, I'm sure the world would be a different place!

If you'd like to get some contacts or ideas, Sir Richard Branson's book called 'Worldwide Volunteering' would be an invaluable purchase. It's literally packed with ideas for gap year, holiday or emigration volunteering. With over 250,000 placements in over 200 countries, you'll find the right choice for you.

Giving my time to help others has been a real life enriching experience. I look forward to helping my New Zealand cousins once we've arrived in a week's time.

As always, keep positive and thanks for reading. Don't forget to bookmark if haven't already and I look forward to hearing your comments.

God bless

Alan

How To Overcome Emigration Anxiety

It's clearly obvious to anyone thinking of emigrating overseas, that maybe has not done all that much traveling, things like 'high emotions' run the risk of spoiling the initial settling in period. Now, lets face it, that would be a bit of a disaster. Not only for you, but anyone that's lucky enough to be emigrating with you. So, with that in mind, it's only fair to keep things in the context they deserve, for everyone's sake!

Of course, emigrating is a massive thing. You're going to surely love aspects of it straight away, but of course there's bound to be parts of it you'll hate at first. Being able to take a step back and looking at the whole picture helps with some very mild bouts of anxiety attack. But, what about the bouts of anxiety attack that hit you a little deeper? Well, I've actually been researching anxiety now for a good few years. Partly because my sister, Jenny, suffered with it. I felt I should get a greater understanding for the situation she found herself in so I could feel the empathy a brother should. Little did I know that some years later, the methods I learnt to help her, would help me too! I'm not going to lie to you, I'm feeling mild to medium bouts of anxiety right now. I awoke this morning like a 'bull in a china shop' and snapped at Madison, my daughter for no real reason. That's not good at all, so I of course apologised and then realised I was suffering what I'm going to call pre-emigration anxiety. However, the method I shall provide to you will help all forms of anxiety, so grab a coffee, and give me five minutes more of your precious time...

That was quick!...

Right, the method I use is called 'The Silva Method'.

It's fantastic, it gets results and it's going to cost you the price of a second hand paperback on amazon! The Silva method doesn't just help anxiety. It can help with a whole multitude of problems. Ever get a bit forgetful? Ever feel like your lacking in confidence? Ever feel like your relationship with your partner could do with a little 'pick me up'? Yes, you've guessed it. It help's!

It's basically a self-hypnosis method that teaches you a very easy way to tap into the alpha part of the brain. The alpha part of the brain is really underused, but is the most powerful part! Do your own research on it and I'm sure you'll agree with me.

In essence, you lay down in a quite room, preferably on your own. with your head slightly raised. Close your eyes, then imagine your counting back from 100. As your counting back, you visualise the numbers in your favourite colour. Once you feel relaxed you fill your mid with positive affirmations like 'Every way, in every day, I'm feeling less anxious and less stressed. I'm feeling better and better' etc etc. Don't worry if the phone rings, or there's a knock at the door. You'll snap out of the relaxed state of mind and just function normally. But, once your happy that you've relaxed enough and filled yourself full of positivity, you then count back from 3 (thinking I'm more awake), 2 (feeling wide awake), 1 (now fully awake, feeling more positive than I have done in ages and ready to get on with my day)

Here's the link to the actual book that first got me started with 'The Silva Method'! Go give it a try!

Don't forget to bookmark my blog, we've only got just over a week before we emigrate to New Zealand. As ever, thanks for reading.

Alan

Flying With Children

Once we've got off the plane, no doubt I'll personally want to sleep for a week! After all, New Zealand from London is over 26 hours on a plane! A mammoth journey by anyone's standards, but not the longest journey I've ever undertaken. Around ten years ago I lived in the United States of America. On one occasion, I had to travel from Miami, to Newark. Now that journey kind of put this flight we're taking into shame as I traveled by Amtrak! We're talking 31 hours, sat on a train. Going from a tremendously hot climate, to a temperate climate, on a train, did take some getting used to!

However it's this current journey on the plane that concerns me. As any parent of a 2 year old will tell you. Traveling for anything more than a couple of hours can be a real nightmare if there is nothing to occupy their little minds.   Clearly we are going have to take some of her favourite toys, thankfully these are pretty small and will fit into her own personal hand luggage allowance. But, I fear even these will soon loose favour during the long, arduous flight.

So, here's how we plan to get over the hiccups that will inevitably occur, so Madison doesn't get too ratty and embarrass the family with a rage of temper.

We plan to interact with her, talk to her like a grown up, inform her of what's happening and why she needs to be on her absolute best behaviour. Thankfully as most children do, Madison has a passion, and that passion is chocolate! Although we don't give it to her too much, we do use it as a reward mechanism and it never ceases to amaze me how she can go from a screaming, crazed, tantrum infused mess of a child.  To angelic, mushy, wanton and warm, friendly and calm. All in the space of a micro-second! So chocolate will defiantly be in our arsenal during the flight.

We also plan on requesting a western menu for her. We're flying with Korean Air (review to follow), and I've heard you can request a western menu, if you so wish. Madison loves her breakfast and lunch, but she's murder when it comes to eating an evening meal. So we'll properly keep some of her favourite savoury type snacks in our hand luggage too, just incase she doesn't like the main meal that will be served.

Another idea, apart from her regular favourite toys, will be to ask her Grandma to make a little 'pass the parcel' package. So we can pass that between the three of us, to some music, and make a little game of it. That'll kill an hour or so as she unwraps a colouring book and some crayons, alphabet and number cards, and alike.

We'll also take frequent walks, and plenty of fluids. Madison does have a habit of wanting to use public conveniences an awful lot! We thought there might actually be something wrong with her bladder, but our family practice Doctor informed us everything is fine with her waterworks. Therefore it's just one of those little games she likes, and no matter how much we've tried to ween her from going to the bathroom while she's out, she asks, we take! Madison has been potty trained, but like most children her age, sometimes little accidents do happen. She does get a tad embarrassed, bless her. But she's a very grown up little girl, has a fantastic vocabulary and is as cheeky as cheese!

We love to read books together, so we'll take a couple of those on the plane. Thankfully, we'll be able to more or less read the same book over and over. As she's not quite at the age when the same old thing gets too boring!

I decided not to get any sedatives for the flight, as I don't believe in medicating, unless it's a medical emergency or ailment that needs a minor pain killer. I think most parents do think the same and I want the whole adventure to be as fun for not only Madison, but for myself and Hannah too. Also, I want Madison to start to understand that family and friends in England, aren't able to just pop over, on a whim. I realise that trying to explain too much, too soon will most likely upset her. So, we'll explain it to her bit by bit.

I think we've got the flight pretty much covered though in terms of keeping a youngster occupied. I know most of our fellow travellers will be sympathetic to the situation if we're doing all we can to alleviate any potential flash point. There might well be others on board in the exact same predicament. However, it's every parents responsibility to do everything they can to make any journey, be it flight, train or car, as pleasing as possible. I will of course let you know how we get on!

As ever, thanks for reading and I hope some of the tips come in helpful for you and your family.

God Bless

Our Last Weekend In London!

This weekend is a very special weekend indeed. Our last weekend in London! Although we're leaving for New Zealand on the 30th November, we're spending next weekend 'up north' in Doncaster, Yorkshire, for a close relatives wedding.

Hannah was fluttering around earlier this morning and suggested she's more nervous than I am with the prospect of emigrating to New Zealand. Although I can't quite fathom that, seeing as she's a native! She explained to me that since she's been in the UK for over 12 years, a lot of changes would have taken place and she was in danger of hardly recognising Hamilton. I guess she's got a valid point, however I'm relying on her to get me through the bouts of home sickness that will no doubt creep in at some point.

She's just as apprehensive as I have been recently. Okay, so this doesn't exactly bode well so today we're going to visit some friends and relatives to cheer us both up, and give our daughter, Madison some happy memories of her English home.

What I've noticed over the last couple of months is that our collective moods, as a family, seem to have 'peaks and troughs'. Some of this will no doubt be because we're on a self embossed 'tight budget'.

Clearly though, the majority of these mood swings are, I would say, a natural part of the mental adjustment  that emigration would have on a family unit.

In my next post, I will be discussing the way, we as a family are overcoming these bouts of anxiety. And, how these methods can help you too. As ever, thanks for reading!

New Zealand, A Different World?

Ever since we decided to leave the United Kingdom for New Zealand, I decided to do some of my own research on New Zealand. After all, I've never visited the country before, and although my wife is a kiwi I wanted to be as prepared as humanly possible for such a compelling event in our lives.

Here's some of what I've discovered:

People: New Zealanders are very sporty people in general. They have a passion for Rugby Union, Cricket, Netball and Golf. Soccer is also growing in popularity following the success of their national football team, affectionally known as 'The All Whites'.

Politics: There are two main parties in New Zealand, National and Labour. Since 1996 a form of proportional representation called Mixed Member Proportional has meant that government has been formed using a minority.

Climate: The climate is not dissimilar to the United Kingdom in the sense that it's a moderate climate. Although I have read that some parts can feel all four seasons before lunch! 

Using Free Apps To Communicate Online

Clearly for those of us that are thinking of emigrating, or have actually decided to take the plunge and go, communication with friends and loved ones is of paramount importance. Thankfully we live in the age where this is more than possible. With a basic internet connection, inexpensive hardware and some minor planning, you can still share those tender moments with your nearest and dearest whenever you feel like a chat!

One example that simply blows me away for quality is Apple's FaceTime application. The actual quality of the video and sound is amazing. There's no lag at all and it's very rare that we loose connection. Currently my wife, Hannah speaks to her parents at least three times per week. We're in Essex (well until the 30th when we depart for New Zealand), and they're in Hamilton, Waikato, New Zealand. We have the FaceTime application on our Macbook Pro, and they have it installed on their iPad 2. Furthermore my sister also has the Apple FaceTime application on her new iPhone 4s. So, as long as she is in a Wi-Fi cloud, she can communicate 'on the move'! I'm sure you'll agree, that's powerful stuff!

Communication with my loved ones will be cherished and I can't emphasise enough the importance of remaining in touch with everyone. Assuming you're close to your family, there's really no excuse not to just call them up, on the fly, and natter away to your hearts content. Usually it's not a call for any specific reason, just to let them know we're thinking of them.

Here's a quick list of other free to use applications to video chat.

1. Microsoft's Internet Messenger.
2. Skype.
3. Facebook (new video chat in chat area).

There's loads of others, but they are the most popular in my household. However, if you use a Blackberry or Android device, you might want to visit these pages for further details: 13 Best Free Communications Apps For Your Blackberry and Top Free Android Communication Apps

It's not goodbye, it's farewell!

It's hard to look at my parents and sister lately. Mainly because I know that leaving the country for New Zealand will be such a heart wrench for them, hell and me too!

They've grown so close to Madison. It does feel cruel to just up and leave, but I know that it's just the right thing to do. To give my own family a new start! After all, shouldn't my in-laws have the same 'bonding' period that my parents have had?

Anyway, we've just got home from a great evening at the Havering Annual switching on of the Christmas lights. Although I do still find it hard to fathom how one can even begin to feel Christmassy in mid November! On the bus ride home, I turned to my Mum, smiled and said... "Mum, it's not goodbye, it's just farewell".

"If only New Zealand was a bus ride away." was her reply.

Hmmmm she does have a point.

Packing up!

Okay, with only 2 weeks left until we depart for New Zealand, we're starting to sort through things we want take, things we are going to leave here at my mothers and things we're going to bin!

It's a tough choice, but we decided a while ago that we wouldn't go to the expense of hiring a container to ship out our belongings. Instead, my wife has made some extra money by listing the things we didn't want to keep on ebay.

It's clearly easier for us as a family, as we're moving in with my in-laws. But, it's been a great de-clutting experiance and I'm sure we'd have just thrown out most of the things we didn't want, had we'd not been in desperate need of some cash.

Items we're taking include the obvious clothes and personal gadgets, but in saying that, we have to keep the weight down as much as possible for each suitcase. I think we have 30kg allowance in each suitcase and we're going to take 2 large, 1 small.

Other item's we're taking are birth and marriage certificates, medical records and other important documents. I'm sure over the next 2 weeks we'll be adding to this list.

Our New Zealand Adventure

We're moving to New Zealand from London, England on the 30th November and here's where the fun starts! Of course we are a complete mixture of excitement and apprehention right now. However, I'm sure that will pass once we have arrived!

Let me introduce myself. I'm Alan, 36 from Essex, England. I've got a lovely wife, Hannah a New Zealander and a two year old daughter called Madison. We have lived in Essex together for the last two years, but, things are not going too well on the financial front. I have no real career to speak of after flunking exams back when I was at school. Then entering into a failed music career with a band I was in some 10 years ago. In essence, we are living with my retired mother in a very small house and needed space to grow as a family. 

So, how are you funding your emigration to New Zealand, you might ask? Well, I had a small amount of savings, just enough for some 'one-way' tickets to New Zealand. Also, my in-laws are going to let us stay at their house for as long as we need. 

I wanted to start this blog, mainly for something constructive to do while I'm there! However, I hope my adventure inspires you enough to comment and re-visit.

Thanks for visiting and please feel free to bookmark for my regular posts on the trials and tribulations of emigrating.