Grocery List

            Living in New Zealand for the past five months has meant adapting to new people, new food, and new situations.  While I’ve been a big fan of a lot of these new experiences, there are just some things that are better in ye ol’ U-S-of-A that I have dearly missed.   Likewise, I’m really going to miss some of the things that I’ve grown accustomed to during my stay.  So, I’ve compiled a list of things I have missed from the states and things I will miss from New Zealand as well as some situations I will have to re-adapt to when I get home.

HAVE MISSED

·      Ketchup-Tomato sauce is ABSOLUTELY NOT the same thing.  I want thick, creamy, Heinz 57 ketchup for my burgers and chips.

·      Bookstores-Books are extremely expensive here because they have to be shipped a long ways over here and there are no Barnes & Noble or Books-a-Million to be had.  As someone who regularly goes to Barnes & Noble just to sit in the rows and read, I have sorely missed a quality bookstore.

·      McDonald’s dollar menu-They have the “spare change menu”…but they also have $2 coins.

·      Walmart-I’ve missed being able to walk in to one store and be able to buy toothpaste, a NASCAR shirt, and a duct tape with flames on it.

·      ESPN/Sportscenter-I missed the Tim Tebow-Jets debacle, the Roger Clemens case, and the Jerry Sandusky trial. NEED. SPORTS. ASAP.  The New Zealand equivalent of Sportscenter is called Crowd Goes Wild but the content is mostly cricket and rugby.

·      Peanut Butter-It’s probably due to the fact that the peanut butter here is a lot less processed than ours but that knowledge doesn’t make me feel any better when I’m trying to make a quality PB&J.  It’s thick, but not creamy so it just doesn’t spread well and generally lacks the classic peanut butter taste of JIF and Skippy.

·      Standard System of Meaurement-I have had no sense of speed, temperature, or weight since I’ve been here.  The metric system sucks.

·      Connie’s-Chicken biscuit with gravy. ‘Nough said.

·      Speaking Tradition at W&L-If I pass one more person who breaks their neck trying not to make eye contact I’m going attack them.

·      Participation grades-There’s no buffer 5%-10% grade just for showing up to class here.  Professors could care less if you drag yourself to uni.  There’s a midterm and a final. Sometimes a paper.  But that’s it.  I prefer a little wiggle room. 

And the thing I’ve missed most of all…

·      THE SOUTH-If I had a dollar for every time someone commented on me saying “y’all” I could buy the country of New Zealand.  Also, I miss the southern mentality of bending over backwards to be nice/helpful even if you secretly wish the person’s face would melt off.  Kiwis are genuinely nice and engaging but for the most part if they’re annoyed that you’re a stupid American asking them a question, you’re made quite aware that you’re an annoying, stupid American.  I miss Sunday lunch after church where you see half of Tupelo; I miss buttermilk biscuits; I miss cornbread; I. MISS. THE. SOUTH.

WILL MISS

·      Fish n’ chips-Fried fish and chunky chips. And salt. Need I say more? Even better with some aioli sauce.

·      Gummy snakes-Better than gummy worms. I’ve bought two bags to bring home and am thinking about adding a few more to my carry-on.

·      Shortland Street-I have never in my life watched a soap opera but I’ve gotten really invested in New Zealand’s home-grown soap.  I literally plan my night around the 7 o’clock airtime.  The fact that they have shirtless Maori doctors featured at least once a week is pretty good incentive to watch.

·      Kiwi style-I’m really going to miss the casual style of Kiwi clothing: girls in baggy sweaters over short dresses, boys in blue jean shorts and singlet tops, and lots of Vans and Converse.

·      Cheap avocados-When they were in season, I could buy four avocados for $2.  Winning.

·      Hokey Pokey-This New Zealand version of honeycomb toffee is a mix of golden syrup, sugar, and baking soda melted together.  It can be eaten separate or my favorite broken up and put in vanilla ice cream.

·      The Hub-For the past few months I’ve had free access to countless movies, TV shows, and music via the student network at my flat.  There have been several times where I’ve had to go through my hard drive to delete files to make room for me downloads. 

·      Landscape-This country is beautiful.  And I don’t just mean the wilderness parts of it.  I can honestly say that every inch of this country that I’ve seen has been breathtakingly gorgeous and even puts W&L in the spring to shame.

·      Rugby-Now that I’ve figured out the rules, I’m a fan.  It’s all of the best parts of soccer and American football mixed together: hard hits, lots of opportunities to score, and no timeouts.

·      Frogger-Nothing makes me more wide-eyed and bushy-tailed for class in the mornings than trying to avoid getting hit while crossing a major street to get to campus. 

And most importantly…

·      Mary-My Kiwi flatmate has been the best! I’m really going to miss her wisdom on all things New Zealand and having her right next door enabling me to procrastinate by watching movies and Gossip Girl.  She played tour guide for our adventures at the Wild Foods Festival as well as Fox Glacier and Franz Josef.  I shall be returning the favor to her and her husband when they come to the states sometime soon.  Nigel really wants to go to a NASCAR race.

RE-ADAPT

·      Switching light switches down to turn them off

·      Driving on the right side of the road

·      Looking left before crossing the street

·      Walking on the right side of the sidewalk

·      Standard measurements

·      8.5”x11” computer paper 

·      No half flush on the toilets

 

Pause. Touch. Engage.

After lots of fingers crossed, prayer, and perfect execution on the part of my friend Carolyn, we got tickets to the second test match of the All Blacks series against Ireland.  For those of you unfamiliar with the rugby world, getting to see the All Blacks is equivalent to watching Brazil or Spain play in soccer.  The weather was below freezing and threatening to rain the entire time but our enthusiasm would not be hampered and all of us went all out in our black and our war paint.  I was excited to watch the 2011 World Cup champs play, but honestly I was most looking forward to their performance of the haka.  The haka is a traditional Maori war dance that the All Blacks have adopted as part of their pre-game intimidation.  After both national anthems, the two teams met in the center of the pitch facing one another while my man Piri Weepu led the All Blacks in the haka.  

            After getting spanked the weekend before 42-10, the Irish put up a fight and made it a really close match.  The All Blacks pulled it out in the last seconds though with a drop kick score from Dan Carter. All Blacks win 22-19.  

Extreme steam coming off of the scrum

May or may not be friends with them

Intergenerational Escapades

            As I write this, I’ve got 10 days 23 hours 35 minutes and 32 seconds until my parents pick me up from the Memphis Airport.  I’m beyond excited to see my parents and have them spoil me with home-cooked food, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, and support for the baking binge I’m going to go on as soon as I get in the house.  But I digress, let me just catch you up on what I’ve been up to recently.

            Lectures officially ended June 1, but I decided to take off early to visit some of my dad’s old friends in Nelson, which is pretty much as far north on the South Island as you can get. The last time my dad saw them was thirty years ago in 1982.  They didn’t get to meet Norma because I’ve been told Phil was in trouble with her when they came to visit.  I’ll have to wait to hear (and then share) that story when I get home.  I had corresponded with Bob and Gay Schmuke via email a few times over the semester but other than that I was spending 5 days with two complete strangers.  I have to admit I was a bit nervous about how my trip was going to go. 

            In short, I had one of my best trips yet in New Zealand.  After waking up at the crack of dawn to catch a bus at 7:00 AM, I had a long day of traveling before getting into Nelson at 2:30 in the afternoon.  Gay picked me up at the bus stop and we had an easy time chatting, and I think I almost gave her a heart attack with my extreme gasp at the detail that they have a big black lab named Satchmo.  Needless to say, I’ve been extremely dog deprived the past year (sorry Cassie) so I was ecstatic to have a subject to dump all my love on for the weekend.  When we got to the Schmuke’s gorgeous house on the estuary complete with a large backyard and duck pond, I met Bob and we immediately packed up the car to head over Takaka Hill to their beach house on Golden Bay.  We watched the sun set over the ocean from the second floor of the house as we drank wine and ate cheese.  I could already tell I liked these people.

            I awoke on Saturday to a delicious smoothie made by Bob with lots of fresh fruit and some yogurt.  Seriously good.  We drove into town for a heartier breakfast of eggs and toast and dropped Bob off at the golf course before Gay and I headed to the end of the Abel Tasman Coastal Track for a little afternoon hike.  Of course, Satchmo came.  The scenery was absolutely gorgeous and the weather was perfect.  We hiked along the beach, ate some lunch, and then headed back to the house.  I introduced Gay to the glory that is Pinterest that afternoon; her life will ever be the same.  We watched the sun set over the ocean from the second floor of the house as we drank cosmopolitans and ate spiced nuts.  I could already tell I REALLY liked these people.

            Sunday morning I enjoyed another wonderful smoothie while I watched my dad reconnect with his friends for the first time in 30 years via Skype.  After the reminiscing session, we took a little trip to see “the clearest fresh water in the world” and I caught a salmon for us to have for supper that night.  We also collected some mussels off the beach that Bob cooked out on the grill for appetizers.  Inspired by all of the cooking shows we had watched that afternoon, Gay and I proceeded to make three loaves of bread: a seed loaf and two different types of focaccia.  I could already tell I REALLY REALLY liked these people.

            On Monday, after my smoothie, we headed back to Nelson.  We stopped for lunch, and I got a tandoori lamb pie and real fruit ice cream.  I have to say that I’ve been a little disappointed by the ice cream in New Zealand.  I figured that a country with such a large cattle population would be on top of their dairy products.  That being said, real fruit ice cream is the real McCoy.  It’s essentially what it sounds like; frozen fruit gets blended directly into the ice cream when you order it, á la Cold Stone Creamery (except a machine does it and minus a few hundred calories).  I was quite pleased with the result and my faith in New Zealand dairy was moderately restored. That afternoon Gay took me to the World of Wearable Art Museum.  Until recently, she served as CEO of the production so I got a really personalized tour of the exhibits.  We then visited the “Centre of New Zealand” and happened to run into a few friends from Christchurch who had just gotten into Nelson.  That night we made the most amazing brownies I have ever tasted.  We ate them warm with vanilla ice cream on top.  I could already tell I LOVED these people.

            Sadly, Tuesday signaled the end of my trip in Nelson.  After almost five months of fending for myself, it was incredibly relaxing and comforting to have a set of quasi-parents take care of me for a few days.  I even got a pack of snacks to take with me on the bus: a big chunk of brownie and a bag of feijoa fruit.  I had such an incredible time hearing about all of the adventures the Schmukes have been on during their extensive traveling.  If I can be them when I grow up, then I will be quite happy to get older.  Thank you Bob and Gay for the amazing experience, the delicious food, and the thought-provoking conversation.

Hello Satchmo

Abel Tasman Coast Track

Supper

View from the beach house

            I had a couple of days back in Christchurch before flying out to Hokitika to meet up with some friends to see some glaciers.  In the meantime, the sky opened up and vomited several inches of snow onto the city.  Being the savvy packer that I am, I had my snow boots on hand and was able to get around quite comfortably and fashionably.  Thankfully, all the snow was cleared up by the time I needed to fly on Friday.  I was extremely confused when I got to the airport, checked in, and then got to walk immediately to my gate.  No security check. NADA.  I still can’t get over it.  Any who, I got into Hokitika Friday night and spent the night at my uni flatmate’s house.  We spent all day Saturday driving to Fox and Franz Josef and hiking up to the glacier sites.  Nature is pretty cool.  We got back to ChCh Sunday afternoon and I spent the next few days studying for my exam Tuesday afternoon.  I have one assignment and one exam left before I leave.  I have two more adventures left as well.  This Saturday night I’m going to watch the All Blacks play Ireland in a test rugby match.  For people who know nothing about rugby, the All Blacks are equivalent to the Brazilian national team in soccer. Translation: they are a BIG FREAKIN DEAL.  On Sunday, a few of us are heading up to a cabin we rented for the weekend to escape from exams and have one last hoorah before we leave.  Then it’s crunch time; I don’t know how I’m going to pack without my mommy doing it for me. 

Cheers,

Bess

Fox Glacier

Venison Pie from Sheffield's Pie Shop. Best. Pie. Ever.

Vocabulary

·      Hard out-trying too hard

·      Trolley-shopping cart

·      Flash-expensive, stylish

·      Mince-ground beef

·      Papers-courses (as in University)

·      Chemist-pharmacist

·      Petrol-gas

·      Sit an exam-take a test