The Funny Sheep Travel Blog

Auckland was Conquered in a Day

2011-12-02T23:56:00.001+13:00

One good thing about living in a small country is that I can accomplish super-hero-type feats like: “Walking From One Side Of The Country To The Other In One Day”, and then you can be incredibly impressed. Until you realize that that is only about 16km (9.94 miles). Which is still pretty good, but it is not quite the equivalent of walking from one side of the US to the other.

I am still going to pretend that you are impressed though. And that maybe you have a gold medal that you are sending me.

Auckland’s “Coast to Coast Walkway” runs from the Pacific Ocean to the Tasman Sea and gives a good snapshot of the city’s natural attractions: volcanoes, parks, oceans.... and people’s backyards. We may have taken a few wrong turns, but that is bound to happen on a 16km hike with marker signs the size of golfballs.

Coast to Coast Walking, Jellicoe Park

If you are attempting the Coast to Coast, I would suggest bringing your own GPS device or a map. Because if there is one thing that Oregon Trail taught you, it was to be prepared (Bring bullets for guns, bring medicine for measles, bring maps for Coast to Coast walkways. Basic life lessons.).

We took a small detour (on purpose) to the Scottish Highland Games Festival. David was excited for promises of haggis, and I was excited for promises of men in kilts. The kilts, log throwing, and fancy dance moves did not disappoint. Unfortunately, the haggis came in cans. Another basic life lesson: Don’t eat haggis from cans.

Fancy Scottish Dancing

Back on the trail, we stopped by one of our favorite places, Cornwall Park/ One Tree Hill. But this time the sheep were missing. I panicked for a bit thinking that someone might have stolen them. But then I remembered that it is almost summer. So I am almost certain that the sheep are at their beach houses working on their summer tans.

Sheep with Tan, Photo Via www.Sheepworld.co.nz

We also had a tasty lunch at Cornwall Park Restaurant, but next time I think I will get the “high tea” option. After we ordered our lunch, a 3-tiered tray of deliciousness was placed on the table next to us. I think I stared at their little tarts and finger sandwiches for the rest of lunch. This is probably not my proudest example of high tea etiquette. I do apologize, table next to us (But next time maybe you should share a tart. Or a tier.).

Cornwall Park Restaurant, Home to Tasty High-Teas

- Meredith

The Dolphin Photo Booth

2011-11-14T14:24:00.001+13:00

This past weekend we went to Bay of Islands to view dolphins in their natural habitat. This may make us sound like the wimpy Steve Irwins of the New Zealand nature world. But apparently I am good at catching animals (on film) and should maybe think about making my career in dolphin portraiture. I’ve thought of worse career moves.

It's Flipper, Flipper, Faster than lightning

The first stop on our dolphin weekend was Paihia, a sunny 4 hours north from our consistently rainy Auckland. Now downtown Paihia is nothing to write home about, but it is cute and quaint in that beach town type of way. It is also a good, central location to get a hotel in Bay of Islands, and there are some decent restaurants to get your seafood fill. Namely the 35° Aquarium Restaurant with its large aquarium in the middle of the room. There are wonderful views across the water, and the seafood dishes are quite tasty (even if the aquarium fish are secretly planning an attack on you for eating Sammy and Bobby Jo).

Home to Sammy and Bobby Jo

Then on Sunday morning, we took off on our “Dolphin Viewing/ Hole in the Rock” boat ride with Fullers Great Discoveries. The dolphin safari was a great way to see some of the Bay’s 140 odd islands. And of course, a fun way to see dolphins. My recommendation is to stand at the back of the boat because the dolphins love to play in the bubbles/ jet spray. Seriously, it’s like Sea World back there. Lots of dolphins flipping and racing and generally having lots of fun chasing their interactive bathtub toy (us). Just think if we unleashed the giant rubber ducky here!

Russell, Bay of Islands

We also went through the “Hole in the Rock”, a much-too-tiny-hole (in-a-rock). It was touch and go for a minute as to whether our boat would clear the passage.

Wait, are you sure our boat will fit?

Oh and a last word of warning: don’t wear shorts on the boat ride. No matter how “warm” it may seem, boats are windy places.

- Meredith

Baa, Baa Cute Sheep

2011-10-04T18:56:00.000+13:00

Spring has finally sprung here in New Zealand. And this means one very important thing: it’s baby sheep season!

So a huge aspiration of mine (since three weekends ago) has been to pet a little lamb. Mostly because they look so darn cute and tiny.

So cute. So tiny.

While traveling to New Plymouth for the rugby game, I had a lot of sheep-viewing time in the car. And I realized that the whole New Zealand countryside is just one big, fluffy, grass-eating mass of sheep. And mixed in with the big sheep, there were these tiny, fun baby versions.

Unfortunately, we did not have time that weekend to stop the car, jump a fence, chase down a lamb, and then get chased in return by the lamb owner. So I had to settle with just shouting “EEK” every time I saw one.

BUT, I found the perfect opportunity where it is socially acceptable to pet all the baby sheep you want: SheepWorld!

I know what you’re thinking: Tourist Trap. And ok, I see your point. I guess we did just pay to go onto someone’s farm. In New Zealand. But it was totally worth it!

SheepWorld is about 40 minutes north of Auckland in Warkworth. They specialize in really cute baby animals. There are sheep, alpacas, hamsters, bunnies, and miniature horses whose main job it is to stand there and look adorable. If you are going, it helps to have long arms so you can reach over the fence and pet them.

And just a warning: if you pet a lamb, you’re probably going to want to take it home with you. I did not come prepared for this. Next time I will need to bring a bigger purse.

I'm coming back for you, little buddy!

- Meredith

This Little Sheep Went to Market

2011-09-30T21:26:00.000+13:00

Exciting news in The Funny Sheep Travel world!

This may be due to creative inspiration or a moment of pure boredom, but I have opened a Zazzle store! You can buy Funny Sheep products and pretty pictures of New Zealand, and you can support my unemployment habit.

Check out the store, and let me know what you think:

http://www.zazzle.com/thefunnysheepstore?rf=238761652994442625

Check back regularly for shiny, new products!

- Meredith

We're Going to Need a Giant Bath Tub

2011-09-26T23:57:00.000+13:00

I am so disappointed right now. Apparently I was five months too late to see the greatest thing to ever happen to Auckland.

It's a Giant Rubber Duck!

Giant Rubber Duck being towed in.

Giant Rubber Duck trying to look inconspicuous.

I am starting a petition to bring it back. Who’s with me?

Dear Ginormous Rubber Ducky, I’m awfully fond of you....

- Meredith

Pictures via Florentijn Hofman (aka the artist)

The Competition of the Odd Shaped Ball

2011-09-24T20:19:00.000+12:00

Walking down the street these days, there is an unmistakeable giddy atmosphere. If I didn’t know better, I would suspect that they were handing out free beer or prozac on the street corner. Instead it seems the chummy atmosphere stems from this chaotic-looking sport called rugby. And maybe from some beer too. Just not free beer.

Not free beer

The international tourists came prepared with suitcases packed full of superhero-like flag capes and face paint. This is fun because it is like an international festival on the streets every day. I also think there is some secret competition to wear the most outlandish costume to the games. But I wish they would have told me before because my “costume” for the US v. Ireland game was a red shirt and blue scarf. Next time I may have to step it up and go as The Statue of Liberty or an Economic Recession.

So far I think it is a close competition between Captain America, Russian Cosmonauts, Sheep, and the Baguette-toting French Hen.

The RWC opening ceremony night in Auckland was crazy. There were hakas. There were wakas. But most of all there was a ridiculously absurd amount of people. Someone in the planning committee estimated that about 60,000 people would show up around the Auckland Harbour to celebrate. Over 200,000 showed up. (Surprise! Someone’s getting fired.)

This of course led to lots of mass chaos. Trains shut down, ferries stopped services, and people came face to face with the opposing team’s fans. Quite literally. And then they couldn’t move.

After trying to get through the mass of people downtown (which was like wading through quicksand), we luckily caught the last ferry back before the ferries were shut down. It worked out perfectly in the end because we were able to watch the opening ceremonies and game on tv with our “free” beer and pizza and a spectacular view of the fireworks.

Auckland Harbour gets crazy

Seriously these were the BEST fireworks I have ever seen. They launched fireworks from skyscrapers and from the skytower and from four ships in the harbour. This meant the sky was extra bright and sparkly.

It went something like this:

*Boom*

*BANG*

*SPARKLE* *SPARKLE* *SPARKLE*

*POP*

*Boom*

*SPARKLE* *SPARKLE* *SPARKLE*

Snap, Crackle, Pop

See, now you feel like you’ve been there.

Then last Saturday we woke up and drove to New Plymouth in the Taranaki region for the US vs. Ireland game. We expectedly lost, but it was a fun game. I swear all of Ireland showed up with their campervan rentals. Which is cool because the Irish know how to have a good time.

And because questionable decisions make good stories, we did walk into an Irish pub at one point wearing our US colors. I swear a whole pub full of leprechauns turned around and stared at us.

D: “Ok, back away slowly and pretend like we just got lost.”

M: “I think they already saw us.”

D: “It’s ok they’re all drunk and will forget. And we’re not taking their pot of gold so we should be ok.”

It unfortunately rained on and off all weekend, but New Plymouth has some spectacular looking beaches. There was also this really cool light show going on in their Pukekura Park at night. They had lots of neon lights on shrubbery and trees, and best of all, light up row boats! Did we go on them? Heck yes we did. It was only later when I was reading the guidebook that I learned the lake is full of arm-length eels. This is one of those things I would have preferred not to find out. Ever.

Purdy lights, Scary eels

- Meredith

Waka Waka Waka!

2011-09-09T01:26:00.001+12:00

I finally have proof that clouds get stuck on our building! See I am not crazy:

Clouds Behaving

Apocalypse Cloud!

Try living with that for 8 hours. Scary stuff people.

There was a lot of action going on in Auckland City this weekend, and we were determined not to miss any of it.

First, we went to the grand opening of the Auckland Art Gallery. (Ok, so we could have missed the first hour because the mayor was like “Blah, blah, blah” for awhile. And then we had to do the Auckland rain dance while we waited for the gallery to open:

(You put your umbrella up,

You put your umbrella down,

You put your umbrella up, & you shake it all around.)

Because the weather couldn’t make up its mind.

But the wait was worth it because they’ve built themselves a nice, little gallery here in Auckland. Well more of a nice, medium gallery. There is a decent mix of old and modern, some Picassos, a Cezanne, a Dali, and this beauty that could keep me entertained for hours (Flower Chandelier, Choi Jeong Hwa). It's like a crib mobile for adults!

Next we stopped by the official All Blacks (New Zealand team) welcome ceremony for the Rugby World Cup. The All Blacks are a pretty big deal here. Probably because rugby is a pretty big deal here. Ever seen the All Blacks do the haka? Pretty intimidating stuff.

Apparently there have been “flash mob hakas” cropping up all over downtown this week which is kind of awesome (skip to about 1 minute in the video).

(You may be wondering why the flash mob people are in the middle of the intersection. That’s because Auckland is cool like that, and you can cross the street however you want. You can cross up, down, diagonal, or backwards. Heck you could probably even fly. As long as you are across before the little walking man turns red.)

Hmm now you may be questioning “Why the haka?”.

Ready for some New Zealand cultural history?

Haka = Traditional Maori dance

Ok now you may be wondering, “Well who are the Maori?”.

Maori = Indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand

(Their language can be a little difficult to pronounce. This leads to problems when I am trying buy a train/ bus ticket and the suburb/ street is a Maori word. Like Orakei. That is pronounced “Oreckey”. Good to know. And Whangarei. That one is “Fawngerey”. Yeah, weren’t expecting that one were you? Me neither.)

Waka (not to be confused with haka) = Maori canoe. They will be paddling a fleet of wakas into the Auckland harbour for the opening night of the Rugby World Cup.

On Sunday to round out our cultural weekend, we had lunch at Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Temple. It was a calming, zen experience, and the kind of place where you instantly feel your blood pressure go down. Probably due to the hushed voices, smell of incense wafting through the air, and the quiet courtyard garden.

Cue Buddhist chanting.

And they have awesome sculptures.

Why yes, I am the cutest garden statue ever.

Their tea room has some good dumplings, wonton soup, steamed bbq buns, and Laksa noodle soup. And I learned something. I thought I knew how to use chopsticks well. I can pick up rice and sushi and meats and usually noodles. But I learned that when you put noodles in soup, I fail miserably. I spilled soup on myself. Twice. Epic fail (but good soup).

- Meredith

On the Rocks

2011-09-02T22:36:00.013+12:00

This past weekend we went “tramping” (hiking) at Rangitoto, a volcanic island about 25 minutes from Auckland by ferry. It is a dormant volcano, but in my opinion, it is still a bit of a hot lava mess. Probably because of the 5 hour walk on uneven, jagged lava rocks. And no cocktail bar or free Porsche convertible at the end to reward our efforts. (I don’t know about you, but I feel I should get a reward when I walk on lava rocks for 5 hours.)

Rocks and hard places

Besides the views from the top of the volcano (which are nice and island-y), the main attraction on Rangitoto is the lava caves. Some were a little too small for my semi-claustrophobic tendencies. But I did climb into one that was an “acceptable” size. Although halfway through in the pitch dark, I started thinking about the cave creatures that were going to jump out at us (specifically Gollum or a colony of winged monkeys). Then I started freaking out a bit. Luckily David saved the day by crafting a “torch” out of the trusty flashlight app on the i-phone. This clearly intimidated the less tech-savvy monsters who must have gone into hiding for fear we had some Angry Birds up our sleeves as well.

Light at the end of the tunnel

Then two paths diverged on Rangitoto, and we took the one less travelled. And that... well that almost made us miss the ferry. The last ferry leaves Rangitoto at 4pm. If you are not on it, you are sleeping on the deserted island. That was the only thought that kept my legs moving. We made it just in time, and thankfully, my legs did not fall off as I had anticipated.

Island-y Views

And in other news, Rugby World Cup is starting in a week here in Auckland. What does this mean? Fun, excitement, and of course... mass chaos! About 85,000 people are on their way to New Zealand to watch the 20 competing countries play. There will be lots of fun celebrations, vibrant light shows on skyscrapers, and tons of international folk. There will also be lots of transportation chaos (for a system that is somewhat lacking in buses and routes), more people in restaurants (that are already typically full), and an increase in prices on everything from food & drink to hotels and merchandise.

Yay Rugby World Cup?!? (It should make for some good stories at least!)

- Meredith

Sheep on Stilts

2011-08-26T21:00:00.002+12:00

Last weekend we went to a magical place of hope and wonder called Waiheke Island. It is a 45 minute ferry ride from Auckland, and it is filled with beaches, art galleries, wineries and alpacas. With highlights like that and with its relaxed island feel, you instantly want to lie on the grass and start singing “Hakuna Matata”. (“Hakuna. Matata. Hakuna. Matata. It means no worries!”).

You all know you just sang that in your head. I win.

And while you can’t see dancing warthogs named Pumba on the island, you can see skipping alpacas. And that’s kind of the same thing.

Cue Azzuro Groves. It is a small boutique farm where you can taste olive oils. But we had bigger aspirations.

“We would like to pet your alpacas please”

Then the nice lady handed us some alpaca food, and the alpacas came awkwardly skip-running towards us. If you have never seen an alpaca in real life, it is actually a sheep on stilts. Those sheep are pretty talented too because not a one of them lost their balance while we were there. If I was a sheep on stilts, I would fall down. Actually if I was a person on stilts, I would still fall down.

See the stilts!

After playing with the alpacas, we visited two beaches, Onetangi and Palm Beach. Onetangi has a great shell collection, and Palm Beach has impressive rock formations.

At Palm Beach, my friend and I started taking lots of pictures: rocks, us on rocks, rocks with boats in the distance, etc. We had travelled a little ways down the beach and just rounded a corner when David urgently whispered behind us:

“Um, guys...”

We whipped around. Cameras poised in the air, and.....

Oh, ummm, well hello nudist beach. Wasn’t expecting that one.

I’m not quite sure who looked more shocked, us or the old, naked people who we unintentionally had our cameras pointed at.

I feel like they really need a sign: “WARNING, there are naked, old people around the corner. Proceed at your own risk”.

Do NOT go past this point.

Oh and don’t worry, we also visited some of the 38 wineries on the island. Besides some decent wine, Stonyridge has a pretty vineyard, Wild on Waiheke has a good brewery, and Te Whau and Mudbrick both have fantastic views.

Fantastic Views, Te Whau

So you may be asking, “This island you speak of, it really exists?”

Absolutely it does, people. Come visit us, and we will take you there. I will even buy you a glass of wine. And we will avoid the nudist beach.

- Meredith

Birthday Churros and Pygmy Marmosets

2011-08-15T21:31:00.000+12:00

So yesterday was my birthday here in New Zealand, and today is my birthday in the States. I think this means I get two birthdays now. Someone back me up on this.

For my birthday weekend, we started out at the Auckland Zoo. In general, I haven’t met a zoo that I don’t like. And this one was extra impressive. There were lots of fun-sized baby animals, and you could get up close and personal with spider monkeys and otters and wallabies and a tiny pygmy marmoset that we almost convinced to climb into our backpack. He got suspicious though and ran away. Next time I will bring him treats to show him how nice and friendly we are. I also could have reached out and petted an emu or a peacock. But the emu kind of looked angry, and I questioned whether this was truly good for my safety.

Do not pet the rhinos.

Then we went to Bellota, a Spanish tapas restaurant, for dinner. It was a good life decision to eat there. It has a cool lounge atmosphere, and everything we ate was delicious. We tried the squid, green shell mussels, manchego cheese and serrano ham, and ox tongue pintxo and olive paste pintxo (pintxo = slice of french bread with toppings). The ox tongue was actually my favorite dish. See, you never know until you try. And my birthday churros with dulce de leche were also quite tasty.

On Sunday, we did a winery tour in Kumeu. On the way there I happened to look over and spot a familiar bullseye symbol with the letters T-A-R-G-E-T.

Me: “Target?? TARGET?!? OH EM GEE, IT’S TARGET!!! STOP THE CAR!”

David: “Oh umm yeah... I moved it here for your birthday.”

And that is why he is the best husband ever. Because he moved my favorite store 8,000 miles across the South Pacific for my birthday.

(Unfortunately, it is just a Target Furniture store. But I am still kind of impressed with him.)

Then we went to three wineries in Kumeu: Soljans, Coopers Creek, and Matua. We did wine tastings, and they were all quite generous with their samplings. We also ate a great lunch at Soljans cafe: a huge Vintner’s Platter filled with lots of Mediterranean, appetizer-type foods. It was the ultimate food coma. Halfway through, we were like “White Flag! We surrender! You win brie and olives and feta salad, you win.”

Winner

Oh and on Friday night, a cloud got STUCK on our apartment building. It was a complete whiteout for like 8 hours. I mean you couldn’t see anything. “Where did the city go? Where did the world go??! OMG, it’s the apocalypse! WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE!”. I guess I have never lived in a skyscraper before. Sorry, I missed getting a picture of it. I was too busy hiding under the covers waiting for the world to end. Stop laughing. It was scary.

- Meredith

Cock-a-doodle, Oink

2011-08-09T21:47:00.000+12:00

So last weekend we got tickets for The Food Show in Auckland. It was pretty awesome. A huge, indoor show-ground filled with booth after booth of free samples, cooking demonstrations, prizes, etc. Kind of like Willy Wonka’s Factory for foodies like us (Except I didn’t win a prize so apparently I didn’t have the golden ticket. And still no oompa loompas).

We’re not too picky when it comes to food and drink so we basically tried anything that had a sample. And everything had a sample. There were lots of good wines, cheeses, olive oils, butter chickens, Indian curries, and mango cupcakes.

Take a look at these bad boys.

“Would you like to sample our wine?”

“Why, yes, how did you know?”

“Would you like to try a special cheese from the south of France?”

“Don’t mind if I do”

“Would you like to try EVERY flavor of gelato that we make?”

“umm,YES”

This went on for hours.

Special cheeses from important places.

My favorites were Manuka Gold’s honey liquor, Ginelli’s limoncello gelato, and Chai Gold’s chai ginger tea. They were yummy and delicious, and two of them have “Gold” in their name so I must have expensive taste.

We got a little lost/ deliriously full somewhere between kumara soups, wine slushies, and Russian dumplings.

And then we met our match.

Now, if we’re being honest, we had kind of stopped reading product descriptions at this point so this may be partially our fault.

We came to a booth with a slightly green liquor in a small shot glass.

Oooh, aloe vera liquor??!!...... Could it be??

OMG NO... definitely NOT aloe vera!

Can I inconspicuously spit it back in the cup and walk away? What is this burning, green acid that they are trying to market as a drink...

WASABI LIQUOR??...

WHO THOUGHT THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA???

I would like to have a word with this person and watch them drink their own product.

This weekend we “moved house” into our new apartment, and I am so excited. We can finally stop living out of suitcases, drying our clothes on the dining room table, and using the chairs as “drawers”. Our last apartment was so tiny we couldn’t shut the bedroom door because the bed was in the way. So it is nice to have a little more space.

Of course our new apartment has its oddities too. The switch for the living room light is in the bedroom closet, the one for the kitchen is in the foyer, and the washer and dryer move by themselves. I’m not kidding. I put clothes in and when I come back, the whole washing machine has moved a foot so that I can’t open the door anymore. Then I have to wait for David to come home to move it back. It is also very tiny. I can wash exactly 3 shirts and 2 pairs of pants at once. I may be able to throw some socks in there if I am lucky. So at this rate, I will be done with this week’s laundry in approximately 48 days.

Anyone want to come to Auckland, and I will hire you as my official laundry machine operator/ mover? I will pay you in limoncello gelato and honey liquor. Not a bad deal if you ask me.

- Meredith

Please send 300 swamp monsters doing the Cha-Cha while riding pink Segways and juggling penguins

2011-08-04T20:54:00.000+12:00

After sending hundreds of documents to the New Zealand immigration office, our visas have finally arrived!! And we're not getting deported after all!!! It’s like little elves just showed up and brought Christmas early.

The visa process went something like this:

Immigration: Please send an original copy of your marriage license signed in blood, gilded in gold, and hand delivered by a fairy riding a flying white pony.

Us: Umm ok...

Immigration: That is the wrong kind of flying white pony.

Us: You didn’t specify.

Immigration: It was implied. Please start over.

Immigration: Please send your first born child dressed as a kangaroo, riding a llama, and holding the original Declaration of Independence.

Us: We don’t have a first born child.

Immigration: Please try harder.

Immigration: Please send 3 pictures of you holding oompa loompas while riding a ferris wheel with Bigfoot in Antarctica.

Us: Umm what....

Immigration: Please send by tomorrow. AM.

Us: We don’t know any oompa loompas.

Immigration: You know oompa loompas.

Us: Umm, pretty sure we don’t.

Immigration: You don’t understand how this works, do you?

Us: ... You’re not very nice, are you?

Immigration: Please send...

Us: *BANGS HEAD AGAINST WALL*

Needless to say, we are excited that the process is over, and we are officially considered real people! Or at least New Zealand residents. (So now we can, you know, work and get paid and get health insurance - the little things in life).

- Meredith

Earth! Fire! Wind! Brellies? Gust Busters?... Go Planet?

2011-07-27T13:50:00.003+12:00

The winter weather here is fickle to say the least. And impressive. It can be sunny, windy, rainy, cold, and warm at the same time. Way to multi-task, weather.

The wind is my least favorite though. It is brutal. I feel like calling Captain Planet’s team and telling Wind, “Put down your darn ring and walk away. You’ve done enough, sir. Give someone else a chance.” Like Sun or Beach Weather. Those are not real Captain Planet members, but they totally should be. I would call on them right now.

The safety warning from our new apartment hints at how bad Wind is behaving. “At times the wind can be very strong around the main entrance to the tower, on some occasions residents have been blown over, please be careful.” I’m not going to lie, I kind of want to see that happen. But knowing my luck, it will probably be me. I’m going to have some Wizard of Oz cyclone moment and end up in Antarctica. I just know it.

We have been told we need to get a special type of umbrella (or “brellie”) called a “gust buster”. Apparently these have some special magic that prevents them from turning inside out every 5 seconds. Which would be useful since we can now be spotted all over the city “comically” trying to right our umbrella in the middle of a downpour. This must be how they tell the newcomers apart from the locals.

This week we went to Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World and MOTAT (Museum of Transportation and Technology). Kelly’s is billed as being “the” place to have an antarctic encounter, but I was not really that impressed. We did take a snowmobile around to look at the penguins so that was kind of exciting and different. But we could not pet the penguins and the penguins did not fly or dance. For the price of the ticket, I was expecting the penguins to do tricks or at least wear bow ties and serve us ice cream.

I think I scared the sea horse when I took this photo. Sorry, sea horse.

Penguins not wearing bow ties or serving ice cream.

MOTAT on the other hand is worth the ticket. I think it is probably meant more for kids, but usually that just means it is more exciting for adults too. There are lots of cars and trains that you can crawl into, a mirror maze, a printing press you can play with, and a giant kiwi bird! There is also a tram that takes you on a 10 minute ride around parts of Auckland. And the conductor wears a “train hat” and says “all aboard” so you know, that definitely makes the experience more grown-up.

Extremely large kiwi bird.

I have also been searching for jobs which is a little difficult because we have limited internet resources. But I have found something that I am good at that I think would make an excellent career. Gambling! David does not agree. I spent less than 30 minutes though and made $27 at the casino on Saturday. If I kept that up and made $50 or more an hour, that is like a 100K job. He has yet to convince me why this is a bad idea.

- Meredith

Top Hats and Bellybutton Warmers

2011-07-18T20:46:00.003+12:00

So this week we concentrated on the apartment search which was sort of like a full time job. Mostly because buyer’s agents don’t exist here. This means we do the research and then contact the listing agent to see the property. And then we pay them a fee when we rent the property. Wait, what? What am I paying them for? Oh that’s right, they opened the door for us and turned on a light. Thank you. That is definitely worth one week’s rent.

There have been some interesting properties though. Like the one with the doorman who wears a top hat and long coattails. That one is a little more expensive, but I feel the top hat is worth at least $25 a week just for the laugh.

The one we are hoping for is below. Please don’t hate us. Promise?

Really?

Here it is:

This is why we moved.

We have also done a little shopping and found that they sell some odd things here. There are some unique/ cool things for sure, like The Third Eye shop on K’ Rd that specializes in Indian flair fabrics, home decor, and jewelry for pretty inexpensive prices.

But we have also found flashlight earpicks and Charlie Sheen blow-up dolls.

My personal favorite that I am buying everyone for Christmas... it is compact and easy to ship and best of all it is a......

Possum Fur Bellybutton Warmer!

Because I care. Don’t worry, there are enough for everyone!

We have done a little restaurant hopping as well. There was Murder Burger that has a devious looking cat on their logo, but tasty burgers. David got “The Standard” which had the Kiwis’ favorite burger toppings, beet and egg. And actually, it’s pretty good! And now you think we are weird. It’s ok. You should try it though when you come visit.

My favorite restaurant so far has been The Longroom where I learned that it is ok to drink Aloe Vera. Ok, so I don’t think it is the same as our aloe vera, but it is soothing, refreshing, and slightly green so I could be mistaken. They put it in a cocktail called The Aloemony, and I’m not saying that I went back for a second one, but they were both delicious. They also make really yummy food. I almost stole David’s steak. He is very fast though.

Yesterday we went to a dormant volcano/ park called One Tree Hill where you get to frolic with hundreds of sheep. You can just open the gate and walk on in. They are very trusting here because no one is monitoring whether you take a sheep home. I resisted. For now.

One Tree Hill also has a park where you can fly kites and practice archery and grill out and get ice cream in flavors like Fig & Honey and Ginger Crunch. And it is all free! (Well not the ice cream, but you can’t ask for everything).

- Meredith

Gate 28 also known as Gate 26 and 1/2

2011-07-14T19:01:00.002+12:00

Welcome to Auckland and The Funny Sheep Travel Blog!

So this week we hopped across the pond and moved 8,356 miles. You know, no big deal.

(By the way, I am disappointed with Google Maps. I went there to find the exact milage between North Carolina and Auckland, but they would not calculate a route. Where is your humor, Google? I was hoping for “Get in your row boat and row across the South Pacific”. Evidently they do not think this is a good idea.)

Our adventure started off on Saturday in North Carolina with the baggage check-in. We were first in line. It took 2 hours. Apparently you have to get approval from the prime minister, the red panda at the Auckland zoo, and Samonsite, the baggage god, to fly with 5 suitcases. And then you have to buy the bags their own small country.

At least the views on the flight to L.A. were pretty decent. Lots of mountains and deserts and other nature type things. Kind of like google earth, but better.

After we arrived in LAX, we immediately remembered why we hate this airport.

We went in search of Gate 28 only to find that they had hidden it. Gate 26 was to our left, gate 27 was in front of us, but then nothing. The numbers stopped.

David: “So is this like Harry Potter where you have to run through the wall?”

Me: “Yes, it’s exactly like that. You get to go first.”

We finally found 28 hiding in a corner between 26 and 27. It seems that they can’t count in L.A.

If you are flying to New Zealand to visit us (which you totally should), I would recommend Qantas over Air New Zealand for two main reasons. Qantas allows you to check more luggage and they have better quality food (including a snack bag that we missed on Air NZ).

Although, that being said, Air NZ does have the best safety video EVER. Richard Simmons leads an 80s style “safety workout video” (“And reach for your luggage, and reach! And pull your seatbelt, pull!”). Phil Keoghan (Amazing Race Host) makes a great cameo in a sweatband too. So that may make your decision a little harder.

After we arrived in Auckland and got settled at our hotel/ apartment, we went in search of a temporary phone plan, a bank account, etc. You know, real people stuff. Our temporary phone plan gave us 2800 free texts! ... to anyone in New Zealand. Which is great except we don’t really know anyone in New Zealand. Yet. I’m thinking of texting random numbers, “Will you be our friend? Please respond yes or no.” Thoughts?

We also ate our 3rd breakfast that morning (what can I say, I am like a hobbit) at a cool converted firehouse cafe called The Williamson. They have delicious paninis and cool booths that make me taller than David when I sit against one wall.

And for some reason, everyone thinks we are British. So we decided to start speaking in lots of different accents to mess with people. Kind of ridiculously fun.

So yeah, that’s about it. Sorry there are no pictures yet. Our internets are a little limited at the moment, but we will work on that.

- Meredith