Waihi? Whine not.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Since Mark finally has some days off, we wanted to take a road trip and see some of NZ outside of Tauranga. We drove north about an hour to Waihi Beach through some beautiful countryside with rolling hills, farmland, vineyards, and scattered houses separated by towering hedgerows. This area of NZ looks sort of like coastal California meets rural England. We were on the main highway that goes to Auckland, but even it was only a winding two-lane road once we got outside Tauranga.

Ronan was in a whiny mood today, and we practically had to drag him to the car to go to the beach. Mark has a theory that kids (and most everyone else) are governed by the law of inertia. They avoid change like the plague, and always resist stopping whatever they are doing at the moment. He seemed to want to do anything other than go to the beach; "I want to go to the forest! I want to go to the park! I want to watch Spongebob!" Of course, once his toes hit the water, he wanted to do anything but leave the gorgeous beach. Waihi Beach is considered one of the safest beaches in NZ; it's wide and flat with fairly gentle surf. Even though it's a holiday weekend, there was hardly anyone else there. The shells are amazing, and we collected more beautiful nautilus shells than we know what to do with. The sand near the water is a very fine light gray, but near the dunes it's black and crusty from the area's volcanic activity. Ronan enjoyed playing with chunks of this sun-baked "hot lava," and, as always, jumping waves as they rolled onto the beach. He also found a piece of driftwood that he would wield like a lightsaber, slicing into each wave as it came towards him. Sherry made a discovery of her own - a talking porta-potty! Upon entering, as you slide the door closed, a voice tells you to push the "lock" button, then warns, "You have 10 minutes." A few seconds later, the Muzak version of "All You Need Is Love" starts playing. Sherry didn't stick around long enough to peruse the remainder of the potty playlist, nor to see what would happen after 10 minutes.

Ro & Sherry head for the water. Tuhua (Mayor) Island in the distance

Ro wielding his driftwood at Waihi Beach

Sherry wanted to head south to the Bowentown Headland at the end of Waihi Beach, a few klicks away. The large hills there used to be Maori Pa's (fortified hills used for defence in tribal wars), and it was easy to see why. Fairly steep, with commanding views of the surrounding area, it was just gorgeous. On the way, we stopped for refreshments at a beachside store, and found an "All Blacks" edition of Powerade; Mark saved the bottle.

"Silver Charge" All Blacks Powerade

Ro clowning on the gate to the trail up Bowentown Headland

A few seconds later, "Carry me!"

A minute later, Ro enjoying the view from Sherry's back

Mark on Bowentown Headland, Waihi Beach in background

Happy Waitangi Day!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Today is Waitangi Day in New Zealand, which is sort of like the 4th of July in America. It celebrates the Treaty of Waitangi, which was signed on 6 Feb 1840. Since it's a public holiday, it meant Mark couldn't get any CT scans for his patients at work today. It's a little lower key than the 4th of July, though, unless you happen to be in the town of Waitangi itself. Around here, there was just a sunrise Maori observation of the holiday on top of Mount Maunganui. Alas, no fireworks.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Waitangi

Front entrance to the hospital. Ambulance bay on left

Ro and Sherry took it easy today and hung around the motel. Ro spent much of the day playing with Luke and Aidan (the innkeepers' kids). He was doing front flips on the trampoline, which even the 8-year old didn't know how to do. Credit Miss Brittany (Ro's babysitter in Asheboro) for that. Ro is so much like Luke in personality it's scary, and both Sherry and Tracy (Luke's mom) noticed it right away. Ro has even started picking up a hint of a Kiwi accent; his O's get longer by the day. We giggle every time he says "home." Sherry has become quite the domestic goddess; she whipped up a ham and cheese omelet for Mark before he headed off to work today, and had dinner waiting when he got home, complete with a bottle of wine to celebrate our first week here. She loves cooking with kumara, the NZ version of the sweet potato, which Ro devours. Even though we have maid service, Sherry seems to do an inordinate amount of laundry; there's always something hanging on the line - must be because Ro gets dirty so often.

Ro and Luke clowning around

The animals are loose! Luke (5), Aidan (8), and Ronan (4)

Not sure what they were looking at. Frankly I don't want to know

Mark and Ro spent the evening playing on the "tramp" and climbing trees in the yard. Sherry is on a quest to find our next place to live. Hopefully, we'll have enough room for guests, but we'll squeeze you in regardless if you want to visit!


For those of you who weren't aware, the USA rugby team is in Wellington for the NZI Sevens Rugby Tournament, losing to Samoa 26-17, but beating Fiji 15-10 and Cook Islands 36-0, finishing the day tied at the top of Pool D. The fans we see on TV put even the most rabid Raider fans and Cameron Crazies to shame with their costumes and antics. The big match between the NZ All-Blacks and the Aussies is the nightcap tonight. The international tour comes to San Diego next weekend for anyone who's interested.


http://www.nzisevens.co.nz/Tournament/FullSchedule.htm

Up and Down and All About Town

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Sherry and Ro finally made it to "The Mount" (Maunganui) today. Ro was excited at the prospect of climbing a volcano, but was a little disappointed at the lack of hot lava at the top, apparently thinking it was going to look like Mustafar from Episode III...lol. The little guy hiked all the way up and down by himself, much to Sherry's relief. They discovered a flock of sheep on the hillside on the way up, and Ro started chasing them, trying to pet them. An older Kiwi man with a walking stick on his way down kidded Sherry loud enough for Ronan to hear, "Does he realize those are man-eating sheep?"

See the Wiki article at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Maunganui

Sherry & Ro on top of Mount Maunganui

Ro on Mount Maunganui. Moturiki and Motuotau Islands in background

After work, we all went to a new (to us) park called the Wharepai Reserve, near City Centre in Tauranga. There were HUGE, exotic-looking trees, a Lawn Tennis Club, a Croquet Club, a running track, and a field where a local rugby team was running wind sprints. There were even a few bagpipers practicing. Ro enjoyed himself on the jungle gym, and we chased each other around playing tag, then retreated to The Strand a few blocks away. We got Ro an ice cream cone, then treated ourselves at De Bier Haus.

Ro & Mark climbing trees in Wharepai Reserve

Sherry in Wharepai Reserve. Tauranga Harbor and Mount Maunganui in background

We thought this tree looked like something out of Middle Earth

Can't Get No Stat-isfaction

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Mark is slowly coming to terms with the vagaries of the New Zealand healthcare system. Since he works in a public hospital (i.e. paid for by taxpayers), they are very protective of the utilization of expensive procedures like CT scans. In order to get a "stat" CT (or any CT for that matter), the ED doctor must fill out a form detailing why he thinks a patient needs one, hand-carry it to the radiology department, explain the case to the radiologist, get him to sign off on it, then carry the form down the hall to the CT scheduling department and sweet-talk the secretary into bumping the ED patient ahead of all the outpatient scans. Only then is the patient given an "appointment" for a scan at some point later in the day. The CT scanner only operates during banker's hours, as opposed to the US where it's usually available 24/7. And you can forget about getting an MRI in this lifetime.

The Kiwis do have an enlightened and quite broad view of "accidents," however, whether it's a motor vehicle crash, medical malpractice, an assault, an overdose, a fall, or even an "accidental" bee sting. Their government department called the ACC pays for all future medical care related to the accident, courtesy of Kiwi taxpayers, on the condition that they don't sue anyone for damages.

Some of the quirks of the hospital are amusing, though. Whereas in America, a nurse's first questions to a patient might be about their chief complaint, medications or allergies, in NZ it's "would you like a cup of tea?" In fact, the "tea room" (i.e. break room) has a tap on the wall for boiling water, with an assortment of tea bags close by, and more mugs than you've ever seen outside a Pottery Barn. Of course, they all take milk in it here, which we're slowly getting used to.

The camaraderie among the ED staff is very informal, and all the nurses and doctors are on a first-name basis. In fact, it's considered pretentious if you even introduce yourself as "Dr. So-And-So" to a patient. So, Mark's taken to just introducing himself as "Mark, one of the doctors" to differentiate himself from the nurses, since they all wear the same navy scrubs.

Meanwhile, Sherry and Ro went to Mount Drury today, just inland from the "Marine Parade" (i.e. the beach on the seaward side of Mount Maunganui). This ancient Maori burial ground had a playground at the bottom which Ro enjoyed. Sherry had warned him not to take his toy planes with him, and sure enough, he forgot them there. Halfway home, he piped up, "where are my planes?" Soft-hearted as she is, Sherry did a 360 in the traffic circle and went back to the park. A friendly Kiwi lady helped her round up all the toys from the kids who had begun playing with them, and all was right in Ro's world again.

Ro relaxing on Mount Drury. Moturiki Island in background

Sherry & Ro on Mount Drury. Tauranga harbor in background

Blonde Ambition

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Mark's first day in the ED was a big adjustment. Although the patients and the diseases are the same, almost all the medications go by a different name, so it's a lot like learning a new language. He'll be supervising the house officers, most of whom are from the UK, and who know all the medications by yet a third name.

Sherry and Ro dropped Mark off at work so they'd have the car for the day. Near the end of Mark's shift, while reducing a Maori kid's dislocated thumb, he got a frantic call from Maxine, the hospital secretary who had arranged their accommodations, and who had just received a call from our rental car agency. "Your wife has had trouble with the car and she and your son are stranded at the beach!" Unfortunately, we don't yet have active cell phones here, so he had no way to get in touch with Sherry. So, he hoofed it home, and with much relief, saw our green Mitsubishi parked in front of the motel room. Sheepishly, Sherry explained what happened.

{Segue}

Sherry explains

After navigating through town and successfully finding a nice oceanfront parking space, after having survived the darned traffic circles, and after no horrific turns into oncoming traffic with Kiwi faces screaming at me...after all these "accomplishments," in the end it was the automatic transmission that was the enemy. For those of you who don't know, I drive a manual.

I was so proud of myself, you see, arriving safely at my destination, and not hurting either the vehicle or our child in the process. Ro and I skipped to the beach, frolicked in the water, and hunted shells in the tidal pools. We hiked up to the point on the peninsula just next to the Mount (Maunganui) and watched a large ship drift by, while below us Maori teens were cliff diving, as is the local norm. We headed back to the beach, and Ro proceeded to cover me with sand up to my waist, and then I him. We walked up the beach where the local beach authorities were setting up bleachers for an international "surfing ironman" competition taking place this weekend. We lunched on a veggie frittata (me) and pancakes with hair-less bacon (Ro), then walked back down The Strand along the boardwalk, passing a bungee attraction that caters to the under-10 crowd, and operates whenever the bungee "crew" happens to be around and not, well, surfing I think. Today, the attendant was actually there, so after much begging and pleading on Ro's part, I fished out the equivalent of around US$5, and Ro had a blast. The attendant asked Ro where he was from, and his little pale face says "Asheboro," and when asked again, "And where's that, mate", Ro smiles infectiously and says, "New Zealand." The attendant had a good laugh, saying, "Don't you wish it were so, little bro?"

Ro going vertical

Ro catching some serious air

After the bungee, I noticed the time was running away (3:30), so I high-tailed it to the car with Ro in tow whining, "I'm sleepy mommy. Can we go to the park?" Since Mark was due back at 4, I had told him I would be back at the same time, because it is extremely difficult to communicate without cellular phones, and we all know telepathy is so one-sided. I climb into the car, acutely aware for the first time of having spent 6 1/2 hours in the intense NZ sun (my chest is fried), with my cranky and sticky sand-covered toddler (sand, by the way, is a most effective sunscreen).

I insert the key with complete confidence, and...nothing. Well, almost nothing. The radio came on, and the fan came on, but the car did not turn on. There was no battery light, but there was some little symbol that looked like an engine or something, so that set me to worrying. I leap out of the car, grab Ro in my arms, and power walk about 5 or 6 blocks to the nearest phone. I call the rental agency with my coordinates, repeat what has happened, then hurry back to await the "20 minute" arrival of the mechanic.

Once back, sweating profusely from the very hot afternoon sun, holding a sandy, sticky (did I say that already?), 44 lb toddler who is trying to fall asleep on my shoulder; I strap the little guy in, and roll down the windows. "This is so odd," I think, and try the car again, studying more closely now all of the dashboard lights.

Then it hits me.


The car is not in "Park." The car will not start if not in "Park."

CRAP

I check the time, and it is 3:45. I make a split second decision to leave and get home before Mark arrives, then call the rental agency from there. I jet away, zooming through traffic circles, only exiting wrong once, and arrive home easily by 4. I take a deep breath and call the rental office. I decide to be as forthcoming as possible while attempting to save face. I do not want to be the stupid American tourist girl.

"I'm an ass," I say. "The car was in Neutral. I'm so very sorry."

"No worries," they tell me, laughing. We'll phone the mechanic "just now." I'm sure they could be laughing still over dinner tonight.

I wasn't going to mention it to Mark, but when he blazed through the door, saying, "I am so glad to see you guys and the car here," I knew that somehow he knew. And now, all of you do, too.

{End Segue}

One would think that would be enough of Sherry's "blonde ambition" for one day, but alas, you would be wrong. Our range in the kitchen has had a loose knob since we moved in (or was it after Ro messed with it shortly after we moved in? I'm not quite certain.) Kris, the innkeeper, was sending the electrician over to fix it this morning and Sherry was trying to get out of the room before then. She ran a sink full of hot water in order to wash the morning dishes, and was going to let the water cool a little first. There's two temperatures available, scalding and ice cold. She then took a shower, only to discover that when she got out of the shower, she had forgotten to shut off the sink. She found herself frantically mopping up the kitchen and the drawers, with minutes to spare before the electrician arrived...lol. Must be genetic, as Ro did the same thing with the bathroom sink this evening, while attempting to wash the sand off his toy airplane. As we found out, there are no backup drains at the edge of NZ sinks like in the States.

Mark pushing Ro on the motel's tire swing

Ro enjoying a "dirt bath" amongst the fruit trees at the motel

Settling Into A Routine

Monday, February 2, 2009

Mark had his first day of orientation at Tauranga Hospital today. It'd be a 5 minute drive with no traffic, but at rush hour it takes 10. The day was pretty similar to other hospital orientations...meeting with IT people, infection control people, touring the hospital and ED, etc... Unfortunately, it lasted until 4pm, so he just missed watching the Super Bowl. The other docs in his orientation group consisted of a Medical Registrar (roughly equivalent to a fellow) from Sri Lanka, and Consultants (like attending physicians) in Cardiology, Pediatrics, and Neurology from South Africa, Germany, and South Africa, respectively. About half the docs in the hospital are foreign. Everyone was very nice, but sorting through the various accents is getting to be a challenge. The hospital cafeteria was small, but with tasty food. Mark found it amusing that the corned beef sandwich he had was labeled a "Healthy Choice."

Sherry and Ronan took the 8-block walk to Memorial Park after seeing Mark off to work, where Ro amused himself on the jungle gym, swimming in the fountain, chasing seagulls, and climbing trees. After his nap, he swam in the pool and played on the trampoline with the innkeepers' kids. There were 4 kids on the thing, playing a sort of game where they rolled a ball around and jumped around, trying not to let the ball hit them. Ro fell off twice, and fortunately didn't break anything. No net, remember? Luke (5) bragged that he'd broken both of his arms on the trampoline, yet there he was, bouncing on it again. Sherry's not sure if American parents are overprotective, or Kiwi parents are too casual, but we definitely think this year will toughen the little guy up.

Ro's favorite deathtr...er, trampoline

Sherry drove here for the first time today, as we made a run to the mall to pick up a few essentials. She's become a fan of making extra left turns to avoid turning right during rush hour. Although she got the driving on the left thing down pretty good, and avoided turning on the wipers when she wants to signal a turn like Mark seems to do, she wasn't used to the car and forgot to put it in park when we stopped, and later tried to drive without starting the engine.

Beach Bums

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Although we had driven past the beach our first evening here, we finally made it there for real today. When we woke up this morning, all Ro wanted to do was stay at the motel and play in the pool like yesterday, but we convinced him to give the beach a try, and boy was he glad when we got there. We took a shopping detour to pick him up a rashguard shirt, sunglasses, goggles, and a hat. The mall here is called Bayfair, just like the one in San Leandro near Mark's California family. The girls at the checkout counter gave Ro a free extra case for his new shades "because he has such a cute accent." Mark discovered another challenge when we arrived at the beach - parallel parking from the right side of the car. We left the car on a side street and walked around Mount Drury, an interesting-looking hill with caves in the side, terraced lawn, and exotic vegetation. The hill and caves were originally used for Maori burials.

Ronan can't resist petting any dog he passes

Mark & Sherry at Mount Maunganui Beach

Mount Maunganui is the big landmark around here, and a sacred site for the Maori, with a beautiful beach that lies east of the mountain and extends for many miles. There's a line of restaurants and high-end apartments along the beach road, with a boardwalk winding among lawn and trees on the beach side. There must be a classic car or hot-rod convention in town, because we saw an inordinate number of them cruising up and down the strip. There was a sailing regatta offshore today, and a lifesaving contest/tournament involving all the regional lifeguarding teams, showcasing their running, swimming and surfing skills. The water temperature was warmer than North Carolina, but not the tepid bathwater feel of Florida; in other words, perfect. And we've never seen bluer azure water outside of the nicest Caribbean islands.

Sherry on Moturiki Island with Motuotau Island in background

Ronan clinging to the piece of driftwood he found

Ronan was in his happy place, which made for a great day for everyone. He loved waiting in the shallow water for a wave to come and then jumping over it, picking up big rocks and watching them splash as he threw them, and picking up wet sand and spinning around so it flew off his hands in clumps. There's an island called Moturiki with a tidal isthmus that extended from the beach, with lots of cool walking trails, boulders to climb on, and tidal pools to splash in. We sunned ourselves on some boulders there, overlooking the sea, taking in the vistas and the regatta, snacking on fruit and crackers. There were some pretty precarious precipices, which nearly gave Sherry a heart attack, as Ronan seems to know no fear when it comes to heights.

"Not too high, Ronan!"

Ro & Mark with Mount Maunganui in background

Ro taking it all in

We finished up our excursion at a seaside cafe, where Ronan had ice cream and part of a PB&J we had brought. Sherry and I enjoyed smoothies and a platter of what was basically New Zealand's version of antipasto, with Kiwi-ized bacon, complete with the skin and hair...actually quite tasty, like eating pork rinds and ribs in one bite...lol.

In his happy place


Lunch. Note the skin and hair on the "bacon"


Walking back to the car at the end of a successful day

Ronan promptly passed out once we were back in the car, and we spent a leisurely evening at home. Sherry discovered that the tire swing at the motel's play area is suspended from an avocado tree, and she took the liberty of relieving it of a couple softball-sized avocados. Ro did sustain a boo-boo later, however. As Sherry prepared dinner, he and Mark were playing a game involving locking Mark in the closet (there's no handle on the inside of the door). Needless to say, this involved a great deal of trust on Mark's part. But when Ro finally opened the door, it slammed against his big toe, drawing a little blood and a lot of screaming.

Mark's first day at work is tomorrow. Should be interesting. Fortunately, Sherry has a park and a pool in close proximity with which to keep Ro entertained.