Concerning hobbits, thanksgiving and visas...

Wow, i have much to write about in this entry. I guess i'll start at the beginning (which is a very good place to start). Saturday morning we picked Chonos up bright and early from the airport. Not long after returning the phone rang. Thankfully unlike most Saturday's i was awake and it was only 9am! On the phone was my case worker, Gerald. Gerald (or Gerry as i'm going to call him for the moment) had a chat to me about when i met Matt, how long we'd been living together etc, and then told me that my birth certifcate wasn't being accepted due to a small detail but if i sent another one things should be ok. Well a mere 2 hours later he calls me back again to tell me...I'M ACCEPTED (in principal). I'm going to be a NZ resident! I received my paperwork in the mail the other day. More money, my passport and new birth certificate and i'm sorted. All will be done when we return from Oz.

As previously mentioned Chonos arrived. We took him to the beach.

Murawai Beach



Here's some pictures of Matt out with his big kite. It really gives you a sense of just how big it is.




We also went to Matt's Australian Rules football game.

Grr go Matt


During the week we also had lunch up the sky tower. I took Thursday and friday off from work. Thursday of course being Thanksgiving. Matt and i went and bought a new deck set to solve our chair problem. Amy and i started cooking bright and early.

Our new deck set


Yet another picture of Amy and a turkey



To account for all the people i convinced Matt to let me take a door of the table and use that to fit everyone together - all 8 people.

My door/table


We had 8 people over including Osh and Caitlin, Amy and Chonos, my mates from work Nicole and Conrad and later Michael came around.

Everyone at the table


For our menu we had (courtsey of cooks Lindsay, Amy and Caitlin): Salad, Corn bread, home made bread, green bean salad, baked carrots, corn cassarole, mash potatoes, stuffing, turkey, homemade cranberry relish and of course, pumpkin pie and walnut pie!

Yum Yum!


More of all of us


Me!


PIES!


After dinner we all had drinks and played Cranium


Night time view from the table


Friday Matt, Chonos and i rented a car and drove south for the town of Rotorua which is about 3 hours south of Auckland. It has a population of about 65,000 (according to wikipedia) and a very large Maori one. Mostly it's know for it's smell. It's full of sulfur and made me spend the whole time feeling as though i was reminiscing getting my hair permed. It's all on yet another volcano which in the 1800's much like Pompeii erupted and buried a village.

Giant iron sheepdog on the way down to Rotorua


Maori face


Matt and i in front of Lake Rotorua


Steamy wouldn't want to bathe in it.


Vents - boiling hot water and smells


More vents in B&W


Rotorua museum


Matt and i in front of a giant steam vent


Matt looking scared - DANGER!


More Maori bits


While in Rotorua we went to the museums, the main park, saw the vents, and also went to rainbow springs just outside the city where we saw Kiwis! No good pics to show you all tho!

Saturday afternoon after we left Rotorua we headed up to Matamata. Matamata is a tiny town of up to 15000 people which has one sole claim to fame - it is the location for Hobbiton in Lord of the Rings (and is apparently New Zealand's largest horse training town). We took the tour and headed out to the location which is just out of town. It's on a sheep farm with a population of up to 14000 sheep!! Our tour guide Benji told us loads of interesting facts about the movie and although i'm usually not a fan of guided tours did a good job.

The rolling hills of the shire


The location was especially selected because of the rolling hills, the fact that you can't see anything man made (other than a shed which they made into a tree in the movie), and a giant tree by a lake. Yes the party tree is real. The tree over bag end in the movie however wasn't.

The party tree in the movie and how it all looks now


Matt and I


Where the mill was and the bridge (in B&W)


Me and Bag End


Me and my hobbit feet


Matt and i in Samwise Gamgee's house


Houses


Us


Me, Matt and Chonos in Bag Eng


Well so that's about it for the moment. Matt's Australian Rules team has made it to the grand final this Sunday. As you'll notice in the picture he's growing a moustache at the moment for Movember. I have to say i'm looking forward to December coming!

I will leave you with a photo of a New Zealand Christmas tree. The potakawa trees are now in bloom.