First Week So Far...

Well it has been a long journey, 33 hours in airplanes and airports and I seem to have lost a day somewhere along the way. I arrived groggily at the airport in Auckland at the wee hours of the morn, to be greeted by my supervisor, Dr. Andrew Jeffs. I spent my first day trying to stay awake while hiking with Andrew's wonderful family to the top of dormant volcano on the island of Rangitoto in Auckland. This volcanic island had wonderful views of the isles and eroded summits of ancient volcanoes as well as the city nestled among them.

This was followed up by a trip down the mountain back to the shore, but along the way we stopped to go "tramping" through some old lava tubes. Spelunking is not one of my hobbies and as interesting as it was I don't think it will be high on my list of things to take up.

After an interesting supper of Lasagna I finally crashed at 9 pm. The next day we went for a lovely tour of campus in Auckland, took care of the remaining paperwork and then headed off for Leigh. It was a nice trip up the coast, lots of rolling hills with sheep and dairy cattle. I arrived at the Marine Institute and was given a wonderful tour. It is a bit smaller than the Huntsman center, but very reminiscent. I then settled in to a bunk room and went about the arduous task of trying to remember the names of everyone I was meeting. Everyone has been so helpful though and over the course of the weekend I was already set up to purchase a car off a Canadian student who is finishing up. I also got the opportunity to see a bit of the coastline close up. The biggest thing here is the large number of birds. I was first greeted and continued to be greeted by a group of loud seagulls that always congregate at the beach nearby. High in the trees on the cliff, overhanging the beach are a group of cormorant species which I have yet to identify (still no field guide, what I wouldn't give for a Petersons).

In my travels through the intertidal (more of that to come later) I have found two creatures that really peaked my interest. The first is a wading bird that always seems to be where I want to go. They often start squawking at me in protest but never seem to get far.

The second curious creatures were the octopuses. I have now seen two individuals in the intertidal, waiting in shallow pools with not much more than their eyes sticking out of their burrows. Hopefully I will get brave enough to get the underwater camera into the pools later.

Since arriving though, I have been hard at the grindstone, reading up as much as I can about the local species and the work that has been done on them in order to come up with a project. I miss you all back in Canada and that is the hardest part about being here. It has been a great start to a 3 year adventure and I look forward to sending you more frequent updates. I leave you with a wonderful look on the marine reserve as the sun sets.

-Mark

36 Hours to Take Off

With only 36 hours to take off, the basement looks like a windstorm swept through it. I am done all I can do to help pack, at this point it's Mark that has to make everything fit and have the final say of what goes and what stays. He's got two very large suitcases that we've filled with everything from toiletries and clothes to bedsheets and dive gear. He's even taking a few kitchen items, such as a pan a few spatulas and some dish towels with the intention of purchasing the rest once he arrives.

As big as the suitcases are, they are still not big enough for everything we had wanted to take. It doesn't help that my suitcases won't be going down for another few months.

He also has his carry on bag to fill with his James Bond books, laptop and official documents.

He will be leaving here on Tuesday morning, and arriving Thursday morning (New Zealand time, which is Wednesday afternoon Canadian time). As Mark keeps saying, he will call us from the future once he arrives.

His plans once he arrives are to set up his bank account in Auckland, register at the university and purchase a few things that he will need for his new living arrangements. He will then go out to Leigh where we will be living and figure things out from there. He will need to find accommodations, a fridge (as they are not rented with their apartments),  his first grocery order, and unpack. He will then start his PhD, which will be an adventure on its own.

We all know it's not a party until the cake arrives

This weekend was very busy as Mark and I geared up for his big celebration. There was cupcakes to be made, chips to portion into bowls, pop to be poured into glasses and candy to be passed out into dishes.

Saturday night, we had a house full of aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends, who turned out to wish Mark the best of luck on his trip as he leaves next Tuesday. There was so much conversation, and wisdom shared it was hard to take it all in.

Mark has most of his lists done, and now that the party is over, we will begin getting him ready. There is nothing left to purchase, but so much deciding left. Choosing what gets packed, what gets shipped and what he will purchase when he arrives. We have decided to lay out all the "needs" in one space and the "wants" in another. We won't have room for "would be nice".  We'll start by packing the needs and then prioritize the wants.

Mark and I figured out last weekend that he is entitled to 4 breakfasts while travelling. He leaves here at 6 in the morning to arrive at breakfast time in Ontario. He then flies to the west coast after a 1 hour layover to arrive in time to enjoy breakfast time on the west coast. After an 11 hour layover, he flies to Auckland where he arrives at 630 am, just in time for breakfast.

Mark has made arrangements for his stay in Auckland. He plans to be there 2 days before travelling off to Leigh. He has to register at the university for his scholarship, do some paper work, meet his colleagues, and finish setting up his bank account. He has temporary lodgings once he arrives in Leigh. From where he will find an apartment for us to live.

I have no doubt that this weekend will go by in the blink of an eye. Mark and I are getting ready to be separated, temporarily, through creating Skype accounts and figuring out regular Skype dates. Please email us if you are interested in having skype dates with us while in New Zealand. We will email you our skype names.

For those of you who are asking: I am hoping to fly down this summer one school is finished.