Friday, March 23, 2007
Melbourne Trip 3
This is my 2nd work trip over to Melbourne this time for 6 weeks, I can't have upset work too much the first time round. I'm helping out structural design work for a design and build contract for Melbourne Southern Water. My timing was excellent as I just caught the Melbourne Formula 1 weekend where I bought general admission tickets to hear and smell those screaming engines. This week is the World Swim Championships so town has generally been very lively. Due to a lack of affordable accomodation work has upgraded me to a palatial apartment over looking the F1 race course at Albert Park and with views of the sea. I have 2 bedrooms, huge lounge, big balcony. If anyone fancies some free accomodation before 20th April come on down!
This is my 2nd work trip over to Melbourne this time for 6 weeks, I can't have upset work too much the first time round. I'm helping out structural design work for a design and build contract for Melbourne Southern Water. My timing was excellent as I just caught the Melbourne Formula 1 weekend where I bought general admission tickets to hear and smell those screaming engines. This week is the World Swim Championships so town has generally been very lively. Due to a lack of affordable accomodation work has upgraded me to a palatial apartment over looking the F1 race course at Albert Park and with views of the sea. I have 2 bedrooms, huge lounge, big balcony. If anyone fancies some free accomodation before 20th April come on down!
Friday, November 17, 2006
Iceberg Ahoy
New Zealand's southern coast is under attack from a flotilla of icebergs some uo to 100m high. The closest is about 100km east of Dunedin and people are getting helicopter flights out to them. If I was back down there I probably would too they look pretty awesome chunks of ice. See http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3863359a10,00.html
New Zealand's southern coast is under attack from a flotilla of icebergs some uo to 100m high. The closest is about 100km east of Dunedin and people are getting helicopter flights out to them. If I was back down there I probably would too they look pretty awesome chunks of ice. See http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3863359a10,00.html
Earthquake #2
Another good lurch, though this time at work. This time it was 4.6 on the Richter Scale, 50km Northwest of Wellington 50km deep. See http://www.geonet.org.nz/x2654530g_l.html. Sadly I work on the third floor so I hope this building has been properly engineered!
Another good lurch, though this time at work. This time it was 4.6 on the Richter Scale, 50km Northwest of Wellington 50km deep. See http://www.geonet.org.nz/x2654530g_l.html. Sadly I work on the third floor so I hope this building has been properly engineered!
Monday, September 18, 2006
Earthquake! (only a tiddler though)
On Fri, Sep 15 2006 at 11:43 pm there was a magnitude: 5.0 earthquake Depth: 50 km 40 km north west of Wellington. See http://www.geonet.org.nz/x2625245g_l.html. I was playing the playstation game "Shadow of Colossus" at the time and was very impressed with the atmospheric game play, I have some new bass speakers that do a decent job and I was convinced the Colossus I was fighting was causing the ground to shake, and then i realised it really was! I was excited because it was the strongest i've ever felt but nobody at work was impressed as they are all used to it. Wellington has been built on top of a major fault line you see, good a place as any for capitol city I suppose.
On Fri, Sep 15 2006 at 11:43 pm there was a magnitude: 5.0 earthquake Depth: 50 km 40 km north west of Wellington. See http://www.geonet.org.nz/x2625245g_l.html. I was playing the playstation game "Shadow of Colossus" at the time and was very impressed with the atmospheric game play, I have some new bass speakers that do a decent job and I was convinced the Colossus I was fighting was causing the ground to shake, and then i realised it really was! I was excited because it was the strongest i've ever felt but nobody at work was impressed as they are all used to it. Wellington has been built on top of a major fault line you see, good a place as any for capitol city I suppose.
Monday, June 12, 2006
Birthday Boy!
Yikes! I've made it to 30! Wanting to do something a little different and catch up with some good company, Vickie and I sauntered over the ditch to oz. I've flown over the Tasman Sea a couple of times but this time thought I'd stay and have a look. Met up with Mat and Kat<www.matnkat.com> who were fabulous hosts and excellent Melbourne tour guides. Mat and Kat live in Carlton North suburb which has very interesting architecture and has a big italian population, which makes for some fine deli's and eateries. We wandered around town, went down to St Kilda and Luna Park, Williamstown. Now Melbourne has excellent public transport but that didn't stop me from treating myself to a nice shiney convertable hire car to finish off the exploration without a roof. The gang then cruised out of town to Healsville to feed the parakeets and see lots of aussie critters like kangeroos, wallabies, spotted quoll, tasmanian devils, kookaburras, duck billed platapus and many others. We then finished the day at the Dandenong valley ridge for sunset. For my birthday our fine hosts cooked up a suprise fry-up with a little time to open pressies. We then wandered off down the Great Ocean Road taking our time along surf beaches and coastal cliffs. Stopping frequently for coffee and cake :-) I was then further suprised by a tidy little bed n breakfast with cake and candles in Apollo Bay. Towards the end of the coastal road we came across the 12 Apostles (11 1/2 as one fell over last year) for sunset followed by an excellent pizza and the foggiest journey i've ever had back to Melb. Finished off the adventure with a trip to a cool aquarium with cool swimming aussie creatures and a final game of squatter. A tip top holiday indeed.
Yikes! I've made it to 30! Wanting to do something a little different and catch up with some good company, Vickie and I sauntered over the ditch to oz. I've flown over the Tasman Sea a couple of times but this time thought I'd stay and have a look. Met up with Mat and Kat<www.matnkat.com> who were fabulous hosts and excellent Melbourne tour guides. Mat and Kat live in Carlton North suburb which has very interesting architecture and has a big italian population, which makes for some fine deli's and eateries. We wandered around town, went down to St Kilda and Luna Park, Williamstown. Now Melbourne has excellent public transport but that didn't stop me from treating myself to a nice shiney convertable hire car to finish off the exploration without a roof. The gang then cruised out of town to Healsville to feed the parakeets and see lots of aussie critters like kangeroos, wallabies, spotted quoll, tasmanian devils, kookaburras, duck billed platapus and many others. We then finished the day at the Dandenong valley ridge for sunset. For my birthday our fine hosts cooked up a suprise fry-up with a little time to open pressies. We then wandered off down the Great Ocean Road taking our time along surf beaches and coastal cliffs. Stopping frequently for coffee and cake :-) I was then further suprised by a tidy little bed n breakfast with cake and candles in Apollo Bay. Towards the end of the coastal road we came across the 12 Apostles (11 1/2 as one fell over last year) for sunset followed by an excellent pizza and the foggiest journey i've ever had back to Melb. Finished off the adventure with a trip to a cool aquarium with cool swimming aussie creatures and a final game of squatter. A tip top holiday indeed.
Chilling in Wellington
Whooops there goes 6 months! Ok ok, so I moved up to Wellington and have lived in a number of flats that all seemed to be a wee bit under par and I'm moving once more at the end of the week. Its true that the bulk of affordable flats are damp and cold but this next one is looking pretty good - takes a while to hunt them down though. I transferred up with the same engineering company I worked for in Dunedin which made for a smooth move. Wellington is a windy little place but has tasty eateries and vibrant vibe and opens up the North Island for some cheeky little ventures.
Whooops there goes 6 months! Ok ok, so I moved up to Wellington and have lived in a number of flats that all seemed to be a wee bit under par and I'm moving once more at the end of the week. Its true that the bulk of affordable flats are damp and cold but this next one is looking pretty good - takes a while to hunt them down though. I transferred up with the same engineering company I worked for in Dunedin which made for a smooth move. Wellington is a windy little place but has tasty eateries and vibrant vibe and opens up the North Island for some cheeky little ventures.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Last Week in Dunedin!
Time always seems to fly by faster than I can blog. It has been a month of crashing on nice peoples floors who have taken in a stray miller. The story so far is that I have secured a transfer with my current work place to their Wellington office. A benefit of this is that the fijian project that I was working on has kicked back into life and once again i'm down as the mug who's volunteered to live in a container hut in the middle of the highland jungle watching mud and concrete and steel get thrown together to help relieve fiji's energy situation. However as last time, the pin could be pulled at any point so I only consider it a possibility. Recently I've caught up with a number of mates of old. I met up with Andie a kiwi lass who I worked with in London who has moved to Christchurch. She runs marathons and was considerably fitter than I was, as I found out after we ascended the Port Hills just outside of Christchurch. I also met up with Barnes a mate I haven't seen in over 15 years. I last saw him when I was about 12! Barnes is well into his kite surfing which is not for the faint hearted but looks intriguing. Then most recently I caught up with Andy who I lived with at university who was over for a kiwi mates wedding. There was large quantities of beer, pool and random acts of gratuitous tourism. Andy can still kick my ass at pool with the running total 20 games to 4. I'll get him next time!
Time always seems to fly by faster than I can blog. It has been a month of crashing on nice peoples floors who have taken in a stray miller. The story so far is that I have secured a transfer with my current work place to their Wellington office. A benefit of this is that the fijian project that I was working on has kicked back into life and once again i'm down as the mug who's volunteered to live in a container hut in the middle of the highland jungle watching mud and concrete and steel get thrown together to help relieve fiji's energy situation. However as last time, the pin could be pulled at any point so I only consider it a possibility. Recently I've caught up with a number of mates of old. I met up with Andie a kiwi lass who I worked with in London who has moved to Christchurch. She runs marathons and was considerably fitter than I was, as I found out after we ascended the Port Hills just outside of Christchurch. I also met up with Barnes a mate I haven't seen in over 15 years. I last saw him when I was about 12! Barnes is well into his kite surfing which is not for the faint hearted but looks intriguing. Then most recently I caught up with Andy who I lived with at university who was over for a kiwi mates wedding. There was large quantities of beer, pool and random acts of gratuitous tourism. Andy can still kick my ass at pool with the running total 20 games to 4. I'll get him next time!
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Homeless in Dunedin
On the same day my 2 yr visa ran out my current flat lease expired. Not knowing quite what the immediate future was bringing me I haven't renewed a lease so 4/5ths of my belongings are in temporary storage and myself and a car load of day to day junk have embarked on a nomadic dunedin lifestyle. I have 5-6 offers of floors and spare rooms so i'll take these offers up one by one until i've out stayed my welcome. I 've inherited a load of baking goods and spices from the flat so i can cook for my rent. My first benevolent friend to put me up is Tim who I lived previously with when I first arrived. A friend in need is a friend indeed. UN food parcels will be graciously received.
On the same day my 2 yr visa ran out my current flat lease expired. Not knowing quite what the immediate future was bringing me I haven't renewed a lease so 4/5ths of my belongings are in temporary storage and myself and a car load of day to day junk have embarked on a nomadic dunedin lifestyle. I have 5-6 offers of floors and spare rooms so i'll take these offers up one by one until i've out stayed my welcome. I 've inherited a load of baking goods and spices from the flat so i can cook for my rent. My first benevolent friend to put me up is Tim who I lived previously with when I first arrived. A friend in need is a friend indeed. UN food parcels will be graciously received.
Immigration Rant
Well the ticking 2 yr immigration clock has come screaming to a close with a flurry of forms and certificates and general bureaucracy. My understanding is that i'm partially legal as my forms are in and they can't deport me because they have my passport! so far so good. My current problems stem from my own country though and not this one. To extend my visa longer then 2 yrs I have to get a police character report from the uk, course if I was dodgy i've already been in this country 2 yrs which seems a little silly to me but i digress. Under the data protection act you have the right in the uk to access information stored about you, but the only problem is that it appears to be very difficult to get hold of this information. The process takes 30-40 days and there is a big notice on the form telling you not to ask for preferential treatment as you won't get any. I also phoned the British High Commision here in nz saying that it was quite important that i get this information and they said they couldn't do anything, so much for helping your subjects. So as my expiry date came closer I waited with baited breath for the postie to bring me my forms. With about half a week to go I got my response but imagine my dismay when i found my application to access my information was rejected because i'd moved from the address i'd put on the form! You can imagine what I thought to that! However after all this i believe I have secured a temporary work visa for 6 months because work has links with immigration. What a palava.
Well the ticking 2 yr immigration clock has come screaming to a close with a flurry of forms and certificates and general bureaucracy. My understanding is that i'm partially legal as my forms are in and they can't deport me because they have my passport! so far so good. My current problems stem from my own country though and not this one. To extend my visa longer then 2 yrs I have to get a police character report from the uk, course if I was dodgy i've already been in this country 2 yrs which seems a little silly to me but i digress. Under the data protection act you have the right in the uk to access information stored about you, but the only problem is that it appears to be very difficult to get hold of this information. The process takes 30-40 days and there is a big notice on the form telling you not to ask for preferential treatment as you won't get any. I also phoned the British High Commision here in nz saying that it was quite important that i get this information and they said they couldn't do anything, so much for helping your subjects. So as my expiry date came closer I waited with baited breath for the postie to bring me my forms. With about half a week to go I got my response but imagine my dismay when i found my application to access my information was rejected because i'd moved from the address i'd put on the form! You can imagine what I thought to that! However after all this i believe I have secured a temporary work visa for 6 months because work has links with immigration. What a palava.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Happy New Year!
Hope you all had a good mash up and hope 2006 brings you lots of nice things. My two year visa is almost up but i'm looking at extended my visa for a spell in Wellington. This will either be carrying on the good fight with MWH, a new company altogether or as an illegal alien (this option is apparently not recommended). My future is as clear as mud which is just the way I like it, however I'll keep ya all posted.
Hope you all had a good mash up and hope 2006 brings you lots of nice things. My two year visa is almost up but i'm looking at extended my visa for a spell in Wellington. This will either be carrying on the good fight with MWH, a new company altogether or as an illegal alien (this option is apparently not recommended). My future is as clear as mud which is just the way I like it, however I'll keep ya all posted.
