So, we packed up the last of our stuff this morning and drove out to our new place. We are living in Tawa, which (as I mentioned) is about a 20 minute drive to Wellington. We are up in the hills, and out of the windows on one side we have a view of the valley below us, and on the other side some wild hills covered in what they call “bush” (bushes and small trees). Jacob is just now telling me about some walking trails just a block away. sweet.
So what is the first thing we do? We go shopping! Our new room is unfurnished so we had to get some essentials. We didn’t have sheets or anything yet, so we drove to the next town (only 10 minutes away) and discovered… the mall. Yikes, they even have K-mart here. Bought some sheets, duvet cover, and a beautiful sheepskin mattress pad (extra plush!) that was on sale. (No, not at the K-mart, but at a place called “Farmers” that reminds me of Target). So we are ok for sleeping tonight.
Then I set to work hooking up the Vonage box. Our new home comes with a fast internet connection, so I could finally plug in our internet phone. It took me a while to configure it (still not sure if I have it set up right, but at least I got it working). So now we can call anyone in the US (or Canada) for free! The first call was Cindy calling her sister, and then I called in to work for the first time. Even Jacob (one of our housemates) got to call a friend in Canada.
And with a fast internet connection, I should be able to upload more photos. When I have a spare minute or two.
Prices of things compared to the US seems to be erratic. Phone rates are extremely expensive. I’ve mentioned the 49 cents per minute to use a cell phone. Long distance is similarly expensive. CDs and DVDs are also expensive, but other things are cheaper here. Some you might expect, like our sheepskin mattress pad, but other things are fairly cheap too, like food. Car insurance is very inexpensive here, probably because everyone is on nationalized health insurance. We are paying around $200 for full coverage on our car — for the entire year.