Another difference between the US and NZ is that rent is charged by the week here, which if you think about it really makes more sense. Charging rent by the month is a bit silly, since months are different lengths. Weeks are always 7 days long. Also, people usually move in and out of places on the weekend, so when you charge by the month, you’re always needing to calculate partial months. But when you charge by the week, it is much simpler.
Finally broke down today and bought a mobile phone. Kinda scared to use it, since the cheapest rate is 49 cents per minute (interestingly enough, while it costs 49 cents a minute to call another phone here in Wellington, it also costs 49 cents per minute to call the US on the cell phone). Calls to cell phones that are not Vodaphone are $1.39 per minute! Everyone here uses TXT messages, which are 20 cents each no matter where they go to. So I can send a text message to the US for 20 cents, or to a non-Vodaphone cell phone, or anywhere else. I’m beginning to see why text messaging is so popular here.
Now we just have to find a place to live and (maybe) a car. We are thinking we might try to live without a car. But being Americans, that might just be too difficult for us.
Went back down to the botanic garden tonight to see the glow worms again. Simply amazing. It is a warm summer night, and we are receiving emails that Portland had a huge ice storm last weekend, which virtually shut the city down. But here it is warm, sunny, and the days are long. Ahhhhhhhh!
Nice warm long days until winter! At that time we will be having nice long warm days!
Comment by Mindy Carson — 21 Jan 2005 @ 4:48 pm