Traveling Ninja Notes: Cyclones, boil orders and road trips

This last week has been one of ups and downs with a bit of chaos thrown in the mix. Most of you probably already know this, but it was my last week of freedom before re-entering student life. This meant my to-do list before leaving home seemed to only get longer, no matter how many things I ticked off. To make matters worse, Mother Nature decided I should be busy at work too.

We are nearing cyclone season, so nobody was terribly surprised when Tonga and a couple of the other islands got hit by cyclone Gita. But we also knew that meant it was only a matter of time before we started feeling the effects here. So we prepped things at work with extra staff on, contractor crews on stand by, etc.

Things got dark, windy and rainy on Tuesday afternoon, and by Wednesday morning full chaos was reigning. I would like to say it was organized chaos, but when the phones and RTs go non-stop for 14 hours, things can hardly stay organized. To top it off, all of New Plymouth and the surrounding areas were on high alert for water conservation and under a boil order. This is because the severe winds caused a tree to come down and damage the in-take pipe at the water treatment facility. We were fortunate that our part of town never ran out of water, but many others were not so lucky. So by Thursday afternoon, work was getting complaints not only of the electricity still being off, but what were we doing about the water?? (Even though that has nothing to do with us!).

Just to keep things interesting with all of this, Thursday was my last day in the office until June. I finished packing my bags Thursday night, loaded the car Friday morning, and hit the road for Auckland. Weather and traffic both behaved themselves, so I got here by lunchtime. I checked into my student accommodation, which turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Everything is spacious, tidy, and comfortable. Of course, I am not thrilled at sharing a kitchen with people who have varying standards of cleanliness, but I was pleased that my room was already clean, and has adequate space.

Successes over the weekend include figuring out my bus route and getting a student bus pass; finding a Farmers market; locating 2 grocery stores, a sushi place, and a cheap burger joint :) And this morning I ventured down to Queen's Wharf for a wander around a Japanese festival. I also encountered Spiderman wearing a pink Hello Kitty backpack, a man wearing a purple felt suit jacket, and an establishment called "Edinburgh Castle: Dim Sum, BBQ & Accommodation." All in all not a bad way to spend the first weekend away from home, even if things do still feel a bit unsettled. Tomorrow morning at 11am marks the first class in my new adventure to complete a Post-Graduate Certificate in Musicology so that I am eligible to complete the Master's Degree program. More student life updates to come!