Jobs, cars, and visitors

Hello everyone-

I realize that we haven't written in awhile, mostly due to our current jobs and car hunting which have been keeping us pretty busy. So, I thought I'd elaborate on what kind of work we've been doing and what we've been up to.

We are both 6 weeks into our current contracts which run for three months. We were very lucky to find three month contracts that started on the same day. Now when we finish we can both go travelling together! Matt is IT contracting with Fujitsu and I'm a receptionist with Infinity Solutions, another IT firm in Wellington. Although it's a far cry from wandering around in the intertidal zone, I've gotten used to answering phones and setting up tea for clients. However, I am still having trouble getting used to wearing business clothes day in and day out :)

When not at work we have been spending most of our free time searching for an "acceptable" car. This search has been far more difficult than anticipated, however we did buy one on Monday night! We are now the proud (?) owners of a 1996 Nissan Sunny sedan. All I can say is it has a clean bill of health and will get us around for the year.

Now we're preparing for the arrival of Matt's parents, who fly in tomorrow afternoon! That's what we have been up to lately, now let us know what you have been doing.

cheers,
gretchen

Wellington

Wellington
Originally uploaded by Matt Binns.

Here is a photo of the view I had from the top of Johnston Hill the other evening. The top is a 25 min walk from our house, and as you can see the views of Wellington are fantastic, the CBD is in the middle, when me and Gretchen both work.

If you want to see a larger version of this photo, click on it and choose the 'all sizes'

Karori

We've been in our flat for 3 weeks now and we're begining to get get to know Karori well. Its a 15-20 min bus ride to downtown Wellington from our place, which means that we can get into the city quickly, but live far enough away to be able to get away from things if we want to.

Our flat is within walking distance of two nature reserves, the Otari-Wilton's bush and the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary, and is surrounded by hills, as is much of Wellington. The view of the city from nearby Johnston Hill is fantastic.

After months or travelling and living out of suitcases, its finally feeling like we've settled somewhere, and Karori is a great base from which to explore the rest of NZ.

Making coconut cream

Here's the recipe:

1. Find an appropriately aged coconut

Fresh off the tree is preferred. If you can't find one off the ground - you can get them from backgarden palm trees.

Beware - always look skywards when standing under a coconut tree, esp. if you are trying to knock one down!







2. Remove the husk
Traditionally in Samoa this is achieved by putting a metal or wooden pole into the ground and smashing the coconut onto this until the pole is just under the husk. Then peel under the nut is revealed, continue until either you stab yourself in the leg, or the entire husk is removed!








3. Open the nut

Grab the nearest machete, every Samoan household has one! Hit the nut across the centre with the dull side of the knife. Continue until it splits in two.








4. Cleaning out the shell

Using a toothed piece of metal attached to a wooden bench, scrape the “meat” from the coconut. Watch out for your fingers! This will create a pile of shredded coconut.








5. Making the cream

Using a net of finely separated leaves, grab a handful of the shredded coconut and squeeze out the cream. Continue to do this until all of the cream has been removed from the shredded coconut. Finally, filter the cream through the net of leaves to remove any debris and Voila! You have coconut cream!