I’ve been in New Zealand for a few days. I haven’t accomplished much, I’ve mostly visited several new coffee shops, and developed an intimate relationship with my new bed.
Being here isn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Setting up even the simplest thing, like a bank account takes about 16 hoops to jump through. And of course, you need a bank account before you can get a tax number, and you need a tax number before you can work. I know this will all be worth it when I finish, but right now it is mostly just frustrating.
To top this all off, I am turning 31 today in a land where I don’t know really anyone. I am lucky enough to have met a few people through a fabulous online community known as “Girls Love Travel.” But I can’t count on these people to throw me any sort of celebration. I do have one friend here (you may know her as the famous Expat Edna), so we are doing something, but the event will be much smaller than the narcissistic shindigs I am used to throwing myself in the states.
But, I need to remember: I am turning 31 in NEW ZEALAND. This was the dream, the adventure I set out to have. Things aren’t going to be a super happy fun time right off the bat, are they? And I think I found my go-to coffee shop today, so that’s a big plus. It is called “Memphis Belle” and it is in the funky Te Aro area of Wellington. They play loud music, the furniture is eclectic and the staff is incredibly friendly. The vegetarian sandwich I had was to die for, and their coffee among the best I have had here. (Plus they have almond milk, which I have found is hard to find here.) 9.5/10 would recommend.
