t shirt time?

we've all seen "jersey shore" on mtv whether we'd like to admit it or not.  given that i have a bit of addiction to trashy reality tv (i'm looking into meetings), i was pleasantly surprised to find out that not only do we have episodes of jersey shore running here, but we have something better. something (dare i say it) trashier.

they're the cast of the geordie shore. they may look similar to the cast of the jersey shore, and i'm sure it's hard to believe, but they are much much worse/better.  they're skin is oranger, they're always drunker, the girls wear far less expensive fake eyelashes, and they can barely speak english.  

in case you still need proof: http://www.mtv.co.nz/shows/featured/geordie-shore/ 

or the abridged version here: http://www.geordieshorehq.com/quotes/

the best part? they are also completely uncensored.  every f-bomb is heard and every accidental (and even sometimes with purpose) flash is blur free. and all shows are that way. all these shows i've been watching in america for years are on here, and it's like watching a completely new episodes.

 seriously, i might actually understand a couple of ronnie and sammi's fights on jersey shore now that i can hear everything that's being said. (kidding, let's not go that far)

sky tower

by day....

and by night.

THE rugby

despite the fact that i'm still broke, this weekend i got one of my first true kiwi experiences when my flatmate scored free tickets to.....

THE RUGBY!

and yes, it's called "the rugby." (used in a sentence: "ay bro, i'm going the the rugby for free this weekend. sweet as!")  the game wasn't a huge one as you can probably tell by the stands, but i was ready to take full opportunity of being a tourist.  flag in one hand and a beer in the other, it was almost like being back at a football game, but WAY more aggressive and with cool free flags to wave in support of the team. something we took very seriously...

nz hangover food

it seems that this is turning into a bit of a low-brow food blog....oh well.


apparently, the choice for a hangover cure in NZ isn't a battle between pizza versus chinese food like it is in the States, but actually....

versus

i've tried both this past week. don't judge.  

beanz (yep, wattie's spells it with a z on their cans which made me like it even more...) were basically what you would expect.  in fact, i'm pretty sure i've accidentally had this meal before when my bbq beans spill over on to my texas toast, but this may be something new for any new yorkers who are reading this who haven't experienced a good ol' plate of southern bbq.

spaghetti was great - basically spaghettios on toast which is this girl's dream come true.  double the carbs, double the fun.  unfortunately, the feeling was not mutual for my stomach, who refused to forgive me for 3 days after this meal. 

think i may stick to being a "beanz girl" for now.

kiwiburger

so there are about 5 people reading this blog, and i'm pretty sure all of you know that i moved here and am working on the mcdonald's account, but just figured i'd mention it in case some creep scouring the internet accidentally stumbled upon this blog and found it interesting.  


anyway, that being said, we typically run different campaigns to launch new products/promote new offerings throughout the year.  being that i'm not the most familiar with new zealand culture, it's only appropriate that the first quarter i work on is all about kiwi culture and we're re-launching an old favorite here known as the kiwiburger:

the burger is a beef patty, onions, lettuce, tomato, cheese, tomato sauce (ketchup), mustard....and then a fried egg and beetroot.  if you're one of my american friends reading this, i'm positive a couple of you just said "ew" out loud, but in doing my job i felt like i had to try it...


and it was GOOD! don't judge me until you've had beetroot on a burger, seriously....

4 degrees?!

yep, that's how cold it is outside.  thankfully, that's in celsius (another obstacle i'm overcoming while i'm here), but if you're like most people who can't remember the celsius to fahrenheit formula from 2nd grade, this is equal to 39 degrees.


pretty typical that i would get here all excited about the mild temperatures and experience the lowest temperatures since 1996 and snow (which happens about once every 50 years here). did i mention that given that this is very unusual weather for auckland, most of the houses (including mine) do not have central heating?

HELP! i'm cold...

snap, crackle, pop

ah, how different my childhood would have been. looks like the elves over here have had a bit of work done, eh?

the best invention EVER

so this weekend i tried one of the burger chains in new zealand (definitely not hung over at all.  definitely not....) and i had to post a quick note about a "doofer."  

this place has such huge (and might i add de-li-cious!) burgers that they have created these little carboard cut outs to help hold your burger together while you eat it.  if you fasten the tabs on the top and bottom, it forms a sort of curved burger "cradle" that you sit your burger in and eat away. awesome.

meant to take a picture of the burger, but it was too delicious. next time, maybe....

adventures in diy

so i moved into my new flat and got most things settled.  bed made, clothes hung up in the closet, but there was one tiny detail missing that i somehow didn't remember i needed. a dresser.

basically, my room looked pretty similar to the way i kept it when i was thirteen (minus the leonardo dicaprio posters) - a tornado of clothes all over the floor.  something had to be done.

i chatted with a couple people about my "problem" and was directed once again to trade me to find a set of drawers. the only problem when i began searching, however, was that drawers were either exceedingly expensive, or "assembly required," neither of which i was well equipped to deal with.  it's not like i was a regular ikea goer before i came here and pretty sure most of the furniture i've ever purchase is either pre-assembled or assembled on delivery (by someone else), but i was ready to take on the challenge of fitting in with the NZ DIY culture.

it was only when i opened my package and found the only directions i had to build my drawers, that i knew i was in big trouble.

i'm hoping these aren't strikingly clear directions to anyone reading this on how to build drawers..


anyway, somehow i managed to turn that into a dresser that holds my clothes and has been standing for about 3 whole days (and counting....), but i'm curious to see what other non-cultural barriers are headed my way.

to-ga.

it's not really news that i had an interesting time finding a flat/normal flatmates when i got here.  i flew over here with a hotel room booked (thanks for our discount, ash!) and immediately set out to hunt down some normal flatties on a website called trade me (NZ's version of craiglist, but less creepy).  after many meetings/interviews with people who have 218798124 cats, people with hobbies that include taxidermy, and one woman touching my face uninvited during our first (and ONLY) meeting, i ended up in an apartment with two guys.  one was a bar manager and the other a student who worked at the movies.  totally normal right?  wrong.  i won't go into too much detail but the permanent stench of mildew and fruit from the dinosaur ages in the fridge were involved.  

anyway, it's all been sorted though because i went back to the drawing board and contacted more people looking for flatmates while i moved in with these moldy fruit hoarders guys.  immediately, i found two other girls on trade me that were looking for a flatmate and decided to give it a go.

speaking of my prepaid phone and the obstacles it presents, i almost didn't end up here because apparently my phone's memory has the capacity to hold only 30 texts.  i sent a text to my potential new flatmates confirming my interest in the place and apparently they sent me numerous texts back confirming they would like me to move in, but since my phone was "full" i didn't get them.  thank goodness for that final $3.17 i had in minutes...

anyway, it all worked out and just in time for us to have a toga housewarming party:

 

myself, juliet, and laura. we can't help how photogenic we are.

ok, i promise people actually came and it wasn't just us by ourselves in togas.  our next theme, however,  is going to be don't drink more wine than all of your guests...combined.

zack morris calling.

being a typical 25 year old, the first thing i did when i landed in auckland was find an internet cafe so i could find a place where i could get a cell phone.  with about 3 hours of sleep behind me and on a completely different time zone, i found a paper map (yes, people still make those...) and stumbled over to queen street.  i had been advised by numerous random NZ connections, people on my plane, airport employees, and taxi cab drivers that i should find a 2 degrees shop as they had the best and most affordable cell phone plans, but my dire need to immediately have a cell phone to apparently stare at (since i didn't have any phone numbers) overcame me and i headed into vodaphone.

unfortunately for me, your cell phone contract length needs to be compliant with your current visa length.  this left me with few options, none of which were iphones or blackberrys or really anything with a screen more than 2 square inches large.  so i know i'm not the best at keeping in touch, but i mean did new zealand really have to give me such an obstacle? this is what i'm working with for the next year:

(caution: objects may appear more modern than they are)

so until then, if you need to find me you'll either have to text my insanely long phone number or take your chances on whether or not i've put more than $5 on my prepaid phone plan.  guess i'll see who my real friends are - the ones who will skype with me at 4 am their time.