Ponsonby

Wednesday ended up being a big day for us as our exhausting weeklong search for housing and a car has finally come to an end. We found the perfect place for us in Ponsonby, a neighborhood slightly west of downtown. It’s a super modern apartment complex (12 units). Our unit has a lot of light, high ceilings, came with all the furnishings that we were hoping for, in a great location that is 15 minutes drive to Dana’s hospital. Ponsonby also has a wonderful downtown shopping area with many cafes all within a block or two from the apartment. Sorry Aunt V, no freshly cooked turkey from Dairy Flats when you come to visit; my farming experience is pretty poor, not sure the owner there would have wanted me!

Turns out that finding a furnished apartment in Auckland is very difficult. We had a list of 9 or 10 feasible locations, and they seemed to fit into two buckets: (1) they were well furnished and well located, but were very expensive or (2) Cheap but dodgy apartment/neighborhood with old furniture probably left over from a prior owner or renter that didn’t want it. There aren’t many large apartment complexes that you’d find in the US. Many of the rentals that we found were either attachments to an existing house, or sometimes a converted garage. As we found that there was little availability in the areas we wanted to live, it appears to be that life as a landlord in Auckland is good. They are able to get a clause in the lease that states that after 6 months they can adjust the rent to market value, ie raise your rent in the middle of your lease!

In other news, we also got a car today. A pretty sharp looking silver Honda Torneo with 108,000 KM, it looks like the kiwi version of an Accord. We bought it at the car auction and seem to have secured a pretty good deal, it should be reliable wheels to get us around.

So now that we have finally got settled (a week living out of a hotel and with a rental car felt like forever) we’ve shifted our focus to what we came here for: to watch rugby and travel. The All Blacks are taking on Australia on Saturday night in the Tri Nations in Auckland, and with tickets still available we’re going to go. Dana starts work on Monday but they gave her a three day weekend so we’re going to heading off for an adventure at a to be determined location. Skiing maybe?

Not expected to get internet at the new apartment until sometime mid next week, so there may be a litle lag on the blog posting. Check back mid next week for the next update.