First of all apologies for the lack of updates but we are back in working life and regular updates would consist of the below routine:

7am : Get up

8am : Go to work

12pm : Lunch

5pm: Get back from work

6pm: Gym/football/dinner

10pm: Bed

Now is the time for an update ; one year on from leaving the motherland for pastures new. It has just flown by and what we have done still hasn’t sunk in. Anyway we have settled very well into Kiwi life, I started working for JBWere Private Wealth Management in the city at the start of February.  The office is on the 38th floor of the Vero Centre (known locally as the toilet due to its toilet seat shaped top.) View is stunning from there looking over the Haurakii Gulf, surrounding city all the way to Manakau Harbour. Katie worked for a while in a restaurant/bar in Takapuna on the North Shore but this was just something to fill in time whilst looking for something 9-5.

We lived with some mates in the North Shore which is renowned for its beaches, bars and general laid backedness (if that's even a word) The house had a stunning view over the Hauraki Gulf onto Rangitoto Island which is an extinct volcano, we often just sat with a drink while admiring the view from the pool. Infact its surprising the amount of volcanoes around the city…..fingers crossed they don’t go off! (Don’t worry Mum they’re extinct)

We stayed “on the other side for 2 months and I won’t bore you with everything we done but highlights include seeing Train in Takapuna, somehow landing seats 2 rows from the front causing “Hey Soul Sister”to be lodged into the depths of our brains for about a week.  Also managed to sneak in seeing the Blues vs Crusaders Super 15 rugby game with all the Americanisms like side entertainment and cheerleaders, luckily the rain held off for us.

Auckland hosts a yearly Lantern Festival to celebrate Chinese New Year, in the midst of the Auckland Skyline. Very much like stepping back into South East Asia with food markets, spectacular lanterns and a smattering of Asian music. Saying that, there is a huge Asian community in Auckland so if there was a lantern festival every weekend I’m sure it would be packed.

One event which has overshadowed our stay has been the natural disasters which have hit Christchurch and Japan. Unbelievable and so sad to know  people who have been affected directly  by these events. Was quite a shock actually being warned about a Tsunami, even though it is just part of life down here having earthquakes and tsunami alerts……being from calm Scotland where the occurrence of such disasters are about as likely as a Scotsman Morris Dancing while enjoying a spot of cricket!

Katie has recently started a new office job involved with the 2011 Rugby World Cup, which works out much better for us, as working opposite shifts from each other just doesn’t suit the Taylors. We upped stix from North Shore and moved to Parnell in the city centre, which has a very Scottish village kind of feel to the place full of pubs, restaurants and cafes. Most importantly its about a 20 minute walk for both of us to our works and is conveniently close to Rangers Supporters Club….oh yes!

First weekend in our new digs I managed to snap my finger playing football for my new team (Celtic Supporters Club…..who’d of guessed that!), not just a simple injury though. Oh no I never do injuries by half and I needed 3 screws and a plate to fix my finger. I did however get a tour of Auckland Hospitals and not many people can say that! Luckily it will heal in time for our visit to Rotorua, Lake Taupo and Waitomo Caves this Easter Weekend closely followed by the Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

As we hit our one year anniversary of leaving the UK, and the next London to Oz trip departs…..we hope all the Odyssey Overlanders Year 2011 have a blast and feel free to give us a shout if you end up over here for the Rugby World Cup.

PS. Photo Album has been updated for your perusal.