New ZEALAND

Here I am, in Mianh's bedroom in Palmerston North. We spent a couple of days in Wellington, mostly at Te Papa museum, and also seeing a play about sibling rivalry, Australia/New Zealand rivalry, and cricket. As we entered the theatre, our tickets were torn, and then we were invited to pick up some empty beer cans from a garbage bag which we later got to throw at one of the actors. I flew into Wellington in a rainstorm, but yesterday and today have been bright and sunny. The countryside is beautiful, and I'm excited to see more of it. On our way to Palmerston North today, Mianh let me drive for a while, my first time driving on the left side of the road not on a tractor! It went well, although I had a tendency to drift towards the shoulder. I'm looking forward to getting some more practice over the next week so that I can feel confident driving in Australia with my parents.

It was quite bizarre meeting Mianh at the airport at the other end of the world from where we met. Its nice to be getting introduced to her life here.