New Zealand in general

New Zealand So I figured I had better write something about new Zealand in general, rather than my frivolous forays into bars and beaches around the coast. I have to begin with the kiwisthemselves. On arrival in Auckland I went to see my old friend Jen, a kiwi I met a few years ago working in the globe in London. Now she knew I was going to be coming for a while, but still I wasn't expecting the welcome I received. A I walked into her office, she was chatting withi some customers. I caught her eye, and she started to bounce up and down in her chair, eyes wider than the moon, a look of unbelievable excitement on her face. She hastily cut the awkward goodbye with her customers and almost dived across the desk and leapt, that right she leapt right into my arms and wrapped herself around me like a cat. Certainly that is the best welcome I have ever had, and has set standards for all. Aside from Jen, the kiwi's are a generally friendly bunch. Not so much in e city, as with every where in the world in the city you are expected to stay the fuck out of everyone's way and never dare look them in the eye. The morris are friendly too, but much like the African English population back home they do seem a little wary of us foreigners. And everybody here is either skinny and short ish if white, and rather large if Maori. I guess it's genetic, but Ill be fucked if I could find a pair of trouser less then 34 inches long! my experience in the ASB bank was exceptional. I was recommended that it was the best bank in nz and the one to get an account with. Now I was expecting it to take days, weeks even to sort an account for myself, being a fereng here. Even being a a national back home it takes an extortionate amount of time to do anything money related. I walked into the branch and was greeted by a charming young fellow called dale. With a massive smile and 'Kia oral' he invited me over to his desk and asked if there was anything I could be helped with. 20 mins-I shit you not-later and I had two bank accounts, an eftpos card and pin. Unbelievable. And win 24. Hours I had transferred, painlessly, nine, all my saving from the uk. Ok, so it cost me £25 quid for the transfer, but I need no phone calls or security bollocks to get it done. God bless the 21st century. Outside of Auckland, everyone was even nicer. Every isite (information centres) we hit we were greeted with smiles, and e very one wanted to know how we were. I know wee all moan back home how shite the customer service is, but until you get outside the motherland you don't realise that Uwe are intact a bunch of rude, thoughtless, grumpy bastards. I'll mention the weather briefly at this point, only because the sound of the rain outside the window reminds me of the beach scene at the star of Saving Private Ryan, it's a bloody wares one out there, rain hammering on the roofs like gunfire. The first few days were cloudy, then as I left Auckland for the coramandel peninsular we had 5 glorious days. And I tell you what, you can feel that hole in the ozone. I doused myself in layer pon layere of sun cream, factor 70. I have no doubt without it I would have ended up crispier than Sam Neil in Horizon. Despite my bst efforts I did manage to get burnt on both ankles andthe top of my chest. I screamed like a girl when I got aftershave on that a few days later, much to e delight of the English girls in my dorm room. Still the sympathy vote got me a few Bump and grinds on the dance floor that night. So, the people, the weather...what else. I suppose I had better mention the base backpackers and the globe bar. I vaguely remember this place from my last fleeting visit over 8 years ago.The ACB xbase backpackers I just of queen street above e Westpac bank, opened in 1960 by sir Ian mackellan of all people. God bless gandalf. I remember this place being...I'm not really sure. I was drunk every night I as here last time. But it was just as I remembered. A 10 minute wait in the lobby for a knackered old lift to squah into, taking me up to the wide reception on the 3rd floor. Eplace was rammed as I had arrived around 10am checkout time. (on that, I firmly believe all hostels should adopt a 12am checkout and a later check in, backpackers would fucking love it) a very smiley German took my booking nd went throu the all the grubbing with me. Painless, and for 97 dollars I got 4 nights in. 6 bed dorm on the 10th floor, with a sort of view of queen street and a sliver of harbour thrown in for luck. Comfortable bed, and just big enough for 6 foot 4 me. My prayers on e way up the lifet were answered and I was lucky enough to get a bottom bed. The guy opposite me who arrived a few minutes laters had a top bunk so squeaky it sounded like a mouse farting every time he took a breath. Important advice, doorms without windows may be cheaper, but in that darks and hellishly warm cave hours can pass without you knowing, and its fucking annoying when people come back pissed because they HAVE to turn on the fucking light to get into bed. Showers were great, hot water every day at any time. The rest of the hostel is pleasant enough, a large chill out area round from reception, with a coffee bar where you can gt breakfast for 6 bucks, and a decent coffee for 4. A bank of pcs all with headphones for Skype at 3 bucks an hour. Cheaper for wifi, 8 for 24 hours. A small job centre and the xbase travel shop finish it off. Round the corner is a mahooosive kitchen, full of gas burners and fridges, no ovens sadly, but a microwave for my uncle bens rice later. And now to the Globe. In the bowels of the base is the bar, open from six till three ish every day of the week. Every night there are games, pool comps, poker, drag races etc. fun for all the family. Cheap drinks every night, 7.50 for 2 'pints' of lager. It's starts out quiet, a few mates having an early beer. By 12pm the place is a sex pot of hormones and drunken debaucherous disheveled. Bloody brilliant. The jäger girls are amazing, clearly there in hot pants and boob tubes just to make you spend your cash, but by god they do a damn good job of it. I'm in love with the Lithuanian...and the German...and the English. That place swallows your money like water, and the cheeky bartenders insist its cheaper to pay for 3 jäger bombs, even if you only want two, just so they can have one! Still it's a great nice and everyone is incredibly friendly. As with last time ideas there, the winner stay on rule with pool is the best way to meet some strangers. In fact Niall the Scott I played my first game with I ended up travelling with for a week. The globe is a gem, but it certainly wares you down after a while. Must get out and drink in other bars, there are some fantastic ones in Auckland, cassette 9 and their famous t pot cocktails, the occidental, a great Belgium beer pub. But you are always drawn back to the globe. It's just so easy got stagger to the lift and flop out on to your floor and into bed.