September 21, 2013 It's All Espresso Here

During the mostly sunny time since I last wrote, I have continued searching for everyday activities to take in Auckland life. This has frequently included more time out and about on Ponsonby Road, a lively area nearby filled with restaurants, cafes, and boutiques. I now feel quite comfortable venturing out on my own or with the new friends I’ve made, and the neighborhood where I live with my host family has started to feel like home.

The easiest thing to do is go to one of the many cafes I see everywhere, and while trying new ones has been one of my favorite activities since I arrived, the coffee has taken some getting used to. Back home I was accustomed to beginning each day with a huge mug of coffee, but that’s not really an option here since everything is espresso instead of filter coffee. Only twice have I found non-espresso on a menu in the form of French presses some places, but really I’ve almost stopped drinking coffee altogether. Instead I experiment with other hot drinks and often opt for chai lattes—which are even more delicious here than I’ve tasted back home.

Something that was unfamiliar before I came here, but that I’m getting a liking for, is rugby. I’m the first to tell you that I have very little understanding of the sport, but it is a good game to watch. There are actually two variations of rugby—union and league—and one of the things I still can’t really discern when watching is the difference between them. My host dad describes league as being more like American football because a team is allowed a certain number of downs before they must kick to their opponents, whereas union has a “make them take it” format where a team may possess the ball as long as they can. The league team my host family supports the Warriors, and the union team that basically the entire country supports are the All Blacks (so named because they have worn black uniforms since their formation in the 1880s).

While I haven’t yet attended a live game of either kind of rugby, I had heaps of fun when I watched a couple of the All Blacks games while at a sports bar. Not only was the game exciting, but being in a building full of kiwis cheering for their national team amplified the experience. The games I saw were against Australia and South Africa, which are apparently particularly hated rivals of the All Blacks, and I could detect that on the field and from the viewers’ heated reactions to the game. Imagine the passion American fans spread among all our pro baseball, basketball, and football, all funneled into a single team. The atmosphere was great fun, and I think I’ll enjoy becoming more familiar with rugby while I’m in the country where it’s the national sport.

However, it’s not just coffee and sports that they do differently here, but something that strikes me is that the approach to all food and drink is unlike that in the U.S.: I think kiwis really focus on enjoying their food whereas American culture focuses on the convenience of food. Here, fast food businesses are noticeably less prevalent, but grocery stores (small and large) and actual restaurants appear everywhere. My host parents, self-proclaimed “foodies,” love cooking—which is an activity I managed to avoid for much of my life—and my host dad is particularly appalled by my lack of culinary skills. In the last month, though, I’ve cooked and baked for the kids, and they usually consume the dishes without complaint. (Driving and communicating were the initial challenges I faced here, but I find operating ovens and stoves far more frightening territory.) Despite my unfamiliarity with this approach to food, I do like it, and it’s one thing from my time here that I hope to carry home with me once I leave.

Besides embracing the locals’ affinities for cafes and rugby, I still walk and drive around with a newcomer’s eye. One thing that I notice is the art around town—it’s nothing spectacular, but it sure beats plain cinder blocks. I took some photos of murals and mosaics I like best (more here), including this one from outside a restaurant in the Grey Lynn neighborhood. And, as always, what makes me feel most like a foreigner is all the times I have to figure out the language around here. The latest vocabulary:

• bench – kitchen counter top. This means I’m not sure what to call park benches anymore.
• capsicum – bell pepper
• rocket – arugula
• heaps – they use this the way we use “lots”
• dooberry (not sure that has a correct spelling) – doohickey
• bits and bobs – stuff. Also, the name of a store I saw at the mall...that presumably sells stuff
• churr brah – “Sure, bro”; an informal expression of agreement
• ta – thanks
• crikey – interjection 

Sometimes when I wake up in the morning, I’m still surprised to realize I’m living in another country. I laugh to think how the Lenora from a year ago would react if told that I’d be where I am today. Doing something like this was something I’d dreamed of doing but never thought I’d actually have the courage to try. Here’s to more fun in the near future!

—Lenora