Himatangi Beach, Palmerston NorthFor me, beaches have always been a source of personal inspiration
- Thomas Carper
It was an unexpected and very random getaway, but nevertheless it was very fun and memorable. I felt extremely blessed.
Ruth and I didn't expect to be in Palmerston North for the weekend but there we were. The reason why we're there is because we got to know a friend through a friend who was going to stop at PN on his way to Napier for the weekend. So we decided to hitch a ride.
The drive up and the drive back was marked with good and memorable conversations. This just goes to prove that in certain circumstances, friendships do not necessarily need time to grow. 5 hours of good conversation can sometimes be enough.
We stayed at Esther Fan's place, and I felt blessed again by her hospitality for opening up her flat for us. It made the trip way cheaper than what it normally would have cost. The OCFers were really good hosts. Ian paid for some of our meals and Jason brought us on a tour of Massey University. (Need to steal Ian's wallet the next time he's in Welly so that we can repay the favour!) I can't believe the prices in PN! $70 per week rent! Unbelievable. And Jap food for less than 10 bucks! And it was pretty good.
We spent most of Sat walking around PN, and typical of us girls we ended up shopping here and there. Didn't buy much but I got a nice skirt for work and a DVD. (Mikey: You bought stuff in PN?! We usually go to Welly to buy stuff!) Watched the rugby match (All Blacks and South Africa) on the telly at Massey's International Centre. I was watching my first rugby game there. I usually just leave after the haka, but this time around I stayed for the whole game. Almost fell asleep after the 1st half but the 2nd half got real interesting. Despite the fact I'm in NZ, I was glad South Africa won because that night they were the better team. After all, South Africa are the world champs. However, I was told that the All Blacks used to be ruthless and were really, really good. We also tried out this place call Cornerstone. My goodness, I was shocked when I saw the place. Its a tiny little kitchen on wheels! Ruth pretty much went to heaven when she saw that they had salmon don and salmon eggs as well. I had shima don, and will one day go back to try the teriyaki don! Yum yum..
Ruth went back on Sunday morning with Jason but I spent most of the day in PN and went back only at 5pm. I went to Kingston for church, and I thought that the sermon was really good. I wish I was around to hear the continuation of it. After church we went for yum cha. We had heaps of food, but probably because of the table we got the service was pretty bad. Food was not coming our way. After church, Mikey brought Nai Chen and I for a drive out to Himatangi Beach. It was a really nice day, and the rain stopped when we reached the beach. There was only a slight breeze and the sky was blue. So we walked and talked and had an awesome time. After the beach we tried out this cafe in Downtown called Coco. Oh my goodness the hot chocolate was so awesome! I ordered a small dark hot chocolate, but the size of it was pretty decent. Mikey ordered the best one yet. I forgot the name of the drink but I think it was Iced Caramel Chocolate. It looked so yum and tasted yum as well. Chor Ee called me when we were almost done with our drinks. It was time to go back to Welly. Sigh..
Had a really good drive back like I said. I've made some new friends and strengthen some old friendships. It was a good getaway and now, its time to finally get back into reality. Uni has started, and its time to do some serious studying.
Faithful friends are beyond price: No amount can balance their worth.
Ruth and I didn't expect to be in Palmerston North for the weekend but there we were. The reason why we're there is because we got to know a friend through a friend who was going to stop at PN on his way to Napier for the weekend. So we decided to hitch a ride.
The drive up and the drive back was marked with good and memorable conversations. This just goes to prove that in certain circumstances, friendships do not necessarily need time to grow. 5 hours of good conversation can sometimes be enough.
We stayed at Esther Fan's place, and I felt blessed again by her hospitality for opening up her flat for us. It made the trip way cheaper than what it normally would have cost. The OCFers were really good hosts. Ian paid for some of our meals and Jason brought us on a tour of Massey University. (Need to steal Ian's wallet the next time he's in Welly so that we can repay the favour!) I can't believe the prices in PN! $70 per week rent! Unbelievable. And Jap food for less than 10 bucks! And it was pretty good.
We spent most of Sat walking around PN, and typical of us girls we ended up shopping here and there. Didn't buy much but I got a nice skirt for work and a DVD. (Mikey: You bought stuff in PN?! We usually go to Welly to buy stuff!) Watched the rugby match (All Blacks and South Africa) on the telly at Massey's International Centre. I was watching my first rugby game there. I usually just leave after the haka, but this time around I stayed for the whole game. Almost fell asleep after the 1st half but the 2nd half got real interesting. Despite the fact I'm in NZ, I was glad South Africa won because that night they were the better team. After all, South Africa are the world champs. However, I was told that the All Blacks used to be ruthless and were really, really good. We also tried out this place call Cornerstone. My goodness, I was shocked when I saw the place. Its a tiny little kitchen on wheels! Ruth pretty much went to heaven when she saw that they had salmon don and salmon eggs as well. I had shima don, and will one day go back to try the teriyaki don! Yum yum..
Ruth went back on Sunday morning with Jason but I spent most of the day in PN and went back only at 5pm. I went to Kingston for church, and I thought that the sermon was really good. I wish I was around to hear the continuation of it. After church we went for yum cha. We had heaps of food, but probably because of the table we got the service was pretty bad. Food was not coming our way. After church, Mikey brought Nai Chen and I for a drive out to Himatangi Beach. It was a really nice day, and the rain stopped when we reached the beach. There was only a slight breeze and the sky was blue. So we walked and talked and had an awesome time. After the beach we tried out this cafe in Downtown called Coco. Oh my goodness the hot chocolate was so awesome! I ordered a small dark hot chocolate, but the size of it was pretty decent. Mikey ordered the best one yet. I forgot the name of the drink but I think it was Iced Caramel Chocolate. It looked so yum and tasted yum as well. Chor Ee called me when we were almost done with our drinks. It was time to go back to Welly. Sigh..
Had a really good drive back like I said. I've made some new friends and strengthen some old friendships. It was a good getaway and now, its time to finally get back into reality. Uni has started, and its time to do some serious studying.
Faithful friends are beyond price: No amount can balance their worth.
