Recent life in Wellington

I know I've been bad with my updating, but things are winding down in Wellington (I have one full day left here! :( ) and I've been rushing to get things done that I've been putting off and finishing finals. Elizabeth arrives tomorrow morning and then we leave for the South Island the following day in the afternoon. I don't know if I'll ever finish updating on what happened in Samoa, but that's okay because I wrote it all down in my journal so I can always just write it up on a much later date. However, I will finish the Abel Tasman trip in my next post, hopefully in as few words as possible, I know I go into minuet details sometimes. But first, a quick update on my happenings in Wellington - I can't remember the last time I wrote about my current life...

The last time I wrote was June 4th - which is ridiculous to me. How the time flies... Most of my days seem a blur, I've spent a lot of time just hanging out with Chris or hanging out on my own. When we got back from Abel Tasman, Chris had a paper due the 15th and a final on the 16th so most of us stayed in our own realms for a little, which was nice because we all got a little break from each other after having spent all that time in Abel Tasman together. I watched some movies and hung out with Stephen a couple times, but for the most part kept to myself. Chris would come over sometimes and I'd cook dinner. On the 16th, after Chris finished, we went to a "Deerhunter" concert, which we had bought about a month in advance. It was really great, although it solidified my view that Kiwis are really annoying at concerts.
The 18th or the 19th - I can't remember that well, Chris, Stephen and I went to Karori Wildlife Sanctuary, also known as "Zealandia" (haha). Karori was one of the few places that we had not seen yet that was easily accesible from Wellington. It was merely a quick bus ride over to Karori and then maybe a 10 minute walk to the Sanctuary entrance. The past couple days had been surprisingly sunny and nice out, and we kept trying to go there but would lose motivation or realize we didn't have enough time, so when we finally got out there it felt like a great triumph and like we had finally seen it all in Wellington. The Sanctuary is mainly full of birds, obviously, and is very strict about keeping possums, cats and other invaders out of the park. It is lined with a huge white fence and they try very hard to keep visitors from letting any unwanted guests in. It's a beautiful place with lakes and easy footpaths to walk along. We had lunch and then started exploring. The first bird we saw was a kingfisher and it was so startling and strange looking that it was almost like an illusion because it flew away pretty quickly after it appeared. All around us as we walked down the path you could hear various bird calls (the Tui of course stands out the most). The highlights were seeing the "Kaka" at a feeder, seeing a "Saddleback", a New Zealand Falcon, hearing and seeing some "Shags", and seeing some Quails. I think one of the things I'll miss most about NZ will be the various birds I see on a daily basis. I was never one for birdwatching, but the birds here are so different looking that I constantly find myself looking out for them. The Tui, by far, is my favorite because of it's crazy call, along with the Fantail for it's silly antics.
On Friday, the 19th, Stephen hosted a party to celebrate some birthdays and also it was a going away party for some people.
The 20th we saw the All Blacks play, which was pretty amazing. It was a different game from the one played by the Hurricanes. They were much more aggressive and overall more skilled (obviously.) They played France and it was pouring rain the whole time with a bunch of French people screaming for the French time behind us. However, we all had a great time because the All Blacks were really dominating and it was a very entertaining game. At the beginning of it the french behind us somehow had smuggled a rooster painted blue, red and white for the French team into the stadium and threw it over Chris and my head onto the field. It was pretty funny watching the security guards chase it around. Later on someone else threw a black chicken in. We all wondered aloud how these people managed to sneak chickens in because they do bag checks before you enter the stadium. Just think about it, haha. Another cool thing about the game was the All Blacks preforming the "haka" at the beginning of the game. Afterward, Chris and I basically ran back to Stafford to warm up and dry off. Then a bunch of people went out to the bars to celebrate the All Blacks win. Chris and I ended up going to the Matterhorn and chilling with a couple of his friends who had studied up in Auckland and were down for the weekend. Then we went to "Good Luck" for a little and called it a night.
The next couple days were pretty low key because I had a test coming up on the 26th and Chris had one on the 29th. I don't think we did anything particularly remarkable during those days. Tuesday the 23rd we made plans for the South Island and Brian told us that he wouldn't be traveling with us - he decided to go Solo. Chris and I watched "Boogie Nights", which I had never seen. Wednesday the 24th Chris and I ate at Nandos and then went to Stafford for a little and then studied at Borders together. We had some tea with Brian, Stephen and Scott at the Matterhorn later that night. Thursday the 25th I spent the majority of the day on my own studying and the whole evening by myself studying.
My sociology test on the 26th went by pretty quickly and after Chris and I ate at Dixon St. Deli (french toast with bacon, bananas, syrup and fruit on the side with flat whites). We went to Borders for a little where both of us finished books we had been reading. I finished "Kafka on the Shore" by Murakami, which I loved. Then I went to Stafford for a nap and Chris finished another book. He came over after and we cooked chili together, which turned out delicious (it was all Chris's idea) and we enjoyed some Summit beers. It was Friday night so we wanted to do something but we ended up just going to Stephens for a little and then watched a crazy Japanese movie called "Akira".
The 27th, Chris and I met up with Stephen for lunch at Nandos. Then Chris went to do some studying while Stephen accompanied me while I went shopping for Chris and Elizabeth's birthday presents. Then I went home for a little, Chris came over and we tried to figure out what we wanted to do for dinner. We ended up deciding on "Hells Pizza" a place I had never been to, but it's quite popular. The restaurant was more of a bar scene than I expected and it was packed with diehard All Blacks fans watching a game of the All Blacks v. Italy. We ate pizza and watched the game and drank some beers. Once we finished we went to the Malthouse just to enjoy a Tuatara beer that Chris liked and hang out enjoying the night scene of Wellington for our last weekend here. We ended the night watching "Tim and Eric Awesome Show" and then part of "Waking Life."
Today, the 28th, Chris, Shannon and I went to watch the Wellington Marathon and cheer on our friends Brian, Greg, Becca and Stephen as they came up to the finish line. Brian, Greg and Becca all did the half-marathon and Stephen did the full. Everyone over estimated the time they thought they'd be arriving (expect Stephen, who over estimated) so we missed everyone but Stephen's arrival. Chris and I made a sign out of a cardboard box that said "American Gladiators" with everyones name under it. My roommate Milena (from Germany) was also running the half-marathon so we included her on our sign. Brian surprised us while we were waiting for someone to come along our part of the route. He finished way ahead of when we thought he was going to and he ended up staying with us until Stephen came up, around 11:50, way behind schedule. We cheered Stephen on the last leg and then met him at the end.
Stephen took a shuttle home because he was really tired and weak and the rest of us went back to Stafford and had some tea. Then we all parted ways for the day. I spent the greater part of the day cleaning the flat with Milena (we have inspection before I leave so that can give my deposit back) and then packing my room up and doing laundry. Our flat is spotless right now and my room is a cluttered mess, but squeaky clean in the places that matter. I got Burger Fuel with Chris and Stephen, which was the only other time I went outside today.
Tomorrow Elizabeth arrives, I have my room inspection and we all celebrate our last night together in Wellington before everyone goes their seperate ways. We plan on eating at the Matterhorn (we've only even had drinks there because the restaurant part of it is too fancy) and showing Elizabeth around the city that we're all going to miss so much.