Wellington -- Nov. 25

Windy Welly (Wellington)November 25, 2008
The Wind.this town is definitely living up to its name...gale force winds all night and this morning (literally!). i woke up watching planes descending into the airport...they were flying right into the wind, and they were like almost suspended in place, making constant adjustments left and right as the winds buffeted them. I also saw a couple of the big inter-island ferries and tho I am supposed to take one today, the sailor side of me says you don't get in a boat when the wind is blowing whitecaps in puddles in the street. we'll see.
36th Bday DinnerI went to The Flying Burrito Brothers for my 36th bday dinner...had a virgin Pina Colada, nachos, and a combo plate. New Zealand is the ONLY place outside of Mexico that seems to have authentic Mexican food other than the American Southwest. This was GOOD Mexican. I capped the celebration with a big chocolate ice cream.
Weather, Ozone holeThe elements here are nuts. The only comparable place I can think of is the Black Rock Desert, where you are constantly making adjustments (hot, then cold, then wet, then dry, etc.). there appear to be like 3 different weather systems at any given point in time, as judged by layers of clouds. when the sun comes out, it can be NUCLEAR. the whole in the ozone is palpable. i did some research and found that the hole forms seasonally over the Antarctic, breaking up around November. There is no constant hole over NZ. Rather, the dissipating ozone hole releases "bubbles" that migrate north until they break up. Thus, ozone holes over NZ are more like "events" that come and go.
The day I climbed Te Ahora, granted I was high off my ghourd on Apo Prednisone, but it was so clear that there was no atmosphere. the sunlight had the quality of a halogen bulb. you could look into the distance, and b/c of the particulates in the air, things looked normal. but up close, it was painfully bright -- white, really -- and blinding. each time the sun peeked out intermittently between clouds it was borderline painful b/c it was so painful. any sun contact to the skin was uncomfortable. it was sketchy.
DiversitySo, NZ is notroriously white. I've actually found that there is something of a mix in the cities...lots of Indian and Southeast Asians represented, and of course, Maori and polynesians. As for the latter, I'm afraid to report that NZ, like every society I've ever witnessed, seems to have a class divide based on ethnicity. the Maori are not well-represented in the tourist areas. Also, this may be an unfair observation, but the only place that I saw Maori consistently in downtown Auckland was outside the courthouse. Bummer.
Nutritionso, I'm starting to provide more for myself food-wise. it's been tough. as i head to the So. Island, I have to be more self-sufficient. the key things to keep in one's diet are protein, vitamins and fiber. these can be the first to go when you are living on the fly, but they are very easy to keep in the mix w/supplements. thus, ive laid in protein powder, mutli-vitamins, and cyllium husk powder. my travelling kitchen at this point always has muffins, fruit, bread, cheese, fruit, pb&J and soup.
The Alternate Californiaas I've been cruising around Wellington, I am struck by how much it looks like Sausalito...and how everything I have seen has compared to some place in California. I am here to investigate the claim that NZ is more beautiful than California, and thus far, all I can say is that while NZ seems to share many of the same environments, I have yet to see anything that there isn't a comparable for in California. Let's see what the So. Island has to offer...