Summer Celebration

While most kiwis are debating if summer officially starts today or after the summer solstice on the 22nd of December, I am definitely in a celebratory mood now that we are hitting double digits in our temperature readings. A drizzly start to the day, the temperature managed to rise up to 17 degrees, making a glass of clean crisp Matua Road Sauvignon Blanc a perfect match for today’s sunset at nine in the evening.

Between now and my last blog entry, I have been doing countless things, thus a brief hiatus in blogging. I have been trying to skilfully juggle work, travel and leisure. It may sound taxing, I assure you it was lots of fun though.

In the past season – in between my banking job and home springtime-sort-out – I managed to fly a few thousand miles, relaxed on a cruise, tried new coffee shops, tasted new wines, travelled to few new intrepid places, and discovered new degustation destinations. The list goes on.

Few highlights make the past few months memorable. Back in September, I was thrilled to meet my family in Singapore and fly with them for a holiday in Thailand. It was an extremely good time with my family, but 10 days is too short for the limitless items in our to-do-list: temples and cultural excursions, day and night shopping, theme parks, safari tours, animal shows and so on. Almost sleepless during the entire vacation, I am finally able to get a snooze on my return flight, and upon landing in Christchurch I just wanted to scream for another holiday. Back to reality of course, with no choice.

A month later, I found myself turning 26 and my fourth anniversary living in New Zealand. I treated myself for a weekend flight to Wellington and a bottle of classic Bordeaux style Church Road Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 vintage. Lovely weekend but coming back to work, I braved the pressure of preparing a birthday tea shout for my workmates. I served club sandwiches, apricot rolls and profiteroles. Thankfully the food passed their high standards and the tea was well appreciated.

With nothing yet planned for Christmas, I can finally take life on a slow lane. It’s so cool to just switch off, chill out and enjoy the longer days, warmer season, beaches, barbies, bangers and beers under the summer sunshine. Bring it on!

Photo: Mum and Dad with my sister and niece paddling through Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Thailand.

Easy in Rotorua

As soon as I stepped into Air New Zealand’s ATR72 aircraft that will take me to Rotorua, I know my lazy weekend has started. Aptly described by the Lonely Planet as a “Sulphur City”, Rotorua is one of the most touristed spots on the North Island with nearly three million visitors annually, bringing with them an energy and excitement typical of a true resort town. And Despite its ubiquitous eggy odour, Rotorua is one of the New Zealand places I’d always love to come back to hang loose.

Going to Rotorua means the usual soak-in-the-spa with a glass of Brut Cuvee in one hand and fresh strawberries in the other. This time though, I wanted to go to a hangi (earth-oven feast) and watch a Maori song-and-dance performance to add a little spice to the pamper moments. Rotorua is also known as the heartland of New Zealand’s Maori culture, so there’s no better place to experience the Maori cultural attractions than here – something I’ve wanted yet never done before.

My enthusiasm to experience Maori culture, however, was short-lived. After I dozed off and dipped in my in-room jacuzzi, I decided to go to a smorgasbord dinner instead then popped in to the nearby Polynesian Spa and be a hedonist for the rest of the night.

Following day I woke up from my usual sunday sleep-in just in time for me to eat my brekkie and catch my flight back to Christchurch. Without a doubt, it was a lazy weekend.

Photo: Me – watching the Air New Zealand ATR72 aircraft that will take me back to Christchurch after spoiling myself in Rotorua.

Frommer’s (Travel & Leisure) says: You’ll smell Rotorua long before you see it. The sulfuric aroma in the air is an unmistakable prelude to geothermal things to come. This natural wonderland and the 11 major lakes in the area are the draw for visitors. In fact, Travel & Leisure readers voted Rotorua 10th in the 1996 poll of the Top 10 Cities in the World.

From the Cellar: Montana Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc

Although I am a red wine connoisseur, white wine is still my choice when it comes to lighter meals, smaller dinners and little celebrations. For enduring a crazy workweek and surviving yet another bone-chilling winter month, I’ll open a bottle of wine to celebrate.

Today’s choice from the cellar: the award-winning 2009 Montana Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from the New Zealand’s Montana Classics Range.

The aroma and palate of this crispy dry white are the most remarkable:

The wine is pale straw in colour with green highlights. Aromas of ripe, red capsicum and gooseberry dominate with tropical pineapple and grapefruit notes apparent. This wine displays full fruit intensity. The ripe capsicum and gooseberry flavours with hints of pungency sit well with the supporting tropical fruit flavours. A well-balanced wine showing the lively, crisp acidity associated with this style.

The wine can be perfectly matched with grilled oysters or barbecued prawns, though I’m also happy to have this sav just with Camembert or Brie.

Hotel Talk: Sydney Marriott Hotel

Staying at Sydney Marriott Hotel is feeling the  good ol’ Marriott hospitality – warm smile and genuine service. And apart from the hotel’s remarkably friendly staff, its exceptional features including prime location, oversized bathrooms, ultra comfortable “Revive” bedding and breathtaking sunken rooftop spa are sure to delight and impress.

Located just steps away from Hyde Park, I found Sydney Marriott Hotel in a quiet downtown spot. So if you’re after a hotel in prime tranquil location yet allows easy walking access to Sydney’s business precincts, vibrant nightlife and top tourist attractions, then this hotel tops the list.

Sydney Marriott Hotel deserves its five-star mark, yet it is one of those hotels where you stay and indulge in ultimate comfort and worry about your bill later.

Photo: My  Premier Room at Sydney Marriott Hotel showcasing modern décor that embraces the warmth and tones of the picturesque park setting. With a rack rate of AU$610 per room per night, the Premier Room is not the cheapest and a sure guilty pleasure.

(Photo taken from: www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/sydcc-sydney-marriott-hotel)

Kaizen: Living Green

Talking about social responsibility, these are the five changes that I have adapted towards achieving a carbon-neutral lifestyle:

Online Statements. I now opted to receive electronic bank statements on all my credit card, transactional and savings accounts. Reduced waste, more organised, easier to retrieve and absolutely environment sustainable, I now say goodbye to paper statements.

A fuel efficient car. My BMW MINI Cooper is minimalist – minimalist in terms of petrol use. Using a fuel efficient car is a good way to  lessen my carbon footprints at a personal level. I’m  driving like there is tomorrow, so ain’t driving fuel-hungry turbo sports cars anymore.

Flying Air New Zealand (when I can). Air New Zealand has the reputation to be the greenest airline in the world. Recently Air New Zealand has equipped its Boeing 767-300 aircrafts with radical looking wing attachments which will save more than six million litres of fuel and 16,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually. The airline is also installing dryers on the planes which reduce moisture trapped in the insulation between the aircraft’s outer-skin and the cabin lining which will save an additional 320,000 litres of fuel and 800 tonnes of carbon emissions annually across the fleet of five 767 aircraft.

Using a MacBook. The new MacBook laptops are designed and engineered to reduce environmental impact. MacBook earns top environmental rating with its fully recyclable polycarbonate enclosure, reduced packaging and efficient use of energy.

Duplex Printing. Big changes start with basic behavioural change. Printing on both sides of the paper definitely counts. And if I can help it, I won’t print documents because often, they just end up in the rubbish.

A Little Celebration

Today I celebrate my second year of being a Permanent Resident of New Zealand. I haven’t denaturalized yet, I’m still a Filipino citizen. But holding a residence status means enjoying the same rights and benefits of a New Zealand citizen, such as having a voice in the elections, social services, student loan and subsidised education to name a few.

Why New Zealand? Primarily because we don’t have snakes and deadly spiders that Australia and other countries have. Kidding aside, we enjoy one of the highest living standards among the OECD countries. Our lifestyle quality is second to none. Crime rates are very low, poverty is unheard of, and there is always focus on sustainability and thinking green. Living a carbon-neutral lifestyle is always emphasised, and we are one of the few countries which still remain totally nuclear-free.

New Zealand also boasts of world-class higher education system. As a resident we can study at tertiary learning institutions at reduced fees. At the University of Otago, for instance, the 2009 indicative yearly tuition fee for an international student for BA in Communication Studies (similar to my  degree) is $16,200, while the fee for New Zealand citizens and residents is only $4,140.

Moreover we also benefit from the high standards of public health system including the availability of the comprehensive life-long medical care. New Zealand’s healthcare system is widely regarded as one of the best of the developed countries.

With the above reasons plus having stunning natural landscapes and friendly people, I’d be more than happy to call New Zealand my new home.

Photo: Me in Auckland.  New York, London and Paris don’t hold a candle to Auckland and Wellington, according to a worldwide quality of living survey.

The New Zealand cities ranked among the best in the Mercer 2009 Quality of Living survey, which covered 215 cities and was based on criteria including political, social, economic and environmental factors.

Quoting Mercer spokesman Rob Knox: “Despite the financial crisis, New Zealand remains a very attractive market for expats – particularly as a career development opportunity for high potentials.”

From the Cellar: Corbans Chardonnay

My recent choice from the cellar: 2006 Corbans Private Bin Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay.

This is a big but elegant chardonnay from Hawke’s Bay: home to more top Kiwi chardonnays than any other region. It’s full of subtle flavours of rock melon, soft tropical fruit and nectarine tastes. A lovely special-occasion New Zealand chardonnay.

Upgraded to a Pro

I happily upgraded my notebook to a MacBook Pro after selling my old white MacBook in an online trading site TradeMe, New Zealand’s version of eBay.

My previous model of MacBook, which I consider as a “classic”, was much adored. The machine however was showing limitations when used for higher-end multimedia applications such as graphic design and animation. As soon as it was starting to test my patience, I’ve seen the need to flick it off.

The replacement notebook – the new MacBook Pro – is revolutionary. The unibody is “redesigned, reengineered and re-everythinged”. And I agree to what Apple claims MacBook Pro to be: thin, light, beautifully-streamlined. And with its fast processor, brilliant display and battery that lasts up to seven hours, I am left very impressed.

What’s more? MacBook Pro is the greenest notebook on earth. The hardware is highly recyclable and toxins that are scarily normally present in other laptop components such as arsenic, mercury, brominated flame retardants and polyvinyl chloride (apologies for the chemistry jargon) are eliminated.

MacBook Pro is absolutely precision engineering. I’m glad for the upgrade.

Photo: The 15-inch MacBook Pro with a breakthrough unibody enclosure, industry-first features, and environmentally sound design.

Introspection

I’m analytical on one level, but the dominant dimension of me is always an intuitive, emotional one.

Photo: Me – in a contemplative mood at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Rocking Far from the Sun

Today is our Winter Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere; this is when the Sun is at its most Northerly point in the sky. As a result, we have the shortest day and the longest night in the year.

In Christchurch, the sun has risen at 8:03 this morning and is due to set at 4:59 this afternoon, with a day length of only 8 hours, 56 minutes and 23 seconds. At midday, the sun reaches its lowest altitude from the Northern horizon for the year.

Having the shortest day is not a reason to celebrate, but I’ll pop a bottle of wine because Winter Solstice is also a point when days start to get longer again. More daylight means more leisure time!

Photo: Sunset at Cape Foulwind, Westport, New Zealand. Interestingly, you can watch the sunrise on the East Coast of the country and take a four-hour drive to the West Coast and await for the sunset.