Have We Got Any Gigs?

The Josh Franco Section: We are in New Zealand. It was Christmas. There are lots of sheep.

Happy New Year! You hungover? Me too. Or I was. I just feel a bit tired now. Nic is watching Harry Potter (I am not a conjurer of cheap tricks).

So we have been in New Zealand for just over two weeks now. It hasn't been quite the National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets-esque constant excitement of Australia (But please carry on reading!). We've got a while here so we're going to take our time. Actually considering how close New Zealand is to Australia I've been surprised by how different both the place is and how different our experiences have been.

Firstly there's the weather (Come on. We're British after all). It is summer here but the weather changes several times a day here on The South Island. We've had rain, cold, wind and sun (Good name for a 70s funk band). It's just like being at home really. We've invested in a hood and I've even bought a pair of jeans. Apologies to those who enjoy salivating over my highly defined calves.

For the most part we've been based in central Christchurch at The Around The World Hostel. It is by far the nicest hostel we've stayed in. It's clean and comfortable, has a family atmosphere and free internet and Sky TV. We've done a few boring but important tasks. Bank accounts have been set-up and we've bought both a laptop and a car. If you're my Facebook friend you may have noticed a heated debate going on over the name of the car. My vote was for Battlecar Galactica edging out The Fuck Wagon. The car is actually called Trixie the 1990 White Toyota Corona. It even has room in the back to sleep in. If Trixie is a rocking don't come a knocking.

Christmas wasn't spent at the hostel. We journeyed out the city to Rangoria to stay with one of Nic's sister's friends. Annabelle, her family, their two dogs, a cat and a stable of horses welcomed us into their home for a couple of days. It was a strange experience being away from home. We had a nice day and we exchanged presents and went for a dip in the pool but it didn't quite feel like Christmas. There's the obvious stuff of missing your family and your own traditions like a revitalising hot tub after partying at Chicago the night before and your grandparents making mildly controversial comments and inevitably talking about the war but there's another layer to it. There just isn't the same kind of crazy focus on the day. This could make a nice change for some but I think Nic and I both love that craziness. I think it also may have something to do with the fact that Christmas is in Summer. It isn't a Christmas holiday so much as an event in their Summer Holiday. Still, it was awesome of the Latzes to welcome us into their home. It was less awesome of their 12 year old bulldog called Molly to start masturbating in front of us. Bad dog.

So we have the car and we have plenty of adventures planned out. I think for the rest of the day we're going to slouch around and watch films and TV (Tool Academy 2!). Oh, awesome coincidence - staying at our hostel were two fellow Lancaster graduates. Not only that but both Paul and Rachel knew plenty of people we did. Paul is back in the UK but Rachel joined us last night to make home-made Carleton fish bowls. Deadly but tasty.

Hope all is good and you all have your New Year's resolutions ready to ignore. My resolution is to hunt down Flight of the Conchords and force them to induct me as their third member. Either that or I'll hunt down Crowded House and make them do the same.

Missing you all,

Steve & Nic

xxxx