More aioli please?

     My second day in New Zealand signalled the start of International Orientation at the university. Before the activities started that day I was able to find Carrie and Jen, the two AU students, and we stuck together for most of the monotonous introduction lectures we were required to go to. I didn't learn anything terribly new or important, other than the fact that they assign seats at movie theaters here (socialists). It was surprising to observe that at least half of the international students there were Americans, with the second most popular group probably being Germans. I didn't hear many Kiwi accents the first couple days I was there.

     The real story of the first week in New Zealand lies in what happened after Orientation was over each day. Each afternoon, Carrie, Jen and I would walk down from campus into town to explore the city. Wellington is relatively a very small city (excluding the suburbs) and it is easy to walk to perimeter in an hour or so. The downtown area is nice but very quaint. While there are a few high rises, they don't dominate the skyline and are spread through the city. One of the most popular places in Wellington, specifically amongst students, is Cuba St. Always busy and vibrant, Cuba St stretches about a mile through the city and is lined with shops, bars, and cafes. Kids play on the playground and in the bucket fountain in the center of the street while students sit outside with friends and drinks and toursits wander in and out of the souvenir shops. Cuba is one of the main arteries of the city and there is rarely a day where I don't at least pass through it.

                                                          The view down Cuba St

     Another area of town Jen, Carrie, and I became fond of during our initial exploration is the Waterfront. Wellington, for those who aren't aware, is a bay city that sits on the northern end of the Cook Straight in between the North and South Islands. The waterfront area of the city is also a very lively, eclectic place. There is a Marina full of sail boats, several large restaurants with patios out by the water, a boat house for crew teams, and large grass spaces for people to lay out and socialize. The three of us girls fell in love with the area the first time we found it.

                                      A panoramic shot of the boat house from the gelato shop

       After walking the pier several times, we found a good restaurant and bar, Mac's Brewery, right on the water where we could get drinks and a snack and sit outside and take in the scenery. The thing about the waterfront is, there are always rowing teams running together through the crowd, skate boarders trying to do kick-flips on the sidewalk, kids jumping off the pier into the bay, couples walking around chatting, and tourists doing bike tours with their cameras. Sitting watching this scene, the three of us realized that nobody insight appeared unhappy, rushed, or anxious. We realized then that this place, this country, truly was on a whole other level of "chill" from the States. One day we sat and watched the water and the people around it for at least half an hour in almost complete silence, just enjoying the peace and good humour in the atmosphere. Since the first week I have continued to observe that the pressures and anxieties that are so common in fast-paced America hardly even exist in New Zealand culture (particularly in student life). I'm afraid after so much time here, readjusting the the pace of the States could be difficult do, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it!
      Speaking of Mac's Brewery, the first week was when Jen, Carrie, and I discovered our favorite feature of New Zealand culture... chips and aioli. After each grueling day in orientation, the three of us were eager to go out and find some food to snack on and grab a glass of wine. It was during our first happy hour excursion that we decided to order a bowl of fries to share, and when they brought out the bowl, it was accompanied with a small dish of what the menu had called "aioli". The aioli was the texture of mayonnaise and tasted similar but with a sharper garlic and salt flavor. Whatever it was made out of, we fell in love with it, as it blended perfectly with the salty fries. Almost every restaurant in NZ offers a chips and aioli option on their menu; we know because the three of us have made it a habit to weekly make several happy hour visits at various restaurants and bars around the city to try their version of the snack. Why this trend has never caught on in the states, I will never know, I can only hope it will by the time I get back!

                                             At Concrete with chips, aioli, and ketchup

                                        At Church Rd. winery with chips and aioli (and bread)

The recipe for aioli:

• 2 or 3 fresh garlic cloves, peeled and chopped. (If they've started to sprout, don't use them for aioli.)
• Large pinch coarse sea or kosher salt
• 1 egg yolk*, at room temperature
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 2/3 cup pure olive oil (not extra virgin)
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Freshly ground black pepper