Daily Archive for June 29th, 2007

i spent a most of the first two days walking around the cbd trying to get my bearings and a feel for the city. i am staying in the cuba section of the te aro neighborhood. the cuba area is well into a revival from seedy to hip & funky. lots of great juxtapositions like this one with the new school of architecture & design with lots of green space next to an old strip club. they have converted cuba street into a pedestrian only walkway and it has been bustling whenever i have been there.

the city is nicely compact – everything is within a 15 to 20 minute walk from the city centre.

(click for larger image – on the map from left to right is 1.5 km or 0.9 miles)

friday morning i had a appointment at company e2 to meet the hiring manger, my team lead, some of the team and to learn more details about the position.

the visit went well. the office is in the heart of the cbd so it would be easy to get to by public transport and a huge selection of shops and cafes within a few minutes walk. the office itself is middle of the road glamour wise, but they are in the middle of a rehab and it will be a bit more flash (kiwi slang for good) by the time i would start. everyone i met was very nice. after talking with members of the team for about an hour no alarms or concerns. i indicated to them that i wanted to noodle on it over the weekend and i would let them know my decision by monday morning.

on the way our the hiring manager said that the team was gathering at the office at 4:30 for a beer and then was heading out bowling and that i was welcome to join them if i wished. it seemed like a great chance to met more of the team and get a better vibe for the crew so i said i would be there.

after my visit to company e2 i found a company in truth business and another selling giant birds

in the afternoon i went back to company e2 for beer & bowling at the lanes. i had a good time (bowled 187) and was able to met more of the team. a bit awkward since everyone understandingly asked me if i was going to join and i had to say that i would make my decision over the weekend.

still working on the jet lag a bit i headed home after a few hours and stopped at burgerfuel for a burger to go on the way home. interesting place that i think could do well in the states. creative gourmet burgers mostly to go combined with funky music.

don’t think there could be a better place to wake up after a long journey. coffee is a huge part of the culture in nz – and even more so in wellington. all the coffee is espresso based and made by hand and not by pushing a button (hi sheilac) by baristas who take a lot of pride in their work. this is my flat white from the front page cafe (right next to the dominion post – wellington’s daily).

i started counting the number of coffee cafes that i passed in the 5 block walk from my apartment and company e2 – i stopped counting at 10.

one of the local coffee roasters weighs in on the quality of their product.

oh – and more evidence of that new & improved lifestyle i’m looking forward to in cafe shot #7. most (but not all) wellingtonians dutifully wait at the intersections for the crosswalk signal.