So far in New New Zealand, we have lived in 4 different places. Here are some pictures of the kind of housing in New Zealand. Each one has been different. One thing that bugs us the most about renting in this country is the standard of housing. No insulation, double glazing or decent heating system. The result is cold, damp and moldy housing which, as we all know, is very unhealthy and can lead to illnesses, such as asthma or hypersensitivity pneumonitis.
Our first place on Karori Road. I always say it was the best place we've ever rented. It was a reasonable price at $300 p/w with large rooms. However, there was no heating and it was fairly cold. But it was dry.
The bedroom was HUGE!
The kitchen was a fair size.
I have no more pictures of Karori rd so I'll move to 33 Nottingham Street.
We moved here in July 2008. A beautiful house, but it was where all my breathing problems began. It was built on stilts and underneath the house was a basement that was extremely earthy. As there was no insulation, the earth and mold would come up through the floor boards. That house was COLD!!
We spent many nights in this one room trying to keep warm. It wasn't too bad. I loved this room.
The kitchen was a great size. Notice the kind of heating that operates in NZ? The fin heaters.
The bathroom was awfully cold. Too cold to ever take a bath and I LOVE taking baths. I never took one here.
The bedroom was also very cold and again, notice the kind of heating? A wall panel heater that was useless! We spent 6 very sick months in the house. I was diagnosed with asthma. We had to move! We moved out of Karori which is notorious for a damp, cold climate. We moved to another suburb called, Ngaio, into 91 Heke Street in January 2009.
This house wasn't too bad. It was brick, not wood like most houses in NZ. It had a log burner which was lovely. It heated the place up really nicely. It had carpet so no earth or mold came up through the floor boards. My health improved here.
Fuzzy picture, I know, but it's the only one I have. I loved this room! It was so warm and bright!
It was an L-shaped lounge and dining room with doors leading to the garden which Robert spent lots of time and money on. He loved it though so it was worth it. It gave him a taste of gardening.
I spent my time reading in the conservatory and listening to the tui birds. I loved it. After a year in this humble abode, we moved. The beginning of 2010 was a crazy time with Robert in Taiwan and me in NZ completing my teacher registration. I moved in with a friend whilst Robert studied and worked in Taiwan. You see, renting a decent healthy house on one salary in Wellington is almost impossible. For a good rental, we pay up to $400 p/w, plus bills and cost of living. It's very expensive. Being apart from each other was very difficult so Robert returned to NZ and we lived with a friend for 4 months before embarking on our next adventure to Canada. That's a whole other story!
Our next place was South Karori Road. We moved here at the beginning of 2011. It was a cheap, small, fully furnished rental. You see, when we left our life here in 2010, we sold everything! All our lovely furniture that you see in the pictures - gone. We only had boxes. South Karori Rd was great because I was so close to school. However, when it started to get cold, the place started to get damp and moldy. My allergies came back :-(
This was the view from our balcony and that's my school, Karori West. I love that the children can climb those trees and have so much space and nature to explore. I can't seem to find any pictures from 2011 so I'll need to get on with my project, sorting out the pictures on our computer.
As my health got worse, Robert and I decided to move into a place that was warmer. We only had those little fin heaters and our apartment was FREEZING. We needed a heat pump and a drier place. We found this gorgeous little apartment in July 2011, just in time for winter. The family that live beneath us have become good friends of ours. Cathy, the landlady and friend, is LOVELY! She looks after us.
The one thing I love about living here is the proximity to town. Ten minutes walk and we are there. It was very handy when the world cup was on as we didn't need to go for to enjoy the festivities. This is out street, Elizabeth Street.
You walk up some stairs and enter into the kitchen.
The kitchen is small and drives me bonkers because there is very little cupboard space.
As you know, I love baths and this is the best bath I have ever had the pleasure of bathing in. When we buy our first home, I honestly think a claw footed bath needs to be installed.
The only downside to this place is that it is small. I don't mind it so much, but Robert gets very claustrophobic. He runs a lot around the bays and Mount Victoria to keep his sanity.
So there you have it. All the places we have lived in since being in Wellington. My favourites were Karori Rd because it was cheap and Heke Street because it was big, bright and warm. When I find more house pictures I'll update this post :-)
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