Nico's Journal

Oh good, a Friday Five I can do, even though it's summer here.

1. What are your feelings about winter?
Fear and loathing when I lived in Auckland because it was an almost unbroken stretch of grey miserable wetness and often illness. I feel much more positive down here where sunny days are much more common, and when it's not windy, actually very nice to sit outside a cafe in and enjoy coffee with friends. And I keep hoping that we'll get some snow. :-D
[Edit] I should add that I loved winter in Germany when I lived there because it was very different: crisp, sunny, lots of snow...

2. What is your go-to drink in the winter?
Coffee, specifically a flat white (good description here along with a photo of the usual NZ fern version). Mind you, coffee all year round is pretty good too. Breakfast is not breakfast without it.

3. What are your favourite things about the winter?
Now I'm living here, the sunny days and lower rainfall - so much more enjoyable even though there are still occasional storms and floods.

4. How do you deal with the wintry blues?
Much, much better than I did! Vitamin D helps when there's no sun. They didn't call this country Aotearoa (land of the long white cloud) for nothing.

5. What are your least favourite things about the winter?
In general* there not being anything for everyone to look forward to or celebrate while northerners have Christmas, New Year, and various other fun things to brighten them up depending on where they are.
* But hey, at least there's the Steampunk festival here in early June, so that's something that for me puts Oamaru a big step above anywhere else in this country. Even though it's limited in its appeal to others, including friends, lots of people from out of town or even overseas come to here to join in the fun.