I'm writing this in the absolute knowledge that 99% of my blog readers are not in the slightest bit interested in reading blogs right now. I'm also writing this in an attempt to fool myself that I'm not (too) sad about the fact that I'm not there with them. Cos let's face it, this is fucking awesome:
Hanging on my couch at home? Not so awesome.
So, yeah, what can I think of to ramble on about to take my mind off not being in the-place-that-shall-not-be-named? Oh yes, the latest Breaking Dawn news.
Make that 17.11.11.... SQUEEEEEEE!
Yes that's right. Breaking Dawn comes out in New Zealand on November 17th, which means @SparklyJul and I, with three of our friends, are going to a midnight screening on November 16th. SUPER excited! (a little bit because I'll see it before so many of my friends. Sad but true). We are having an Eclipse & pizza party at my house before the movie, and I've already got my outfit planned. Twitarded t-shirt, check! Forks hoodie, check!
The Breaking Dawn soundtrack listing was released this week. I have mixed feelings, to be honest. Firstly, MAJOR THUMBS UP to Bill C for including Flightless Bird, American Mouth. I can. not. wait. to see a recreation of THIS.... plus a wedding gown!
I must say I don't know more than half of the artists on the soundtrack, but given the previous soundtracks, I'm sure it will be good. I am super excited about Carter Burwell writing the score again, really excited about Rob playing Renesmee's lullaby on screen... although presumably not until Part 2.
Here's my negative bit - no MUSE! I love Muse. I know Stephenie loves Muse. Stephenie worked on this movie. I thought Muse were a given! A little sad about that. Hopefully they'll be on the BD2 soundtrack. I'm also a little sad that we won't get the soundtrack till November 8th. Even then, that's the US release date, so NZ might be a little behind. I swear the other soundtracks were always out way earlier than the movies, and I love getting to know the songs so I can recognise them in the film.
Anyhoo, I guess that's nearly enough to take my mind of a certain something else that may or may not be happening..... but geez... I dunno....
Oh yeah! I will be in FORKS after all!
Kinda.... via Skype!
@MusingBella's room, Forks Motel, 3pm Friday, local time.
Join us!! @SparklyJul is going to join in the fun too! See you then, h00rs.
If you just saw 'rugby' in the title of this post and decided to run away... STOP. I know there is nothing about Twilight in this post, but wait. Let me give you a little something to make you stay. May I introduce... Sonny Bill Williams.
Right. Do i have your attention? Good. Now, listen up!
A few months back, Kiwi Ed introduced himself on the blog and talked a little bit about rugby. Now it's time to focus on what's important - the EYE CANDY.
You see, at the weekend, the Rugby World Cup started. This tournament comes around every four years, and twenty teams from around the world attend, aiming to lift the William Webb Ellis Cup. This year the tournament is right here in New Zealand and I am surrounded by rugby mania. Apparently 1 billion people watched the opening ceremony, so yeah, it's big. In case you're not aware, rugby is not a sport in New Zealand. It's a religion.
The All Blacks are the national team of New Zealand and are pretty much GODS. Unless they lose are less than successful, in which case they better run for the hills. My philosophy is, if you're surrounded by it, embrace it. Most of the female population, and a fair percentage of the males, I reckon, only watch the games for the eye candy, and wouldn't mind embracing some of the talent.
This post only contains kiwis. It's not that the other teams (Australia, England, South Africa... to name a few that my blog readers are from) don't have hotties, it's just that I don't care to familiarise myself with them. Make suggestions in the comments if you must.
Example #1: My soon-to-be-husband and captain of the All Blacks, Richie McCaw:
Our illustrious leader. Rumoured to be single (or perhaps those are just the rumours I choose to listen to). Hubba hubba.
Example #2: Underwear model and all-round-nice-guy Dan Carter:
Are you starting to see how I cope with the eighty minutes between kick off and the final whistle?
This brings me to Example #3. On Friday night, when the All Blacks opened the tournament against Tonga, I tweeted some pictures that had an - how do I put this - overwhelmingly positive response. You see, the All Blacks are wearing these new, super tight, super slinky tops, and one of main pinups, Sonny Bill, managed to rip his sleeve, necessitating an on-screen strip to put a new shirt on. The crowd went wild. We were very jealous of the team doctor, who needed to help him put on his new skin shirt.
This is hilarious. And hawt.
Personally, the tribal tattoos just make the whole package more... mmmm.
Along that theme, another traditional ritual turn-on is the haka. A traditional war dance, The All Blacks perform the haka before every game. It is designed to intimidate your opposition. The link above is to the wikipedia description, which is quite interesting... if you're interested. The tradition far, far predates rugby.
Other pacific teams also have their own variations of war dance similar to the haka. In the game against Tonga the other night, we saw two hakas against each other. I get shivers up and down my spine watching this. It's so... primitive.
Aaand I can't get the video I want to embed. So you can check it out HERE instead.
There are many different versions of the haka. The Ka Mate haka is by far the most famous and is used commonly by the All Blacks. Here is a clip from earlier this year. One of my favourite things is how the opposition just stand there.
In case you're wondering, the US and Canada both have teams in the tournament. If you're keen to watch, better do it soon, because I'm afraid it's not likely either of them will make it to the quarter final stages.
I hope you enjoyed this education session. Feel free to ask questions of the teacher, more evidence can be provided on request.
I decided to write this post with two purposes. Firstly, to try and sum up one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and secondly, to call out acknowledge all of the wonderful people I met along the way. If your photo appears on this page, I make no apologies - I loved meeting every single person along the way and I'm not sure I can do justice to the awesomeness of you all in a post. But I'm gonna give it a damn good go!
Have you read my travel posts? There were ten in total, plus a bonus post about meeting 100 Monkeys. If not, start HERE and read on until you're all caught up.
During my time in Seattle, I went for a big long walk. I was listening to music and I realised that one song kept coming up. Not just that day, but throughout the trip, on the radio, on TV, all the time. It was the PERFECT song for me, having the time of my life (don't worry, I'm not gonna go all Dirty Dancing on ya). Give this a listen as you read on:
It really is a Good Life. Or a great life, or whatever. I realise as I write this that yesterday was (and in America, today is) 11/09/11 - an anniversary the world will never forget. I did not set out to write a memorial post, but you know, it's all about living life to the fullest, and making the most of every day.
Since I've been home, people have asked me what the highlights of my trip were, where my favourite place was.... those were kinda tricky questions to answer, until I had a brain wave. The places, while awesome, weren't the highlights. It was the people. I really did have the time of my life and am going to take a few moments here to talk about my times with each and every twitard I met.
@TwiredJen
Jen - my lovely Jen: Where do I start? One of the first people I met online and not-coincidentally the first one I met in real life. When I saw you waiting for me at the airport, me almost delerious with tiredness, you were exactly how I knew you'd be. Zero weirdness. I had the best time with you and DG and I wish you all the very best in three weeks' time on your big day. For those who don't realise, the pic above is Jen at her RL bridal shower, that I was privileged to attend. I met Jen's friends and family and was welcomed with open arms. That lingerie is lovely, by the way.
@Elusive_S
Sarah - Jen's fabulous sister and twi-partner in crime: Sarah, I loved meeting you, and Mr and Mrs M, not to mention your gorgeous pooch. I love that you rock the 'thong on your head' look so well, even with Kiwi Ed taking full advantage of your cleavage. You organised that bridal shower so well and I loved that you included some twi-trivia in the quiz! And who knew your veterinary skills translated to mini vampires - Kiwi Ed thanks you for saving him after he nearly drowned in your wine glass. He says you gave the 'best head of his life'. Oh dear.
@Rikki_DD
Rikki - The gal from Sin City: I was so excited to meet you in Vegas. You might not have realised it, but you helped me through a bit of a tricky time for me (on the Vegas emotional rollercoaster). Our trip to Madame Tussauds was so much fun, regardless of the fact that Rob was hiding from us. Kiwi Ed has yet to write his blog post about our trip to the wax museum, but he is getting around to it! I hope you enjoy every second of your Forks experience babe, I can't wait to see the vampirate outfits.
@Jaymes805
Jamie - love of my life: Seriously. You need to talk to Amanda about a divorce so we can be together. Haha. They all think I'm joking. I don't know when I last came across someone with whom I have so much in common - not least of all our teensy tiny bladders. So nice to take a road trip and not be the one who is always having to stop to pee. Notice how I'm all about the important things in life? You have educated me about certain Monkey voices, enabled me to meet said Monkeys, and generally been my all-round Monkey whisperer, for which I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Oh, and your pussy is gorgeous too. (Of course I am referring to Jasper, people. Get your heads out of the gutter. Geez.)
@luvsmesumEdward (and D)
Jess & Short Stack: It was so awesome that I got to meat meet you, even if only for a short time. You observed as I lost my pancake virginity, and educated me in American vocabulary. Seriously, your daughter is the cutest kid EVER, she is gonna break some hearts in a few years! I think you need to keep working on getting Jamie to relocate to SD already for more hijinks!
@amandakmelby
Amanda, princess, queen of the heels: Sweetie! I will never forget you. From lettuce-wrapped burgers (it's still weird, no matter what you say) to champagne... oh, the champagne. It's lucky that what goes to Napa on tour stays on tour, yes? Seriously my love, you are a gorgeous person, inside and out, and I am so pleased we had a chance to meet and squee together. And I love your classy philosphy of 'get drunk and go straight to sleep'. Imma try and adopt that...
@AllTwiedUp
Charla - little miss wanna-be-kiwi: God I want to hug you again, like, now! From the moment you told me you like Flight of the Conchords I had a feeling you'd be keen to hear my accent... little did I know the fun we would have (mostly!). Your version of my accent still sucks, by the way. I think the only way you'll be able to perfect it will be to spend at least a month here. Immersion therapy. I had the best time at your place, from education about restaurants in America, meeting Bella and your kitty cats and playing video games. Thank you so much for your wonderful hospitality, even though I don't think your house wanted us to stay.
@theppmonster (and @travellingmocha)
Tom - "I'm her Edward": As much as you put on your mask, you totally love the whole Twilight thing, yes? You can't hide it anymore Tom. It was awesome to meet you, I'll always think of you as 'one of the gals'. The one with the snake. And the poop. Ewww. You know, once you're on twitter, you can't go back, right? Enjoy Forks! I'm disappointed I didn't see the footie PJs, by the way.
@norcaltwitard
Kate - Norcal's finest: Thank you for educating me about which parts of California qualify as 'Norcal' and which don't.. hehe. Oh, and introducing me to Cherry Rum. WIN! I love that shit. It's so cool that you've joined the blogosphere and I'm super impressed that you can write a post on your phone with such accuracy! It was great being couch-bedroom buddies, even when the pets and dishes decided to frighten the crap out of us in the middle of the night.
Me and @dangrdafne
Sharon - the nicest person I know: Sharon, I am lost for words at how excited I was to learn you would travel across America just to see me. It was fantastic to meet you, and it's true. You are niceness, personified. But I knew that already. Thank you so much for being so organised, we are definitely on the same wave length! Good thing we didn't need the Hampton after all. I hope Mocha enjoyed his experience too, even the sneaky sip of red (don't tell Mr DD). It's kinda hard to find words here, TBH. You know how I feel.
@twi_lin & @tipsy_daisy
ChyLynn - Monkey girl: I look at this picture of your gorgeous smiling face and that's exactly how I remember you, so smiley! You're the coolest grandma I know, sweetie. It was amazing sharing my Monkey experience with you and hearing all your tales of Monkey adventures pre and post. Your Toy Story bracelets were genius, I'm sure the boys are still wearing them. Thanks also for your chauffering in Seattle and for the 100 Monkeys wristband, all the way from Spokane!
Lesa - iPad girl: It was so cool to meet you and get to know you in Washington. I absolutely love that I was able to make new twi-friends as well as solidify friendships with existing ones on this trip. You'll always be a part of my Monkey memories, I wish we could have spent more time together.
Me, @Twi_Lin and @Kitty_Elvis
Seattle Sharon: (As you are in my head to avoid confusion with DD): It was so lovely to meet you, even though only for one night. Dinner at Lola was fantastic and I really enjoyed hearing all about your Jordan nuptuals. I really hope your American Wedding goes well too! You're a gorgeous person with a fabulous smile and I'm sorry we weren't able to meet up again before I left Seatlle.
Melinda (@kintail): I don't have a decent photo of you, Melinda! Thanks for being part of my Monkey experience. I loved the rubber monkeys and mine is pride-of-place on my dresser. I'll never forget the nasty little things Jackson was doing with two of those finger puppets!
@starlitviolets and @musingbella
Amy B - Purple's cool: You and your damn Washington Red Apples, eh? Now that I'm finally over the hangover I can take a moment to thank you for coming with Erin and I to Olympia. So much fun was had. You are an awesome gal, larger than life! I wrote my shopping list yesterday with your purple pen and giggled to myself. I miss your arse slaps already.
Erin - karaoke queen: You, my dear, are a fucking amazing woman. To hold your head high and keep smiling through the shitstorm is admirable and you do it with class. I loved meeting you and Kiwi Ed is still pining for the 'lets... I think there's more to it than friendship, at least on his part. The donut shop shop will forever make me smile and I'm so glad you resurrected Thirsty Thursday - although my liquor cabinet could do with more stock!
@mandysmind & @lorabell
Mandy, Marvellous Mandy: It was so interesting hearing you talk about your experiences when the movies were being filmed and learning everything there was to know about sites around Vancouver. Thanks for hooking us up with the freebies from Glowbal, too! That dessert was positively sinful.
Lovely Lorabell: I will always think of you with that glamorous hair and makeup... something you just threw on, right? It was a privilege to be part of your farewell evening and I'm glad you got home ok without Irene throwing a spanner in the works.
@red_bella and I
Deb - sewing queen and bulshy Canadian: It's hard to know where to start! You came all the way to Seattle, rescued me from a dry evening, met me in Vancouver, acted as chauffeur, tour guide and burger advisor. I was humbled by how you went out of your way for me and I was just sorry we couldn't find the Cullen house. It was awesome meeting your fur family (and your hubs) and seeing your gorgeous island. Thank you!
@JacksonRathbone - but then, you knew that
My 'wonderful people I met' post really wouldn't be complete without a shout out to this guy, wouldn't it? Nuff said.
As you all saw, I dragged a massive suitcase around with me for five weeks. And towards the end, one turned into two, as my contents... expanded. The shopping was fantastic (and affordable), so of course I needed to partake! Here is a stocktake of all things 'twi' or 'monkey' that I acquired...
I also collected Christmas ornaments from each place. My tree is gonna look awesome this year.
Oh, and my most visible - and absolute favourite - Forks souviner? My hoodie!
This song is one of my all time favourites, and also fits well here. I did have the time of my life. (Ignore the 'Good Riddance' message... I ain't goin' nowhere!)
So there you have it. That about sums up the trip of a lifetime. Maybe its because I have a cold and am taking lots of drugs, maybe its because I'm all misty-eyed and reminiscent - but I really just want to say a massive, massive thank you to everyone I met. You made my experience what it was.
I'd also like to mention the many, many people that I could not meet on this trip, but who followed my adventures via twitter and this blog and sent me words of support. We are all one big family here, regardless of whether some of us meet often, or some of us never see each other face to face, we are all important and the bonds of friendship are strong. I love you all, h00rs.
I'll leave you with this image of sunset on Rialto Beach. For those of you going to Forks very soon... I hope you have the time of your life. Give everyone a hug from me, yes?
Welcome to the final installment of my travel posts. After Vancouver, I spent my final days in Canada on Vancouver Island, which was really nice and relaxing - a lovely way to end my mammoth holiday.
From Vancouver, @red_bella (Deb) invited me to spend the night at her place in Duncan, on Vancouver Island, en route to Victoria, about an hour south. Deb works in Victoria so was kind enough to give me a ride down there the next morning. But not before I met her fur babies!
Deb and her hubs have four huskies and they are rather gorgeous! While I was visiting I also had the pleasure of visiting Deb's lair... aka her sewing room. Home of the Pattinson Panties! (well, she's moved house since then, but you get the picture). It was really cool to see where Deb creates all her.. well, creations - panties, tshirts, mini-E clothes, you name it!
Deb in her sewing room (with her minis)
Next morning it was off to Victoria. Victoria is a lovely city and is the capital of British Colombia. I had two days there, relaxing, chilling out and general preparing to go home. As I've mentioned before, I was pretty tired at this stage of the trip so it was nice to have a few last days enjoying the sunshine before heading back to real life.
I stayed in a hotel on the inner harbour, which meant a lovely walk around this area each day. The grand building you see to the left is the parliament buildings. So pretty!
The flowers read 'Welcome to Victoria'. Awww.
Victoria has some grand buildings. I maintained my new 'tradition' of taking hop-on hop-off tour buses, and learned quite about the history of the city. One of their biggest attractions is whale watching, and whilst I didn't partake (I've whale-watched at home quite a few times) I did love this creative spot of topiary:
I also took advantage of the sunshine (I may have mentioned that) cos I was fairly sure I was gonna be going home to the end of winter. I'm really glad spring seems to have sprung back in kiwi-land, by the way.
After two days of lounging, eating great Mexican food, shopping even more than I had (Walmart, finally!), and gathering as many 'Canada' souvenirs as possible - and that is really saying something - it was time to head for home.
I had a four-hour bus & ferry combo journey to Vancouver Airport from Victoria. It was a nice opportunity to absorb as much of the amazing scenery as possible before I left.
And there she is. The big bird, tin can, whatever you wanna call it. A 747 that happened to have my name all over a free-upgrade Premium Economy seat... which was so nice, given the 13 hour 45 minute flight time.
And so I'm back home. In one piece. I have one more post about my travels up my sleeve, which is coming soon, real soon. Laters, baby x
Many of you know that I'm back in New Zealand now... but there are still two more posts of awesomeness to come in my travel tales. Without further ado I bring you: Vancouver, British Colombia!
I travelled to Vancouver by train from Seattle. The train ride took about four hours and it was gorgeous. I highly recommend it, and only wish I'd been on the left side of the train so I could take some decent pictures that didn't involve fellow passengers' heads.
Canada Place
First on my agenda was to see a couple of 'the sights' of Vancouver. I had a day to kill before @red_bella (Deb) was coming over from Vancouver Island to meet me, so it was on to the touristing, quick smart! I started at Canada Place, on the waterfront. Great view!
Capilano Swing Bridge
First stop, Capilano Swing Bridge. Basically, they've created a tourist attraction at a lovely canyon site, including a walkway through the trees. It was pretty cool, I was glad I'm not scared of heights going over the swing bridge!
Swiss Family Robinson, anyone?
Can you just imagine Emmett and Paul chasing Victoria through here? Well, funny you should say that. Some of the scenes in Eclipse were filmed in these parts. More on that shortly.
Next stop was Grouse Mountain. Basically there is a cable car that goes up the side of the mountain, just north of Vancouver, so it's a quick and easy way of taking in some amazing sites without having to endure a massive hillclimb!
There are also a couple of bears living at the top. They were abandoned as infants and have been raised by humans all their lives. They were rather lovely, but I was quite pleased for the fence between me and them!
Gorgeous views of Vancouver from the top:
Vancouver CBD and Stanley Park
Mt Rainier, WA (I think)
Sunset
The next day, Deb arrived, and we were going to eat Rob's balls! We had reservations at Glowbal restaurant with @mandysmind (Mandy of Malicious Mandy's Mind) and @Lorabell (Lorabell of Twi Crack Addicts). It was Lorabell's last night in Vancouver before moving back to the UK so it was great to be part of her farewell.
Mandy, Lorabell, Deb and I
Without further ado, the famed 'Rob's balls':
So yummy!!! This scrumtiousness was followed up by a complimentary dessert platter, thanks to Mandy tweeting about the restaurant while we were there! It's all about who you know. This, my friends, was SERIOUS dessert.
Quote of the day month from Deb: "I don't know if I'm going to pass out or have an orgasm". High praise, indeed! (you can see the whole platter in the group photo above).
The next morning, it was time for Deb and I to embark on our whirlwind Greater Vancouver Twilight movie set tour. The GPS was programmed, Cedric the mini was fuelled up and ready, and we had a good breakfast. It was ON!
Deb, Cedric and Mr Garmin (the misbehaving GPS)
We hit a load of spots that day, and I don't have great pics of them all, so just going to go with a few edited highlights!
Ridge Cinema, New Moon (inside used)
I swear I saw Bella and Jacob sitting on that staircase!
MAYBE the New Moon sex-walk carpark ?
We came across this parking lot by accident but I swear it was familiar.
Paramount Cinema, New Moon (outside used)
I was quite tempted to come back on Thursday.
The pathway used in the bikes scene, New Moon. Deb was on her imaginary bike :-)
Don't you think she'd fit right in? Until the werewolf takes off his shirt, that is. Eww.
Kiwi Ed spies on Jacob's house. Dead Volvo on the lawn... symbolic?
Oh dear. I don't think the wolf pack will be happy when they find out Kiwi Ed crossed the treaty line, again.
The space that the Breaking Dawn cottage was in. Squee!
I was super excited to know that I was standing right where the headboard-breaking took place! OK, where the outside of the building was shot that the headboard-breaking was alleged to have taken place in, on a sound stage far far away. Whatever.
The New Moon break-up log
I'm not sure if you remember Rob and Kristen talking about the mosquito bites they got while filming the break-up scene. Well, I can report those little bastards are still there and I am still sporting the bites they left me with. Much to Deb's amusement. Apparently it's just me that smells good.
Good thing Bella wasn't here!
The next day (after sleeping like the dead, we were SO tired!) we headed to Vancouver Island. But first, we headed north towards Whistler to Squamish. There were several Breaking Dawn sets around Squamish, and we were looking for one in particular - the Cullen house. I'm sad to say, we didn't find it. We did, however, find the river. I pictured Vampire Bella jumping over it.
The river at the back of the Cullen house in Breaking Dawn
We admitted defeat and headed for the ferry. The views were gorgeous!
The view from the ferry to Vancouver Island
This feels like a good time to break my Canadian post in half. Stay tuned for the final chapter of my epic adventure, friends.
