Steve decided to 'work from home' yesterday (a-hem) which in the old days would have seen us lying in bed all day, only leaving for the toilet or more food!  However, I saw this as a great opportunity to try out some of the local walking routes.  In my enthusiasm, we drove straight to a Kathmandu store, purchased one of these cool baby carriers, popped little Egg in, nappies, wipes and water and headed off.  We picked a trail in a place called Wainiuomata.  The town itself is something of a hick town.  Kind of isolated, pretty rough around the edges, looks like it should be a mining town, if you get the drift.  Anyway, it also happens to have sprawling forest and mountain walks.  With Egg on my back, we took off rather gallantly on a two hour hike.  It was bloody awesome.  Well, for the first 40 mins Egg screamed like a banshee in my ear.  Fair play of course, I'm pretty unsteady on the old feet, not sure if I'd have been happy on my back!  We had to take an obligatory break which saw me changing Egg's nappy on a bloody great big branch on a narrow track - how close to nature!  This walk of course followed my 6.30am workout at the gym.  I had also booked a pilates class in the evening!  WOW!  Following the walk, we were both felt, well, tired for one, but invigorated.  We were seeing scenery that we hadn't noticed before and doing something completely different.  On the way back I saw a Canoe and Kayak shop.  I sat with Egg while Steve popped in.  He came out brandishing for my information, a kayak magazine, info about their club and info about a weekend course.  I was so excited!  Turns out there's quite a movement here in the old kayaking lark.  Yes, I'm already booked on the course which is THIS weekend!  Yikes!  I'm excited to find something that I'm so interested in.  Something that according to the guys in the shop is an awesome interest to have in Canada.  Anyway, in the evening I went to the pilates class and when it started I had to stifle the urge to laugh out loud.  The warm up was waving my arms like a tree!  However, the instructor had a body to die for, so I figured I'd stick around and see how it went.  Christ!  I wasn't breathless, but I was sweaty and my muscles ached and BURNT like buggery at the end!  that was one hell of an arse whipping!  Afterwards the instructor asked what I thought and I said it was hard, but good.  She apologised to me, apparantly all the others are regulars, and she'd forgotton about little old me, so there I was killing myself trying to keep up!  I don't think I did too badly though.  I'm going to keep going once a week.  Might help relax me.  My brain is back in the saddle again now, studying for my sociology paper, which is such a load of old bollocks.  I've never read so much drivel in my life! (except for reading my blog entries!!)  My first assignment I actually did quite well in, I'm hoping to get a good mark for my next assignment, so the pressure for the exam is slightly less.  Feb sees the first exam.  Then I've got an extremely busy year with a multitude of papers.  I have to say that, for the first time, I really feel like I'm embracing the new year.  Its so easy to sit and mope about being bloody miserable all the time.  No, I don't like it here and yes, at times I'll get upset and feel desperate to break out.  But at least I've got my distractions now, and these opportunities have only come about because of NZ.  God, my legs ache!! OUCHIE!

Here's pic of tired, hacked off Egg!