I’ve done a post like this for the past 2 years so I thought I’d continue it like a yearly tradition. It’s a great way to look back on the year and 2023 was the biggest and best one so far. Last year was huge for me. So many things happened and things ticked off that I can’t believe I got to experience all of it.
I’ve already done a mid-year recap/update back in May so I’ll try not to reiterate those but it covered the main parts of the first 6 months of 2023. I’ve dealt with some health issues (still dealing with those plus a little bit more), our awesome glass-blowing workshop in Whāngarei, trip up North and some cool activities.
The second half of last year was even bigger than the first and looking back, I can’t believe we managed to fit so much. It was amazing but quite hectic and at times, stressful. Last year has been the best but with the highest of highs, also had the lowest of lows. I like to focus on the positives so here are my highlights:
Travel
I did the most overseas travel so far in my life last year. This is a very quick recap of where we went because I still want to do separate blog posts for our travels. Those will take more time though!
In June, we went to Europe. It was my first time in Europe and we ticked off the following places:
- London, UK – we started here for my friend’s wedding
- Paris, France
- Lyon France
- Milan, Italy
- Cinque Terre, Italy
- Florence, Italy
- Vatican City
- Rome, Italy
Europe in summer was such a blast. It was hot, it was crowded but it was also amazing. It was a great first trip. I knew we couldn’t go everywhere and see everything but we did as much as we could and planned it well.
In July and towards the end of our Europe trip, we spent a week in Singapore before flying back home. This whole 5 week trip feels like a dream. I can’t believe I went there, saw amazing places, ate amazing food and did some cool things. Max and I travel so well together and besides getting ill in Italy, the rest of the trip went pretty smoothly. I want to write about my experiences in each place we visited so more to come later but overall, this trip was amazing.
Then in November, I went back to the Philippines with my family. This was another big trip because we haven’t been back as 4 of us since we moved to NZ/Aotearoa in 2006. I went back with my mum in 2018 but my sister hasn’t been back since we moved either. This was an awesome trip too and it was cool to hang out and get to know our cousins as adults. We did lots of eating delicious Filipino food, shopping and sweating because it was so hot and humid! Haha
I’m looking forward to drafting my posts on my travels. It would be great to go back on these awesome memories.
House / Move
As if traveling overseas for weeks wasn’t enough for me, we managed to squeeze in a house move. Getting a house weeks after we came back from our Europe/Singapore trip was insane and totally unexpected. It happened quite quickly but the universe aligned and Max and I finally have a house that we live in together.
I was in a bit of a shock when this was happening and it was an emotional time. I was in my last place for almost 10 years. I was so comfortable for so long and I went through a lot there. From a huge breakup, getting cats, losing a cat, growing up and really getting to know myself. My last house was like my comfort blanket. This move was massive for me/us but we knew it was the right one.
Moving is one of the most stressful things people go through and that was true for me especially merging our households with cats. I have Turbo and Max has Bucket and Pubble. Turbo hasn’t lived anywhere besides my old place so this was a big adjustment for him. Bucket and Pubble have always been together and they now have a younger brother. The first 2-3 months were so stressful that I had breakdowns, the move also caused Turbo anxiety. It hasn’t been the easiest for the cats but we’re slowly getting better, I think. Hopefully one day they’ll all be besties!
We also hosted both our families for Christmas. I thought I wasn’t into Christmas but maybe coming back from the Philippines got me into the Christmas spirit that I went hard on the decor in the house. We had 2 Christmas trees (a classier one in the lounge and one in the sunroom with novelty decor) and bunch of decor around the house. It made me so happy. I loved it and hosting Christmas Eve and Christmas dinner were a success despite the rainy weather.
Overall though, the house move has been good. I love our home. I’m still in the area/suburb that I love, we’re still close to the beach and all my favourite places. It’s far from done in terms of decorating and organising but we’re slowly making it our home.
Travel and house stuff were really the 2 biggest things from 2023. Most of the cool activities we did (here in NZ) were in the 1st half so they’re in my mid-year recap already From July onwards, we were mainly focused on the house move but there were also some cool things I want to remember:
FIFA Women’s World Cup
I’m not into sports at all but when the FIFA WWC was in NZ, I got so into it especially after watching the Philippines football team winning their first ever match. We even watched their second game live and although Philippines lost, it was still so cool to experience it and seeing a stadium full of Filipinos cheering for the national team. I ended up watching the rest of the matches on TV and enjoyed them all. Women’s sports are so much better IMO!
Miranda stay
We didn’t travel within NZ after our Europe trip but we did stay at Miranda campgrounds with friends back in September. It was a nice break from the stressful cats/house move. It’s such a nice campground with a lot of activities including hot pools. We did frisbee golf and played tennis. I highly recommend going there!
Te Reo class – Level 3/4
It is a highlight that I managed to finish my te reo level 3 and 4 course after missing a few classes and getting so behind on my online coursework. I did it though and I’m glad it’s over. Te reo class this year was bittersweet for me. I enjoyed the first half and I was so motivated but after a change in kaiako plus missing classes while I was overseas then a house move, it was so hard to get my motivation back. I didn’t enjoy this course during the second half of the year as much as I wanted to. I wish I can redo this course again (without failing it) because I think I’ll be able to do better, remember and learn more and get more confident in speaking. I’m still glad I continued but it wasn’t easy and enjoyable compared to when I did my level 1 & 2 course.
I also decided that I wouldn’t continue on to Level 5 te reo because I don’t feel like I’m up to that level yet. When I started my te reo learning journey, it wasn’t to become fluent but to gain a better understanding of te reo, tikanga and te ao Māori. I’ve learned so much through this journey and I want to fully commit when/if I continue to the next stage. For 2024, I’ve decided to enroll in learning tikanga instead. It’s different but I think it would be good and beneficial for me and my mahi too. It’s been such a privilege learning and experiencing te reo through TWoA over the past few years.
Food:
Auckland Restaurant Month
In 2022, we tried a lot more places for Auckland Restaurant Month but last year, I only managed to go to 2 places which were Bossi and Feriza’s.
Bossie is an Italian restaurant in the city. The food was good and it’s quite nice inside. Feriza’s serves Turkish food and we went here for Max’s birthday. It was Sunday lunch so they weren’t busy at all but the service was average. However, the food was good especially the baklava.
Some notable food places I loved in 2023:
Luna Bakehouse
Luna Bakehouse has been my favourite coffee place. It’s been go-to when I’m in the office as I stop by the Elliot St branch. They also recently opened in Takapuna so within walking distance from me which is awesome. They have a great rewards member system so I’ve availed plenty of free coffees and pastries. I also like their danishes.
My sister and I also had their high tea and I loved that it had Filipino/Asian flavours like ube, pandan and even durian! You also get to avail a free cruffin on your birthday if you’re a member.
Domo Bakery
Domo Bakery also opened in Takapuna, almost next door to Luna and across from Duck Island Ice Cream (another favourite of mine). They’re known for their croissants and cube croissants. I can confirm they’re good and probably my favourite croissant out of all the ones I’ve tried. They remind me of Bakemono that we went to during our Melbourne 2022 trip.
Sakebar Nippon Takapuna
Sakebar is Max and I’s go-to dinner date spot. It’s our no-fail yummy dinner favourite. It’s close by, the service is good and the food is delicious. Whenever we want to go out for an easy dinner, this is where we usually go. The photos above were taken the day the house offerwas accepted. We were in shock.
These have also been favourites
- XO Takapuna - this is super close to us and so handy if we want a nice dinner out. Their crispy pata is so good! They also do my favorite Hanging Garden cocktail. Highly recommend.
- Nanam – Nanam is always on my list because I truly love this restaurant. I tend to go a few times a year. Last time I went, I had the biggest food coma afterwards as we celebrated the house move by going to their dinner buffet. I ate so much, I couldn’t move.
- Winsome Coffee – this is a small cafe beside GoodFor store and they’re lovely here. They were great during the Auckland flood/storms last year as we didn’t have power for a few days and we came here to grab coffee and charge our phones. They do good coffees too and such lovely people.
- iiko sando – Another Takapuna favourite. I love their katsu sandwiches especially for lunch.
- Manoah eatery – this isn’t in Takapuna but in Sunnynook. This was such a good discovery thanks to Joan. They serve amazing Japanese food. I love the katsu and it’s the only place I’ve tried that serve truffle salt with their katsu and it blew my mind. It’s great and I wish I lived closer to it.
Bestie Collection
I still loved books/reading last and I’ve put up my 2023 best/favourite reads here. The best part about reading last year was Auckland Libraries launching their Bestie collection. It excited me so much and I still use it! The Bestie collection is basically a collection of new and best-selling books in the library, you skip the waiting queues as you can’t request these books and you can borrow them for 2 weeks. My downside is only being able to borrow 2 Bestie books at a time because I tend to read fast so I can read more within the 2-week period but I can’t really complain too much. It made me discover great NZ books and so many more.
I think that’s everything I can think of and remember about 2023. What a year that was. I feel incredibly thankful at how last year went. It’s been the best and biggest year of my life so far. I couldn’t have predicated how hectic it was going to be and by the end of it all I wanted to do was stay at home and chill. I’m grateful of everything that happened but I was also glad the year is done.
For me, 2024 is not about big travel and changes. It’s a year of getting settled and enjoying the small things. I hope we all have a good year ahead!
Links:
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