Hard

Yesterday I made a one-night-only return to Manurewa, Auckland. I flew up from Welly at noon, and returned the next morning. Like some kind of superstar, or super-paranoid-about-being-away-from-my-kid nutcase, or a too-poor-to-book-non-Grabaseat-fare person.

The reason for the quick solo trip was to attend my only brother's engagement party, but I tried to squeeze in a bit more Rewa and Manukau into my itinerary.

Manukau mall
A full van of fans family picked me up from the airport and we went straight to Westfield Manukau mall ... straight to the food court. Where we could have something to eat but more importantly have a good chinwag session before any shopping (mostly of the type "window") was done.

$10 Speso
One of my first memories of takeaways in Manurewa is a $10 chicken "special", which consists of some deep fried chicken nibbles and chips. It is also known to be called "Family Special" or "Family Pack" etc. You get the point. I had one of these.

The Warehouse - Clendon
Small but has just what you need. Popped in to grab a last minute gift.

Movies
We went to the Reading cinemas in Wellington once. The cinemas parks are sooooo far away and not free. The seating is super squashed...well, maybe not super squashed, but I've become accustomed to the very generous seating at Manukau and Sylvia Park. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper. And while fidgeting to get comfortable I kicked my popcorn over, then spilt my drink while trying to fit it into the weirdly placed and shallow cup holders.
So last night I went to the 11:10pm movie session at Manukau. I needed to see Harry Potter and there was no way I would suffer through another Reading experience. Being 11:10pm on Saturday the crowds and action in Manukau were actually at Guada's across the street, not at the movies, and especially not for Harry Potter. More space for me! If there is a Sundance Film Festival movie you want to see...Event Manukau is the place to do it!

Clendon bakery
There are no bakeries near our Welly home. A lot of cafes, but nowhere you can get a juicy good quality potato top pie and a simple but delicious cream bun for less than $5. So that's where I (well, Mum actually) bought breakfast this morning. So on my return flight, when I got asked if I wanted a cookie or a handful of sweets I could smile sweetly and say no thanks, I had a meeeean breakfast ow.

And just like that I was on the plane and on my way back to Wellington. My South Auckland fix squeezed into less than 24 hours. Until I see you again my old home ... Rewa Hard!