14 Aug 09: Staying in Christchurch Jail

The Jailhouse accommodation is actually an actual jail that has been converted into a backpackers hostel. I must say the owners did a very good job at the converting it into a modern accommodation and yet maintaining the original look and feel at the same time. We actually slept in actual jail cells with bunk beds and heavy iron doors. And the toilets are all shared. Even their toilet seats have like barbed wire designs on them. They also have this little board for you to take pictures with and pretend you are a prisoner. Cool right! The downside is, the room is so cold that even the blankets and our portable little heater didn’t do a good job keeping me warm. I ended up sleeping cold at night and waking up cold in the morning.. Plus, we cannot use the wireless internet inside our room cause there is no reception at all due to the thick iron door. We can only get wireless connection in the main living lounge area. Which makes sense cause inmates are not allowed to have any forms of communication inside their cells. = )


Today was a slow and easy day for us. K and I went to the immigration center in the town center, while EK and S started their job search. For the past few days, K and I have been in deep discussions about whether we should stay in NZ and have the baby or go back to SG. My mind has been a big puzzle mess because of this. Anyway, our trip to the immigration office was pretty much a fruitless attempt. Basically, we need to either get a job offer here, invest half a million here, or study here. So far our best option is to study here. But that costs money. We visited a Taiwanese immigration lawyer’s office after that, and spoke to his secretary. The lawyer wasn’t in, but we left our number and he called us back in the evening. The lawyer sounded pretty positive and confident, like he knew some loopholes in the system. He said he could get us a permit based on my educational qualifications, and asked us to send him our resumes and he would revert back to us on Monday. I’m keeping my fingers crossed!

We headed back early today, and had leftover pizza for dinner, plus honeydew, instant noodles and fried omelette. I bought myself some Japanese bread for my tea snack in the afternoon, and it was delicious. Will have the remaining 2 for breakfast tomorrow. = )

1 Response to "14 Aug 09: Staying in Christchurch Jail"

  1. Hollywood Tai Tai Says:

    That is a super interesting use of space! I must spend a night at the Jailhouse next time I am in NZ. Of course I will only do that during summer. hehehe.