Kiwi men and Kiwi women at the festival “Big Day Out”. Part 3

As I have promised, now I continue to post photos from the musical festival “Big Day Out” which was held in the end of January, 2011. In the photos you can see people caught unawares. They are different: young and not very young, extravagant and very common. In the whole world they are called “Kiwi”.

There are about thirty photos with comments. The photos are clickable.

A heavy metal fan of the “sisadmin” type, whitish-pink due to the sun burn, is resting after jumping in the “heavy” sector.

A woman  is selling ice lollies and smiling in a confused way. The weather was expected to be hot but it happened to be rainy and wet so there were no lines in front of her stall.

Policemen sometimes asked people if everything was OK. That Indian seemed to be OK.  As for policemen, they always had guarded looks but that was their job. Last year, as I remembered, everybody wanted to be photographed with them, and people, drunk and drugged, really had the pictures taken.

You, young man with long hairs and in a long T-shirt, the girls from the posters keep their beautiful eyes on you!

There was nothing to do at the festival but listen to music, seek  for the friends lost somewhere and do shopping in dull stalls. All open amusements were popular and there were lines of people interested until dark.

As one can notice, a person in the background is selling plastic raincoats and polyethylene ponchos at the price of 5 dollars. In the foreground, there is a New Zealand format of pear-shaped girls.

The inscription on the yellow trailer, where fatty-and-sugary products were sold, said, “Over 14.75 billion sold worldwide”.

A non-drinking man is communicating with his friend who is by no means averse to a couple of bottles of beer in the “alcohol zone”. The sale of alcohol products at the festival was bounded not only with regard to age but to festival areas, too.  Special people checked IDs and put colored bracelets on people’s hands. Alcohol was to be bought in special enclosed areas (cigarettes were not sold at all). The alcohol purchased was to be consumed in the same area. There were several stages with music for “alco-people”, but the music  was, I’d say, indistinct.

The lady without the dog but in a hat. (By analogy with «The Lady with the Dog» (Russian: Дама с собачкой, Dama s sobachkoy), a short story by Anthon Chekhov, which was first published in 1899. It tells the story of an adulterous affair between a Russian banker and a young lady.)

 

Some guys protected by an unworried guard are resting in the alco-area.

Nice people. While being at the festival, I’ve met them several times here and there. It is up to you to decide whether they are hipsters or not.

Two hippies on the grass. One of the girls is wearing the very poncho which has been sold a few photos up.

Kiwi-boys are staring at kiwi-girls and at their knees.

As for the girls, they are dancing around a microscopic bag.

A brutal woman of the style of the 1980-s. A large area of her bogy is covered with tattoos. I almost collided with her as she was barging through the crowd in a very resolute way.

To promote various Halloween goods, the guy was dressed as a monster and made to frighten the girls passing by. But the girls happened to be brave and wanted to be photographed with him by all means.

A girl in the style of Woodstock with wet hair looking thick. The Article. Which means she is younger than eighteen.

And again minutes of worried waiting. As I have repeatedly said, much time was spent on seeking and waiting for friends and acquaintances.

A nice blond is waiting for her boyfriend in the alco-area. It is his bottle there in the right part of the frame.

As you can notice, I like the umbrella and its faint colored reflection.

A small group of children-flowers in the alco-area. I think that my attention was focused on the blond with a blue headband.

He was looking into my lens and I was looking into his glasses and thinking, “Permed or not?”

What was the man in a blue hat short of? Some footwear, I guess.

A Kiwi girl under a tree.

A thoughtful man in lowered pants and black trunks is filling his rucksack with water.

Perhaps, it is one of the best photos of today’s set.

The rain drove faster, the sun was setting.

That girl-ghost did not like that I was making her picture. Then we talked, smiled to each other and exchanged calling cards. Still waiting for her to write.

This is the end of the third post about a musical festival “Big Day Out”. I hope the blog’s readers have got the idea what the local youth really is at rest. I think you will admit that young people look rather civilized. 

I believe there are enough pictures left for one more post. I will post the fourth part after I will tell about Cook tropical islands where I have spent a short vacation lasting for 10 days.

Вручение арт-приза от компании Cliftons 2012. Современное новозеландское искусство.

Здесь в Окленде во второй раз поучаствовал в роли фотографа на относительно серьёзном корпоративном мероприятии. Международная компания Cliftons, занимающаяся предоставлением площадей для проведения тренингов и встреч для компаний, организовала и провела выставку с последующим вручением денежного приза выбранному победителю. Обычно в Cliftons приходят обучаться новым компьютерным приложениям служащие банков, продавцы БАДов, специалисты Cisco и сотрудники Microsoft. Cliftons держит офисы в нескольких странах: Гонконг, Сингапур, Новая Зеландия, Австралия. Из-за того, что владелец компании увлекается коллекционирование искусства и в целом рад поддержать молодые таланты, относительно недавно была учреждена международная премия под названием Cliftons Art Award.

Мне довелось побывать на вручении Оклендской награды: 2000 долларов. Мелочь, а какому-нибудь художнику приятно. В продолжении поста кликабельные фотографии с комментариями.

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Зарплаты программистов в Новой Зеландии

Здесь в Окленде, я получил очередной отчёт о существующем положении на новозеландском рынке IT: о зарплатах специалистов и о том, куда всё движется. Данные относятся к июню 2012 года. Переведу в продолжении поста то, что не в картинках.

Прошлый год можно посмотреть здесь, позапрошлый здесь, а зарплаты в других отраслях здесь.

Отчёт составлен на основе данных, полученных от 24 100 анонимных респондентов сайта itsalaries.co.nz, занятых, как вы понимаете, в IT-индустрии. Два раза в год рекрутёрское агентство пиара ради проводит анализ абсолютных значений и их динамики.

Основные выводы первой половины 2012 года

  • Медиана значений заработной платы не измнилась и держится на 77 500 NZD в год. Стабильность в действии.
  • Фрилансеры-контрактеры, стоит заметить, получают в основном столько же — 80 NZD в час.
  • «Отличился» Веллингтон. Там медианное значение зарплат составило 80 000 NZD, что выше оклендских показателей (75 000 NZD) и того, что платят в Крайстчёрче (70 000 NZD). Занятно, что буквально в 150 километрах от Окленда в Гамильтоне и других городах Северного острова медиана составила 63 000 NZD.
  • Получили значительные повышения: архитекторы и программисты.
  • А вот у бизнес-аналитиков, технических писателей, тестеров, системных администраторов, веб/мультимедиа дизайнеров — зарплата уменьшилась или осталась на прежнем уровне.

Выборы прошли и пришла зима, самое рабочее время года. Консервативный подход к найму новых людей определяется несколькими факторами.

Госаппарат расширяется и модернизируется, оттого в Веллингтоне после выборов начали нанимать, повысился спрос жить в ветренной столице, повысились зарплаты. Настолько, что оказались выше, чем в обычно лидирующем Окленде.

Уменьшилось количество работодателей, предоставляющих разного рода бонусы и «ништячки». Теперь меньше компаний предлагают оплачивать мобильную связь и бензин для добирающихся на рабочее место издалека (на 3%). На 2% снизилось количество компаний, позволяющих работать в свободном графике и оплачивающих тренажёрный зал.

Прогноз на остаток года: стабильность. Ситуация спокойная.

Подробнее в продолжении поста, все картинки кликабельны.

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Kiwi men and Kiwi women at the festival “Big Day Out”. Part 2

Spectators are out in the rain. The exposure is short, one can notice drops in the air. 

Today I continue my photo story about the festival “Big Day Out” which took place in Auckland in the end of January. I have simply taken a few pictures from the folder, and I will tell you about each of them throughout the post. All the pictures are clickable.

I don’t know what impressions you get from this guy with a hippie girl-friend but as for me, he seemed a good deal like Mister Bin. He was standing erect like on parade.

 

Traditionally, people were dancing in the open because it was hot and crowded in the “Boiler-room” — in the electronic-music marquee. In the background there you can see logotypes of Silent Disco, I will tell you about it a little later.

 

I tagged after the accredited photographer and made circles around the “Silent Disco” marquee until he finally chose the angle and turned to his work.

As one can notice, young people being a pride and joy of New Zealand are wearing gym shoes which are like Shanghai shoes, long and wide shorts similar to boxer shorts, and jerseys which remind sailor’s striped vests.

As I have already written, the marked part of the festival time was devoted to waiting. That boy who just didn’t “give a shit”, as it was written on his T-shirt, was standing with that kind of a sad and anxious face expression for about twenty minutes. So, he did “give a shit” about something.

It was as though the boy in a cap, which reminded the helmet of a storm trooper, was saying to the girl looking like Scarlett Johansson, “He has gone in this direction, oh no, in that direction.” 

That boy is apparently not a Russian boy, and that cap is obviously a Russian fur cap with ear flaps.

A modern festival guy with a phone matching the color of his glasses.

I wonder why anybody living in a city with a million of population should have been standing and choosing a cool summer dress in a small stall at the time when the Iggy Pop were just about to go on stage.

All right, I admit that I didn’t get whether the girl pointing a finger at somebody, was wearing some kind of a swimsuit or a suit for aerobics.

A bit of a Kiwi first-class fellow is resting on the asphalt. Yes, the asphalt is to have been covered with spittle, bottles and cigarette butts but as you see all is not so bad. In a second the fellow will sure put his tongue out and make “V” with his fingers which will mean “Vnimanie, idet syomka” (from Russian — “Attention, photos are being shot”).

Judging by muddy legs, that graceful girl has just returned from the field. Rain and jumping teenagers have turned it into something of a dirty pool here and there. 

A brutal girl in homemade jean shorts.

In my estimation, this “enlarged” girl is 16-18 years old.

A traditionally stooping Kiwi girl with lots of straps. I noticed that tendency the very first days here in New Zealand, in November 2006.

In the “Silent Disco” marquee the visitors were given radio earphones, in which everyone could choose one of two channels and adjust the level.  Live DJ s ran two absolutely different sets which were often rhythm-fold. Of course, the music was heard only in the earphones.

One of the disk jockeys.

People are dancing in silence to different music.

For many people, the “Silent Disco” marquee was the place where they could wait till the rain was over and quietly write an SMS (or as they said there, “text”, or even so: “txt”) to some pleasant music.

A New Zealand couple in skateboard sneakers.

We are approaching the resting zone where it is allowed to buy alcohol. The people are just resting on the grass. It is still prohibited to drink alcohol in that section.

A thoughtful girl is sitting under the tree and waiting for her prince who either is gone to make water or to get water.

A fashionable lady, her look plainly reminding me about porno parades which are regularly held  in Auckland. I have already written about that: the first time, the second time, and the third time. Be careful, not for work.

One of the entrances to the stands. We wanted to eat sushi brought with us.

Humming girls.

Drinking water was sold in kiosks in bottles but one could get it poured from a usual hose with the inscription “Drinking water”.

A general view of the stands next to the Blue Stage.

The amusement “Super Ring” was permanently popular till the very end of the festival. Even in the absolute darkness during the Rammstein’s performance there was a long line of people willing to ride it. In the picture you can see carriages with people hanging head-down.

Another amusement is in this photo. The symbol “V” in the background is a local energy drink which tastes better than “Red Bull” but still chemical. There is a line tautened and one can slide down it from the upper part of the stadium the same way as in spy films.  Tire casings seen in the right top corner are to soften the stop.

The main stages: Orange Stage and Blue Stage. There is John Butler Trio on the Blue One.

A bald-headed guy in the back row wants to eat our sushi and at the same time as if is willing to say something.

Sweet girls, like puppies in a cardboard box, are on tip-toes to better see what is happening in the field.

That is the end of the second part of photos from the festival “Big Day Out”. The first part is here.

Озера Текапо и Пукаки

Здесь в Новой Зеландии мне более прочих нравится посещать цветные озёра Пукаки и Текапо, что на Южном острове. Сегодня будет фотопост, без скучных текстов, одни лишь картинки-фотографии, сделанные на плёночную среднеформатную камеру Киев-60. Они отсканированы в сумасшедших размерах, каждый такой квадрат содержит больше 100 Мегапикселей и пригоден для печати в огромных размерах.

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