Still Alive

It's been a long time... it has become a bit of a pattern, eh? (Kiwis also say eh at the end of sentences-- like Canada sort of).

So, since Opotiki we have come down the East Coast of the North Island and across the ferry and now are in Christchurch. We are cleaning and doing some odd jobs around the hostel where we are staying in exchange for our accommodation. That saves on the cash that we were running out of which is why we are staying in Chch for a month-- so we can find jobs and replenish the supply. (Don't worry, I am not panicking about money like I was 10 posts ago or so. Especially since I have a job! But that will come later...

Gisborne: We were the only 2 people on the bus. The driver talked to us a lot, mostly me, as Brian was listening to an audio lecture series on Calculus (NERD!). The road was pretty winding (like a river, which is what the highway was following along the slope of the mountain) so I decided not to read-- that tickles my normally steadfast and strong tummy. Also, I feel like I should watch the scenery constantly because it is so beautiful and we won't be here forever... unfortunately. We stayed in a large hostel that was formerly a convent. We stayed just one night so we decided not to get any groceries but to instead splurge on a delicious Indian restaurant meal. And a movie (Fracture). In the morning we were the first ones at the Cidery (where they make hard cider). We had a wee tasting at 9 am... we are awesome. Then we walked a few km to hitch a ride out of town. It was our longest wait so far, but that is because Gisborne is the hardest to get out of city in NZ, we decided.

Napier: We stayed 2 nights in Napier. The city was wiped out in the 1930s and rebuilt entirely in the art deco style. So that was kind of interesting. We spent our days at the museum, a movie, walking the streets, cooking good food, and reading on hammocks. Brian also whipped out his guitar for a singalong and a Fijian guy borrowed the hostel guitar and jammed along. It was so great. Then Brian and some of the others went out to a pub and I stayed behind to read and sleep. The Fijian guy kept playing Fijian songs and singing, it was lovely! We got up really early to catch an early bus to....

Wellington: We spent a week in Wellington with Judith, a flute teacher. We worked hard in her garden doing the usual: weeding! We also got to take care of her lovely roses and do some planting and composting and general tidying up around the house. She was quite particular about the way things should be done... but we were patient. We had a great time exploring the city-- Botanical Gardens, National Archives, Te Papa (the big fancy museum), and touring Parliament as well as staying for some of the actual session of questions. Parliament is hilarious! Someone asks a predetermined question, someone else is prepared to answer it, and the opposition of whomever answers boos and hollers and catcalls in response to whatever they say. Its pretty great. It was also cool to see the members we had seen on TV, the real big ones, Helen Clark the PM and Winston Peters the wacko, weren't there. But there were a few people whom our WWOOF hosts are friends with. The leader of the Green Party is even a WWOOF host herself. Judith played gigs with an Indonesian Gamelan Ensemble (Gongy instruments, a few stringed ones too) on Friday and Saturday nights so we played roadies and helped load and unload the van full of instruments. It also meant we got free food, booze, and into a concert. The concert Saturday was to benefit the charity SurfAid. It "turns music into medicine" for Indonesians affected by tsunamis I think... anyway, the concert was pretty cool. The coolest part besides being roadies and eating and drinking for free.... was the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra which played a few songs between acts. It was also a treat because Brett Mackenzie of The Flight of The Conchords was making a guest appearance with them. Too bad we didn't know who he was until we watched The Flight of The Conchords on TV, 2 days later. He was also an elf in LOTR... FYI. So all you fans of the Conchords... eat your heart out... but we don't remember seeing him up close... damn. Saturday we took the train into the city and caught a shuttle for the...

Ferry: We played cards, listened to Bill Bryson, and watched the pretty water, it seemed to go quicker this time across to...

Picton: We walked to the edge of town (it was hot but not too far to walk, not like Gisborne) where we stuck out our thumbs. Just as we were loading our stuff into the car of a young German girl, Callie and Giles (a couple we worked with at the Montana vineyard) walked by on their way home from a picnic on the beach. It was nice to see them again. 25 minutes later we arrived at the bus station in...

Blenheim: Marj and Bob picked us up and we headed to the grocery store to get some supplies to make a feast-- our own Kiwi Thanksgiving, a few days early but who cares? We got some veggies and fruit and a whole chicken (not a very huge one) that was already basted and herbed and ready to roast. Marj and Bob and Tadeu were going to a party that night so we made a little dinner and watched some October Daily Show episodes. Yay Jon Stewart-- and Stephen Colbert not announcing his bid for presidency on the show. Hahahaha. We reorganized our leaving behind stuff, exchanged the clothes we wore around the North Island for a lot of summeryer clothes to wear around the South Island (mostly in Christchurch, and mostly because we (well I) were getting really sick of wearing the same long sleeved shirt every day. Options are nice. We slept in our tent on the deck, out of the wind. We were close to the pond which is full of frogs that croak (loudly) at night. So our new earplugs came in handy. We spent one morning lifting wires with Marj and tucking in some of the vines which are green and leafy and growing and have some tiny little bunches of grapes already! It was pretty hot and sunny and so we stopped after a few hours, before the big bad midday sun zapped us completely. Then Brian and I started our feast preparations.
The feast included:
Herby Chicken, plus some extra drumsticks
Bob's dutch oven stuffing
Mashed Kumara and Potatoes
Homemade applesauce (made from apples of one of their friend's orchards)
Fruit salad
and Chocolate Pudding Pie (sort of French silk, but not quite)
and of course lots of wine.
Murray also came to join in the festivities. It was a lovely evening. The next morning we got a ride to the bus station for our ride to...

Christchurch: We stayed 2 nights at a backpackers pretty close to the center of town. It was not really where we wanted to spend a month of our time and a lot of our money so we found a different hostel a bit farther from the center of town-- but doable-- and even lucked out in that we are both working there in exchange for our stay. YAY! It is nice doing that because we can work on keeping it clean as we like so our work isn't as big in the morning. It is not very crowded which is also nice.

I started a job at a cafe doing front of house stuff-- working the register and taking orders sometimes, taking food and drinks to tables, cleaning, doing dishes, and even waitressing in the evening sometimes. I usually work 5-6 hours a day, I should have a day off coming up too. I am sort of looking forward to that! It is a busy cafe, not like the quiet little Chapters where I worked in the library during High School. Also, the coffee here is much nicer and prettier than in the US so I am not allowed to make it! ha! I don't mind, that part is probably more stress than I care to take on in a casual job like this. Brian's busking license will be ready this afternoon so he is itching to get out and play for cash. He has been great about taking on a bit more of the hostel work as I go off to the cafe. He sometimes even has dinner ready and groceries bought... what a good boy!

Over the weekend we went to the park near our hostel because we could hear a concert going on. It was the dress rehearsal (with audience) for the Coca-cola Christmas in the Park. We stayed for about an hour (Brian and I and Auliki a German girl who moved into the hostel the same day we did). It was really strange to be outside at a concert-- sort of like Des Moines' Jazz in July but way bigger scale, and hearing Christmas carols (even the ones about snow) when it is summer and warm and I am wearing flip flops not holiday sweaters. It definitely takes some getting used to. But we have the rest of the month to get used to it.

I had intended to call my family at their various Thanksgiving gatherings but my silly job got in the way. I had been really looking forward to it and I was really bummed not to be able to talk to them. So, Family, If you are reading this: Happy Thanksgiving, I love you and miss you! See you next year!

In closing, I am very thankful to be in a beautiful country, making a little money, eating well, and spending time with my love, Brian. I am also thankful for our loving, supportive families.

Peace!

Cheers!