Who says you can't go home?

March 26, 2010

So I realized that it has been over a month since I updated this. I stayed in Abel Tasman for about a week doing not much of anything. They moved me to a tent which was much cheaper than the dorm beds but also further away from the Stray camp. I would head over there at night to see who came in on the bus and catch up with people that I had met earlier. I had the opportunity to play some volleyball in town. The guy that owns the sailing company and his friends play every week and invited me to join them. It was great to play again although some of the competition wasn't very good. We played a group of high school girls and as the first serve came hurdling at them, a few of them let out a scream and ducked out of the way.

Toward the end of the week I was no closer to having a job and no closer to figuring what I wanted to do with my last month in New Zealand. I had already seen most of the two islands. So I decided that it was time to head home again. I hopped on a bus and spent a night in Nelson at one of the best hostels I've ever stayed at called Golden Lodge. The next morning I was back on the bus and found my way back to Amberley where I went to stay with Jon for a few days before my flight home. We went into Christchurch one day to watch a cricket match, which, now that I understand the game, was quite exciting. I also had a chance to visit Tara again. She was getting ready to head to Australia for a bone scan that would determine when and if she could have surgery.

The latest Tara news is that she did end up having the surgery and it was very successful. She had a full knee replacement to get rid of the tumor and is currently undergoing one last round of chemotherapy to get rid of the remaining cancer. She really is a special girl and I can't wait to go visit her again.

Anyway, I flew home on March 2nd. I spent a week in San Diego visiting Warren and his family. We went out to eat a lot and I started my half-marathon training. Monday night Warren, Rashad and I went and played volleyball and Tuesday night I went bowling with Warren and some of his friends.

After San Diego I flew to Colorado Springs to visit my twin sister Briana. After a bunch of training she is now stationed at Fort Carson. We went out to eat a few times and worked out on post. We went to the Army Air Force hockey game on Friday night and on Saturday we went out to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with her friends and tried to get everyone to stay out until midnight to celebrate pi day (our birthday 3.14). On Sunday we slept in, went to see The Princess and the Frog at the movie theater and went out to eat at Red Robin.

From Colorado Springs I flew to Fargo and stayed with my brother Matt for a few nights. My mom then picked me up and we headed over to Minneapolis to visit Tiffany. We did some shopping and helped Tiff decorate her new house. Mom and Autumn also got their hair done by Tiffany at the salon she is now the assistant manager of.

We drove back to Langdon on March 21st and I spent a few days getting my stuff together. I went in to speak to the kindergarten class about my travels and told them about how I got the scar on my forehead and showed them pictures of me bungy jumping. I also went out to lunch with Nathan and caught up with some of the staff at both the elementary and high school.

And now I am in Bismarck at my dad's house. I will be staying here for at least two months and possibly more. I am looking for a job right now or at least something to keep me busy. I am running the Fargo half-marathon at the end of May with my sisters Tahnee and Briana and am still hoping to go to Peru in June. We'll see what happens. In July I will be working some volleyball camps and in August Medical School starts down in New Orleans. I'll try to update this every so often and let you know what I'm up to. Hopefully this job search goes better than the last...

Abel Tasman

February 23, 2010

A few of the group left us at the National Park in hopes of doing the Tangariro crossing a few days later when the weather cleared up. I should have stayed with them but instead I headed down to Auckland with the rest of the group. Nick, the trainee, was our driver that day and we played some games on the way including one where you put in your earphones, turn on your iPod, turn up the volume and sing your heart out. It was quite entertaining.

When we got to Wellington it was raining. Since I had already visited the Te Papa national museum I decided to go for a run. I forgot to check what street the hostel was on as I was leaving but since it was on a main road I figured I would be able to find it quite easily. On the way back I turned off a street or so too soon. I still had an idea where the hostel was and asked one of the locals for directions. I got pointed up and around the corner. When nothing looked familiar I again asked for directions and was told to go straight down the street. After a while I was in a very residential area and asked for directions once again. This time I found the hostel although it had taken me an extra half an hour to do so.

That night we went out for Indian food. I’d never really had Indian before but it was quite nice. We all ended up sharing different curries with the person sitting next to us. Metro and Brad went out and bought four bottles of wine, which we drank with our curries until the restaurant closed down for the night.

The next morning we caught a ride on the Stray bus to the ferry. They played two movies on the way to Picton including one of Autumn’s favorites Tinkerbell. The other movie was a documentary about a singing group called Young at Heart, which is comprised of people mostly over the age of 65.

From Picton we loaded up the bus and headed out towards Abel Tasman. We stopped for wine tasting, which I passed on since I had done it previously, before driving to Nelson for pick-ups and drop-offs. After a brief stop to talk to Milan, who runs the sailing company, and another stop for those that wanted to go kayaking, we arrived at Old MacDonald’s Farm. They have a special camp for the Stray people and on the way you walk by chickens, cows, llamas and, of course, sheep. I went for a run that night before cooking up a small meal and having a few drinks.

The next morning I was up early and after saying hi to Daisy (my last bus driver who was staying next door at the Barn), I went on a full day sailing trip. Our boat was appropriately called the Stray Cat. We saw some seals and a penguin and had some magnificent views of the coastline. We stopped for lunch at Anchorage and picked up those that were doing the half-day sail and walk. On the way back we jumped out of the boat to take a picture on Split Apple Rock.

We returned to camp around 5 pm and after showering went out to the café for my leaving the bus party. Metro had gone into town and bought party hats, party poppers and balloons. Only Metro, Liz and I knew what the party was for, although Steve was also invited. We gave one of the hats to the kid at the next table who was celebrating his birthday as well as to the waitress that Metro knew and the Latino DJ that showed up later. It was a great party.

The next day the bus left but I stayed behind. I decided to hole up here for a while. The accommodation is fairly cheap at $15 a night and the weather is absolutely gorgeous. There is also volleyball. Milan had told me that the guys play beach every Sunday afternoon and indoor every Tuesday in Motueka. So Sunday afternoon I headed out to the beach for a few hours but no one showed. Instead I spent the day on the beach reading and chilling out. I think it was exactly what I needed.

That night a new Stray bus came in and some of my friends that had gotten off of Metro’s bus earlier were there. I nipped a bit of food from there BBQ but also cooked up some chicken korma curry that Liz and Metro had left me.

On Monday I had planned to go into town with Rob but slept in too late to catch him. Instead I went skydiving. It was kind of on a whim but I was in the mood to do something crazy. So a little after 2 the bus picked us up and took us into Motueka. The suited us up, and next thing I knew I was up in this little plane with 7 other people taking in the beautiful scenery. I wasn’t very nervous until they opened the door and I watched my friend Greg disappear from view. I was the last one in the plane to jump. The freefall was intense and I went from being scared to happy to scared and back again. They got the whole thing on video and also sent us away with almost 100 pictures and a t-shirt.

That night I saw a group of guys playing beach volleyball. I started walking over there but then stopped myself thinking that it was almost dark, they were playing two on two and I didn’t know them. I found out later they were looking for me and I’m still kicking myself for not going up to them and asking to play.

This morning I got a ride into town with Rob on the Stray bus. Debs was supposed to come with as well but was a no show this morning, which gives me the day to myself. I ate at a cute little café and made a little bit more progress on the book I am reading. They also have free internet at the library and adjacent park, which I plan to take advantage of. I also need to do a grocery shop and buy some new shorts, but the thing I’m looking forward to the most is volleyball. Apparently the Marahua guys come into Motueka on Tuesdays to play in a 6 on 6 indoor league and they invited me to join them. It’s been a while but it will be nice to play again.

I’m not sure how long I will stay here but long enough to clear my head and sort some things out. I might try to find work for a couple of weeks but it’s becoming a bit pointless to find a job. You can’t say I haven’t tried.

North Island

February 17, 2010

It has been an eventful past week and a half. After having my own private Super Bowl party I cooked up some fried noodles and caught up with John and Stu. I had wanted to see Tara, John’s niece, to see how she was doing but she was in the hospital for another round of chemo. Apparently the tumor is not shrinking the way they had wanted it to and it looks like they are going to have to take her leg. She’s an amazing girl though and has a really good attitude about everything.

Fruit picking was supposed to start on February 20th in the Nelson region and I had signed up for it when I went through Abel Tasman last time. So I figured that I had enough time to go up to the North Island and get back to the Nelson region just before February 20th. I called up Stray and a bus picked me up the next morning.

We headed up the east coast again and stopped in Kaikoura. I signed up to do the whale watching but it was cold and rainy and the boat didn’t go out. I went for a run instead and that night our bus went across the street for the pub quiz. We didn’t do very well but it was fun. The next morning we were off to Picton to catch the ferry over to Wellington. The ferry took 3 hours but they played a couple of movies and the time went quite fast.

After we were dropped off at our hostels we headed over to Te Papa, which is a natural history museum. I learned all about the wildlife, geological formations and history of New Zealand. Very interesting stuff. The next morning we were off to Auckland and after twelve hours of driving had a meal and drink at the pub. We went out barhopping that night and had a grand old time.

The next morning we headed out toward Hahei. When the tide is out they have a hot water beach where you can dig holes in the sand and sit in your very own hot pool, heated by the geothermal activity in the area. We then went over to Cathedral Cove, which was absolutely gorgeous. I went for a run on the way back and we had a big group BBQ that night.

Next up was Raglan, surfing capital of New Zealand. I didn’t feel like spending money on surf lessons so I just went down to the beach for a while and sat in the sun. We stayed at a really cool backpackers that night called Karioi Lodge. The rooms are set up on a hill with awesome views of the ocean. They also have a free low ropes course and flying fox.

Our driver’s name is Metro (really cool guy) but we also have a trainee on our bus named Nick (Stray nickname TBA). Basically when they hire a new driver they send him around the country on one of the buses to learn the ropes. They also have to do some crazy stuff including a naked flying fox at Karioi Lodge. So after dinner that night, when it got dark, we all went out to watch the initiation.

The next morning we headed to the Waitomo caves. They have a half price deal on a trip called Haggas Honking Holes where you get to abseil down an underground waterfall, climb up rock faces and see glowworms. The glowworms look really cool and when we were underground our guide told us about what they really were, cannibalistic shagging maggots with shiny shit.

After we were done caving we headed over to Maketu for our culture stop. We stayed at a place called Uncle Boy’s Cabin. After eating some traditional food we went next door for a performance. Since we were a visiting tribe, the local tribe had to make sure that we came in peace. They attempted to scare us with spears and loud shouts before laying a twig in front of our chief (the eldest male on the bus). If the chief picks it up it means we come in peace. If the chief steps over it, it means we want war. If that happened I think it would have been a good idea for all of us to run and get the bus out of there as soon as possible.

Luckily our chief decided to pick up the twig and we greeted the local tribe by shaking hands and touching our noses. They then performed a few songs for us before splitting up the men and women. The women learned the poi song and dance while the men learned the Haka, which is meant to scare other tribes. We then performed our dances for each other. The boys were quite amazing and got really into it. That night we sat outside for a few drinks and then all slept on the floor of the performance room.

The next morning it was off to Rotorua. The smell there is awful (think rotten eggs) but there is a really cool rafting trip that a lot of the group did that includes a 7-meter waterfall. Since I already did white water rafting when I was in Africa I passed and instead went on the internet for a few hours and made some phone calls. After everyone was back on the bus we headed to Taupo. I was hoping to do a skydive there but the weather was quite bad. Instead I went for a run and went out for burgers. Then the group decided to head out to the pub for a pub quiz. The questions were tough but we had a very smart group with us and we ended up winning the quiz and getting two pitchers of drinks for free.

This morning we left Taupo at 7 am. We were hoping to do the Tangariro crossing, which is rated as the best 1-day walk in New Zealand and possibly the best in the world. Unfortunately it was raining yet again and the walk was cancelled.

I really don’t have a plan for the rest of my time here yet. The fruit-picking place didn’t call me back so I started calling them about two weeks ago. They didn’t answer the phone so I left them lots of voicemails. Finally they emailed me back saying that there were no jobs available. I applied for a few other jobs that were listed on the backpacker’s board, and although I heard back from one, it doesn’t sound very promising. I head to Wellington tomorrow and then back down to the South Island. I’ll figure the rest out later. Miss you all!

Deep South

February 8, 2010

On Monday morning Lara and I got up early to go bungy jumping. We waited at the bungy station in town for about half an hour before the bus came and took us to Karawau Bridge, a 43 meter bungy. After weigh-in, Lara went while I videoed and took some pictures. As soon as she was done I went over to get harnessed up. It goes quite quickly after they start getting the bungy rope tied to your feet and before I knew it I was standing at the edge of the platform waving to the cameras. They did a quick countdown and I jumped. Right after I jumped I remembered thinking what the hell did I just do. But by the time that thought was completed I was already slowing down and getting close to the water. I wanted to get dipped in the river but ended up about a foot short. The rest was absolutely amazing and I cannot wait to do it again.

That afternoon Monia and I walked around for a bit looking for work. I dropped off my resume at a few places but nothing sounded that promising. They are lots of opportunities to work for accommodation but it seems hard to find a job that pays for such a short period of time. That night I decided that I would get the Deep South loop done with and take a few more days to figure out my next move.

We left early the next morning and headed to Milford Sound. New Zealand is located on a fault line between two tectonic plates. As one plate slipped beneath the other, the Southern Alps were formed. Glacier movement in the area carved out deep basins that led out into the sea. Together these forces created the beauty that is Milford Sound. The deep blue water runs out into the sea amongst high cliffs dotted with stunning waterfalls. In the background the snow-capped Alps can be seen.

We did a two-hour cruise through the Sound, followed by some picture and swim stops, before heading over to Gunn’s camp for the night. The camp was nice. They even had a sense of humor about the abundant sandflies there (my legs are covered in bites). The dorms were basic and the electricity was turned off after dark. We cooked a large group meal on the grill of bangers and mash before spending some time around the fire.

The next morning we were on the bus by 6 am for the drive to Invercargill. We did a few picture stops on the way but were on the ferry by 11 am. The day was cloudy and after an hour on the boat we checked into our hotel. I was exhausted and opted for a nap. Unfortunately this made the trip to Stewart Island a bit pointless. I did go for a walk that night but the next morning I got back on the ferry and headed back to the mainland.

We then drove over to Dunedin for the night. There was a Speight’s brewery tour that some of the group went on. I went out for pizza and some drinks that night at the bar. We ended up playing pool and singing karaoke where I ended the night with a rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Want to Dance With Somebody.”

The next morning we were on the road after a quick stop at the World's Steepest Street. After that the drive was fairly boring into Queenstown although we did stop to see where the Riders of Rohan sequences in the Lord of the Rings movies were taped. We also stopped at a fruit shop for real fruit ice cream. That night I met up with Monia and we went out to eat at a pizza and pasta place before wandering around for a while and since the next day was a national holiday we stocked up on alcohol. After some stargazing from the balcony we called it a night.

I slept in the next morning, which felt amazing, and after a quick stop at the grocery store had a wonderful lunch of chicken cordon blue (slightly overdone) and a huge Caesar salad complete with chicken, olives, tomatoes, pistachios, croutons, carrots, onion and cheese. After a quick stop for the internet, we had a few drinks on the beach before going to the circus that was in town.

On Sunday morning it was on the road yet again heading over to Christchurch for the night. The drive was uneventful and fairly boring with a very North Dakota feel to the landscape, flat with fields and a few trees. After getting dropped off at the hostel I had some dinner and went out for some drinks. This morning it was back to Amberley to figure out my life. Fruit picking starts in about two and a half weeks and I’m hoping to go over to the Nelson region to do that. I’ll give them a call today and see where things stand. As for now, I’m off to the supermarket to get some snacks for the Super Bowl.

West Coast

January 31, 2010

On Monday morning I went in and signed up for fruit picking. Unfortunately they don’t have any jobs until February 20th. I went for a quick run that afternoon and then met the Stray bus and headed to Marahua. The town of Marahua is located just outside Abel Tasman National Park and the backpackers I stayed at was only 1 minute from the entrance to the National Park. Five other people and I stayed in a large tent that was slightly cheaper than the dorm rooms.

We had a barbeque the first night, which included chicken, pork sausages, beef, a giant salad, hashbrowns and mussels. I tried the mussels although I have to say I was not a big fan. That night we went for a walk on the beach. The tide was out and we were able to walk a long way. We walked back in the dark and then spent some time by the fire.

The next morning Alex and I went kayaking on the coastline of Abel Tasman. It was my first time kayaking but I enjoyed it very much. After a few beach stops for some snacks, we landed at the watering cove and had some lunch. The sun came out and we sunbathed for a bit and just before we were about to leave a bumblebee stung me.

The walk back to the backpackers was quite scenic with golden beaches, lush rainforest and bright blue waters. It took us about three and a half hours but after the first hill it was relatively flat. That night, after a three-hour nap, we celebrated Laura’s 20th birthday with leftovers, ice cream and candles.

The next morning we were on the bus early. We stopped at a few spots for pictures and went to see another seal colony. We also stopped at a place called Pancake rocks. The rocks are layered and form blowholes where the water spurts out at the top. I think it was low tide when we were there so I didn’t get to see that but I think I could have sat and watched the waves crash against the rocks all day.

Next stop was Barrytown. Stray always stops here and they have a theme party that night. They have a room full of old clothes that you can use and bins full of accessories. Our theme was heroes and villains and we had people dressed up as Super Stray, Super Tourist and Hitler among others. I used eye shadow to create a mask and used my sarong as a cape. We played some drinking games and I ended up playing the piano at the end of the night.

The next morning I went for a run down to the beach. When I got back they announced that the winner of the dress-up contest was Hilter, which was sort of bad considering it was the anniversary of Auschwitz. We then got on the bus and headed to Franz Joseph. We stopped at a Jade factory on the way where they turn the green stone found on the beaches into fine jewelry and sculptures.

Franz Joseph was absolutely stunning. It is a small town on the coast with the Southern Alps rising up behind it. The Franz Joseph Glacier is close by and attracts thousands of tourists every year. Most of the people on the Stray bus and I did the full day glacier walk. We walked through the valley and then up the steep rock pile before hitting the ice. Then we spent over five hours exploring the caves, crevices and fresh water pools that have been formed. At the end of the day Lara and I spent three hours in the hot pools across the street.

The next morning we were on the road early. After a stop at the stunning mirror lake (too bad it was cloudy and raining) we traveled through the Haast pass to get to Makarora. Half of the group went on a jet boat ride down the river (half price!) and afterwards I had the most amazing meal of lamb chops, mashed potatoes and peas all smothered in gravy. After a quick shower we all met at the pub for some drinking and karaoke.

The next morning we were on our way to Queenstown. We stopped at a town called Wanaka where they had a place called Puzzle World. Lara came with me and we had a great couple of hours going through the maze and checking all of the optical illusions. Later we stopped by the A.J. Hackett bungy site in the Kawarau gorge. Some people jumped today but others, like Lara and me, will be throwing ourselves off the bridge tomorrow morning. Wish me luck.

My friend Monia and I will be hopefully staying in Queenstown for a while. Tomorrow, after the bungy jumping, we will look for work and try to find a cheap place to rent out for the month. I think Daisy, our male driver, is going to help us look since he has lived here for 4 years. That’s it for now. The travels are going well and I really hope I can find a job here and make at least some money.

On the Road Again

January 24, 2010

Change of plans. The job hunt was not going well and the constant rejection and sitting around doing nothing all day was getting to me. So I have decided to start traveling. I bought a Ron pass from the Stray travel company, which covers the whole South Island. If I make some money I would like to upgrade to the Bret pass, which would allow me to see the rest of the North Island before I leave.

I booked the trip on Tuesday and was to depart from Amberley the next morning. They sent me a confirmation email that stated they would pick me up on Wednesday January 20th in front of the Amberley public toilets at 9:45 am. John took some time off work to bring my bags and me to the pick-up point and waited with me for the bus. We were there about half an hour early and finally called Stray at 10:15 to check if the bus was coming. They put me on hold for a long time and eventually came back on and told me they would call me back. John went back to work and I waited for another hour and half before I called them back to ask if I should be waiting for a bus or not. Apparently they knew that I needed to be picked up they just didn’t know where and had passed through Amberley before we got to the pickup point. They offered to put me on a public bus that night but I opted to wait for the next Stray bus on Friday.

Wednesday afternoon I went shopping at the local grocery store (not cheap) to get ingredients for a couple of meals. The food is slightly different here and I had to make a lot of substitutions. The only hashbrowns they have are like the ones you would get at McDonalds but I did find some shoestring french-fries. I could find reasonably close substitutes for the rest of the ingredients and headed back to the house. After watching some NCAA basketball (on every afternoon for 4 hours) I started making porcupine meatballs and cheesy hashbrowns. The porcupine meatballs were looking good but after 45 minutes in the oven I noticed that they were burning on top. They were supposed to cook for another hour and a half. Suddenly it occurred to me that the ovens in New Zealand use Celcuis, not Fahrenheit. I quickly turned the heat down to low and hoped I hadn’t done too much damage. Luckily the hashbrowns turned out well and the meal was okay.

That night I prepared some sausage brunch and put it in the oven the next morning. I was not able to make caramel biscuit rolls due to lack of biscuits but the brunch turned out well. Thursday night Nicky and her kids came over for dinner. Sammi is 7 years old while Gibson was 5. They had boundless energy and enjoyed dragging us outside to show us the tricks they could do.

Friday morning I packed up again. Stu was going to drive me over to meet the bus at around 9:20 but at 9:05 my phone rang and the bus driver informed me that he was already there.

We stopped once for food on our way to Kaikoura. After that stopped our driver, Mambo, split us into four groups and we had a trivia game about New Zealand. The winning team got a bottle of wine. My team did not win although we did get a bonus point for out team name, Naked Sheep for Gollum. When we got to Kaikoura we drove out to see a seal colony before checking into our hostel. My new friends, Naomi and Elko, and I went for a walk and sat for a while on the rocky beach. That afternoon I went for a short run before taking a nap. For dinner I had some free vegetable soup followed by a delicious Hawaiian burger. That night I watched the end of the sixth sense and then read until I fell asleep.

The next morning we rode to Picton. Half of the group got on the ferry and headed to the North Island while the other half of us checked into our hostel and went to explore. I asked around a little bit about work but it didn’t seem like there was much available in the area. That night we went down to the waterfront for the Maritime Festival. There was a live band and fireworks. Afterwards we headed back to the hostel and talked for a couple hours before going to bed.

The bus picks us up in about an hour. I am going to ask to be dropped off in Motueka and will stay there for the night. In the morning I am going to go to the fruit picking office and see what the have available. If I am not able to start work right away I will either go to Nelson and look there or to Marahau for the next leg of my Stray pass. I am hoping I will find a job in the next couple of days. I will then work for 5 weeks before continuing on my travels. I’ll keep you all updated.

The Job Hunt

January 18, 2010

Well the job hunt has not been going very well. I had responded to around fifteen online job listings but only heard back from one. The ad said modeling and that woman and couple models were needed. I’ve always wanted to try modeling so I requested more information. I got a response the next day saying that it was nude modeling and that if I was still interested I should email back for details.

I had also applied for a job with Greenpeace that sounded promising. It was to raise awareness about Greenpeace and their projects throughout New Zealand. The training was done in Christchurch, which is only 50 km away, and I would then get to travel. They wanted a minimum commitment of three months, which meant I would have had to extend my trip by a few weeks but the pay was quite good. They were supposed to get back to me within 48 hours but I haven’t heard anything yet.

John has been calling around to the local businesses for me to see if anyone had any work. No luck there either. Usually there is a lot of work in the vineyards but the grapes are not ready to be picked and no one is hiring. I guess they are having financial troubles. John did find Stuart (John’s son) and I a day job cleaning out a shed for a local woman. She said that we were hard workers and that she had more work for us to do. We gave her our numbers but haven’t heard back from her.

On Friday I went around town and inquired about any employment opportunities. The local grocery store and the restaurant across the street gave me applications to fill out but it didn’t sound like they needed me anytime soon. I can still try the local preschools and there is one other vineyard employer but it just seems like no one is hiring around here.

This morning I went on the internet to check for jobs in Queenstown. I didn’t find much there but I went onto picknz to look for fruit picking jobs. When I went on the website earlier this week it said that no one was hiring in any of the fruit picking districts. I had also sent an email to one of them and was informed that they had enough workers at the moment. Today, however, the website said that there were jobs available in all of the districts. I sent emails to the south island districts asking about job availability and accommodation. Hopefully I will hear back from them tomorrow.

Besides the job search I have spent some time at the library since they have free wireless internet. John and Stuart have taken me into Christchurch a few times and I have an opportunity to get to know some of John’s family. On Saturday night I went to a BBQ hosted at his sister’s place where I met at least 15 of his family members. I ended up exploring the yard with John’s nieces and playing Life and darts with them. They had lots of animals including a dog, a cat, chickens and a peacock.

One of his nieces, Tiddles, has cancer in her knee. She was between chemo sessions when I met her and had a decorative green and red cast on her leg. She recently lost her hair, which prompted John to shave his off as well. She is generally a happy girl and gets around well on her crutches. I am supposed to have pizza with her at some point before I leave although she's not supposed to have take-out due to the higher chance of food poisoning.

On Sunday the family invited me to go on a train ride with them. It wasn’t the nicest day but it was cool to see the countryside. That night Tiddles went back to the hospital. She starts another round of chemo today.

Well the job hunt will continue and hopefully I will have news of my great new job soon. Miss you all!

Bay of Islands

January 11, 2010

On Wednesday morning Warren and I woke up early, checked out of the hostel, put our extra bags in storage and caught the 8 am Stray bus to Paihia. On the way we made several stops for food and gas. We stopped by the beach and were given a glass-bottomed boat tour. After eating lunch by a waterfall we arrived in Paihia around 4 in the afternoon. We got settled into the dorm room and joined the others for a BBQ. After a few drinks at the bar we went for a walk along the beach and called it a night.

On Thursday most of the group that traveled with us the day before went on a day trip to Cape Rienga. Warren and I decided to do that trip the next day. Instead I went in to the clinic to get some antibiotics (I just can’t stay healthy) and we spent the rest of the day on the beach reading or in the room sleeping. We met up with the rest of the crew when they got back and sat in the hot tub before having a drink at the bar. I had some trouble falling asleep that night. The bar is located next to the dorms and I could hear everyone partying.

Friday morning we were up early and on the bus by 7:15. After a few more pick-ups we stopped to grab some brunch and headed onto 90-mile beach. The beach is actually 64 miles long and is used as a road with traffic cruising along at a whooping 60 mph. After some picture stops we hit the sand dunes for some sand boarding. The climb was not easy but Warren and I managed to drag our boogie boards up to the top three times and race back down.

The trip continued with a stop at Cape Rienga, the northern most point of the north island. The Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean meet here and the views were stunning. On the way back we stopped at a fish and chips place to eat. Back in Paihia we went out for garlic cheese pizza and some dessert. The next morning we checked out of the hostel before 10 am and went to get some breakfast pizza. After a little time on the beach watching a family obstacle course race, we got on the Stray bus back to Auckland.

I was not a big fan of ACB Base where we had stayed earlier so when we got back we got our bags from ACB and checked into Snow and Surf down the road. After getting settled in we went out for ice cream and then settled in for the night. After some more Prison Break we called it a night. Again I had trouble falling asleep. The window was open and there were many people enjoying Auckland’s nightlife.

On Sunday morning we checked out of the hostel, grabbed some breakfast and went souvenir shopping. We hung out at the hostel a bit longer before grabbing some pizza at Adana’s (fantastic!). We then got on the bus to the airport. Warren had a 6 o’clock flight back to the United States while I had a 6:30 flight to Christchurch. After checking in our bags we watched one more episode of Prison Break before saying our goodbyes. I’m really glad Warren was with me this first week and a half. I’m going to miss him a lot. I feel bad that we didn’t get out of Auckland more but I hope he enjoyed his time here. For those of you who were wondering, Warren and I are now back together. ☺

The flight into Christchurch was quite scary with the worst turbulence I have ever experienced. However, we did land safely. John Hodgens met me at the airport. He had worked at the farm with Van during the harvests of 2001 and 2002 and had kept in touch with the family. He brought me back to his place in Amberley where he lives with his son Stewart. I cannot express how grateful I am to John for letting me stay at his place until I get things figure out. He is even helping me look for work around Amberley.

Monday morning Stewart, his girlfriend Mel and I went into Christchurch to run some errands. I took my phone in to get unlocked and bought some shampoo and conditioner from the supermarket. I spent the afternoon at John’s office looking for jobs on the internet. I sent out quite a few applications and will hopefully hear back from a lot of them in the next couple of days. The job service at ACB was not nearly as helpful as I had hoped and I have pretty much decided to find work on my own. We’ll see what happens.

That’s it for now. Hopefully my next post will be filled with adventures from my new job. Miss and love you all!

Adventures in Auckland

January 5, 2010

Interesting trip so far. My first flight went smoothly besides having to wait an hour for the plane to de-ice. I sat in the very last row and was able to sleep for part of the flight. I met Warren at baggage claim and we walked over to the international terminal. We went up to the food court and got something to eat. On our way to find somewhere to charge my computer we saw that the ticket counter was already open. After waiting in line Warren was told he could not check in unless he had a printed itinerary proving he would be leaving New Zealand. I almost got in trouble for chucking my bag a couple of feet when told that I should wait over there until Warren got back but I should put my backpack in the plastic bag provided.

We scored exit row seats on the first long flight and after a 3-hour layover in Fiji got on the final flight to Auckland. After we landed, went through customs and immigration, changed money and got our bags we found the bus and were dropped off in front of the hostel. They couldn’t find my booking right away and when they did they had me down for a 38-night stay. They tried first to charge us full price for the double room. I eventually went and printed out the confirmation page they sent me with the nightly rate from when I booked the room.

After we got settled in we explored for a bit. The hostel has a great location and we just blocks from Sky Tower and minutes from the harbor. We went back to the room and got ready for the night out and went out to eat at a nice restaurant. Later that night we checked out the Globe bar and then went to find a spot to view the fireworks that brought in the New Year.

Warren’s family believes that the way you spend New Year’s Day is indicative of how the rest of your year will go. For that reason, we tried not to spend very much money and instead spent most of the day exploring the city. We walked down to the harbor and spent the afternoon reading on a bench near the water.

On Saturday we got up and bought tickets to Rangitoto, which is a young island that was formed from volcanic activity. We walked up to the top and around the crater where the volcano used to be although it is now covered with trees. After walking to the top we checked out the caves. A couple of kids volunteered to show us the way through. We then headed over to the lighthouse and the beach for an hour before going back to the ferry. I enjoyed the views of the city but was less than happy on the hour and half walk from the beach to the ferry. It was hot, I was tired, I was thirsty and we ran out of water. So thanks Warren for putting up with me.

Sunday morning we slept in and then got dressed up for lunch reservations at the Observatory, which is located at the top of Sky Tower. They had a lunch buffet that Warren took full advantage of. We also got to see a couple of groups do the skywalk and the skyjump right beside where we were eating. After lunch we went to the observation deck, took some pictures and then headed back to the room. We were going to go out to Minus 5 (an ice bar) but I ended up not feeling well that night and we ordered some pizza and stayed in the room.

Monday morning we slept in again and went to a local park in the afternoon. We got some cookies and some ice cream and then spent the evening in. We spent a lot of time watching Prison Break and also refined our chess skills. On Tuesday I finally met with the job placement agency (Monday was a holiday). They weren’t very helpful but they seem to think I have a promising future in fruit picking. Warren came with me that afternoon as I set up a bank account and applied for an IRD number. We also tried unsuccessfully to get my phone unlocked. That evening we booked a trip to the Bay of Islands, did laundry and cooked dinner at the hostel. More to come about our exciting trip…