I appologise for the strange order in which these posts are coming. As much as I could modify the datestamps and all that.... I'm not gonna. So I hope you still manage to enjoy!
After an awesome vacation style trip up to Northland, I spent the first night back at a place called X-base backpackers. It was $29 NZD/night which included 1/2 hour free internet, a free dinner (fish and chips, that sort of thing) and one night stay in an 8 bed dorm. I guess it was a good deal, but for some reason I didn't like the atmosphere there. I met one guy there on my second and last night, and he wasn't even staying there!!! He was Canadian though, and we had a nice chat over lousy dinner.
The next couple days were boring,and I think I posted about them already, but here is a shot of the sterile hostel I ended up in over that weekend (dec 8- 11):
But it did afford a good view of the street below:
I have now been in Katikati, a small, arsty town reffered to as 'mural town', staying with the Thompson family at their beautiful home. They themselves do not own the kiwi farms we have been working on, but they manage the upkeep of about 16 different orchards. That's A LOT of kiwis!
When I arrived in Katikati off the bus I hung out reading the blank newspaper with statue guy while I waited to be picked up.
When my ride came and I met my host, David, for the first time, I didn't know what to think. But as we drove he told me there were other workers staying at his house and he had a wife and children. All of those laughs I had with Jade that morning about my dodgy plans to stay with some random guy out in a small town fell to the way side.
I survived my first day out in the orchards fairly well. Even though the 5'8" clearance of the kiwis kept me in a constant slouch/limbo lean/half kneal the entire time. It was a short work day, only 6 hours as opposed to 8. I was out there with about 18 other people. Everyone there was shorter than myself. There was one tall guy there with his mate, but he was a pruner and didn't have to analyse the kiwis to the degree that the rest of us did. We were thinning the kiwis, aka picking out the bad ones. Each orchard has rows upon rows of plants, stuffed full of kiwis.
This particular orchard was lined with Orange trees. You are constantly surrounded by other fruit that is actually ripe enough to eat. You have no idea what fresh is until you eat fruit like this straight off the tree.
The first three days of work passed very quickly. I stuck mainly to myself and my host family as the other groups tended to be quite clique-y. They all spoke their own languages amongst themselves so it was hard for me to find an easy in. Until friday night.
There are two locations where the seasonal workers tend to live. One is here with the Thompsons and the other is in a large house not too far away. It was filled to the brim with other backpackers who had come here to find work. On friday, they hosted a barbeque... more sausages than you can shake a stick at. Beer, and laughter everywhere. (I wish I had remembered to bring my camera. It was all ready to go, I was just a doughhead and forgot to grab it on the way out the door.) It was a spectacular night. There were people there from Holland, Sweden, Thailand, Burma, Canada (only me), Brazil, Chili and my favourites from Czech Republic. There was singing and entertainment of all sorts. A lot of the guys showed off their diabolo juggling skills, while two guys brought out torches and JUGGLED FIRE for us! I managed to befriend Irena and Lucas who are also staying here in the family's house. We were joined by two guy from Czech, Petr and Meric, as we gabbed on the couch with Joe and Nat (friend of the family, and the daughter of the family).
FUNNY STORY: It is traditionaly in Thailand to add a prefix to the names of respected people amongst your acquainences. In this case, Joe gained the prefix /pi/ (pee), to mean like 'uncle' or 'sir.' Unfortunately for him, when the two sounds are combined, you get /pi dzo/ (pee-jo), which, in Czech, is a fairly rude slang term for a part of the female anatomy! Poor Joe! At least he was a good humoured guy who could take the joke with great ease. It was the standing joke for the whole evening and into the next day.
The next day, this past Saturday, I went with my host family, Pi-Joe and another border, Ezikial, to Tauranga to do some christmas shopping. I decided, however, that I didn't want to be tempted to spend any money so I took a walk instead. I soon got it in my head that I would try and walk to Mt. Maunganui. It was a famed mount and deamed the one place you MUST see if you are ever in Tauranga. When the weather is good you can see as far as Taupo boasted one of the travelers I'd met in Auckland. So, off i went. I took it slowly at first. I wandered towards the water, as I couldn't even see the mountain from downtown. Then I passed a Maori Waka, tromped through a small park, passed a rose garden and looped through a graveyard:
I walked for almost an hour, feeling cocksure (as much as a girl can feel that way)that my expedition would not be in vane. As I thought I was getting nearer and nearer to the mountain, it only seemed to look further and further away. Every time that I got the inkling that it was a fruitless effort I kept walking anyways. I was determined to make it "come rain or come snow." Though after I passed a large wharf full of boats (and spotted a boat called "Island Girl") I ended up entering a huge industrial zone *grumble*. I began to think that this:
...was as close as I was ever going to get to the Mountain. I had to be back by 3 pm to meet my ride back to Katikati and by that time it was already past one. I ended up pushing on anyways, until I came to a sign advertising a climbing gym. I decided that maybe climbing for an hour would save my expedition from being entirely foolish. Instead, however, I ended up meeting two really friendly guys who provided me with all the information I needed to find the bus (there was a stop just outside their bay door) that would take me straight to the mountain or straight back into town, whichever it was that i chose. I chose mountain. 6 min wait for a bus that only comes every 30 minutes was brilliant. It dropped me right at the base of the mountain where I was greeted with white sandy beach and green/blue Pacific waters.
The base of Mt. Maunganui is farmland, and was littered with sheep.
I charged up the hill, determined to make it to the top, even if my watch was screaming at me "NO TIME! NO TIME!" I did the 40 minute climb in about 30 minutes. And by that time my watch read 2:25 pm. What kind of fool wears a sweater to climb a mountain? Me, of course. But I made it. Brow shiny and eyes glistening. I made it, and yes... the view was worth it:
I had to half run all the way back to the base of the mountain, but I made my 2:50 bus back into town. I arrived at 3:15 which was just about the perfect time to meet the rest of the group. What an awesome adventure. I felt so accomplished actually making it to my goal destination and back within my time limit. I think it might have been more of a thrill than the actual splendor of the mountain itself. Which is saying A LOT.
When we got back to the house I was suprised to be included in a large Thai style feast called /su ki/ (soo-kee). It is similar to a traditional fondu (not the chocolate kind), but instead of a vat of oil it was a pot of broth boiling away in the center of the table. You put vegetables and meat into the pot as it brewed and then served yourself as it became cooked. We just kept adding more and more food. It was like a never ending pot of soup and it was SOOO good! I was so full by the end of it. We also had strawberry champaigne and Sauvignon Blanc wine from a local winery. It was wonderful.
That's Fritz closest to the camera, he's a real character. He is really cheeky and likes to make people laugh. Then it is my hosts, Nattly, the daughter, and Cindy, the mother. Their friend, bin? ban? something like that, is sitting next to them followed by Ezikial (another person who has been staying with them for 7 months now), Pi-Joe (hehe) and Fritz' wife. Fritz is his nickname, I can't remember his real full name.
I stayed up late talking to a friend on the internet. I swear, after today (I have been on here for about 3 hours, having lost and rewritten my entry) and that night the family must think I am some crazy internet junky. *sigh* I suppose it is sad because it's so very true... hehe
Luckily, they started the work day (yes, we work on sunday) later than usual, so I was not left behind. Because of the late start though it seemed like an extra long day. Blah. But it was much more pleasant now that I had made friends. This is Irena and chubby dog that was hanging out on the orchard with us. She was absolutely filthy with dust from the farm but she was loving the attention so much Irena could not refuse her.
Today, it was pouring rain when we all woke up in the morning. My steal roofed garage was rattling and tinking like crazy. No work for us this morning. Later in the afternoon we tried, but after 20 minutes at it, the rain began to pour down on us and it still hasn't stopped yet, though it is much lighter. It is warm outside and smells of fresh rain... one of my favourite combinations.
I am really beginning to appreciate how this house is almost always buzzing with people, especially Cindy's Thai friends. I like sitting and listening to the Thai chatter, even though I don't understand any of it. Maybe it is because it reminds me of family visits with my dad's side. It is comforting to be surrounded by asians that I don't understand :D hehe.
They also have three lovely cats. Two very cuddly and one that looks like my brown tabby Ruca, but is fat enough to have maybe eaten her! One of them is sitting purring on my lap right now. She is a long haired pretty black cat. I am glad to have her.
I wish you all the best, and for all of you that have made it through this entire entry in one go, WOW, you are amazing in my eyes.
