Going to Blenheim
10-9-12
This morning I went to the library as usual. I decided that
I was tired of Christchurch for a little while. I saw a job painting a hostel
in Blenheim. I figured what the hell. Might as well get out and see some of the
country. I hadn’t done that yet so it seemed as if the time was ripe. The drive
to Blenheim was beautiful. Rolling up the coast I passed mountains and
picturesque seasides. Most of the little inlets had a very pretty town in them.
As I drove I noticed the weather getting worse until I hit Blenheim. The
weather here changed for the worst quite quickly. I got to the hostel and
checked in. The lady at the desk told me that they wanted me to do two hours of
painting per night I stayed. I have to say that I imagined this little cool
seaside town. Blenheim is not a cool seaside town. Cool yes, but it’s a working
town. The major industry there is wine making. There is a lot of work but its
long hours at minimum wage. Often it rains which made it even more fun here. I
talked to the landlord and the two hours I would work should have been paying
me 14 dollars an hour. Rooms at this place went for $24 a night or so. Not a
bad deal really. The hostel was run down but not too bad for what you were
getting. They washed your bedding for you and provided showers wash and a place
to cook with all the accouchements.
The people at this hostel were very cool. The first thing
that happened were a group of people asked me if I wanted to go to Domino’s for
pizza. The car ride to the $5 dinner was a hodge podge of nationalities from
British to Argentinean and everything in between. We entered the Domino’s from
the parking lot exit since we were degenerate backpackers. As it turns out
these people were all there working on vineyards wrapping vines. Very hard farm
work so I felt kind of bad that all I was doing was painting. At dinner I met
some Irish people and some English. The general coconscious was that people
wanted to leave but weren’t savvy to the jobs down south. I talked to an
Englishman named Chris for a few hours then went to bed.
12-9-12
After staying there a few days I began to realize the method
to the madness. There is a day and night shift. Some people sleep at day and
work at night and vice versa. The ones there during the day were preferable. I
also found out that if you are English this is a form of servitude that can win
you an extra year in NZ. Working in the agriculture industry for three months
gives you an extra year if you’re from the UK. All the people were there paying
their dues (except the Germans, I have no idea why they were in Blenhiem.)
Painting the doors of the place was a fun job. Very relaxed
since I really only HAD to work two hours a day. I worked more to build up
nights of stay. Since Chris had lost his car due to engine failure I figured
I’d just give them to him. I offered to take him south but he liked the job
security he had there. I’ll see if I can find a job opening for him then try
again before I leave. There is an urge to take as many of these people as I can
when I go. It’s a pretty sad place really. The people are exceedingly friendly
though. The owners of the hostel are very friendly and I could tell they were
doing everything they could to provide quality housing while still turning a
profit. The other people staying there thought it was pretty bad though, at
least compared to what they were used to in places like Auckland.
The mix of different people in the hostel was interesting as
well. One of them was an Iranian. Me being from the US and him being from there
made things shaky at first but then I realized that he was just a little off.
The Iranian was a really nice guy but he had a tendency to talk to people who
weren’t there. Generally everybody was a little nervous of him.
All the people from the UK and America usually hung out with
some of the Germans. There were also a couple of Mexicans and an Argentinean.
You couldn’t help but like them. Everyone working under such adverse conditions
seemed to make them closer in Blenheim. Dinners were a lively affair and
everyone got along really well. The hostel also had no divisions of boys and
girls. I happened to be in a room with two other boys but girls and boys shared
rooms and even one big bathroom.
On the night of Sept. 12 I made a big pot of chili. People
went for that really well. The English and the Germans especially liked it. The
other American also made biscuits and gravy. This greatly interested our
European counterparts. As we sat around eating biscuits and gravy with chili I
reflected on the different nationalities around the room. Every continent was
represented in that room. It was a very refreshing scene. We discussed
euphemisms late into the night.
A few days later I got invited to go to an Irish pub by the
weekend manager. It was just like going to the London Underground back home.
The pub was a very relaxed place. We had beer and talked at length about our
respective homes and families. We walked home by the river that runs through
Blenheim, which was a very pleasant place
.
On Friday I walked up into the hills. I was originally only
meaning to go a little way because I had a mountain bike to pick up at 4:00 PM
so I was really just killing time. The day was pleasant and I saw a person up
the hill from me. Now it was a race. It wasn’t to him though so I caught him
rather quickly. The guy was a Malaysian as I found out when we got to the top.
The other cool thing about the top of that hill was that I could see the north
island from there. Another interesting thing was that there was a water
fountain at the top of the mountain. This was helpful since I didn’t have any
water with me. I took a look from the top and started down. The boots I had
just bought from the Warehouse (which is basically walmart) were total crap, I
thought as I made my way down the mountain. Luckily they only cost $30 so I
could afford to try again. The way back down took a long time so I went to get
the bike and then went straight back to the hostel. I got there just in time to
paint “The Zoo” on the door before everyone got home.
We had a nice party that evening but the next morning I woke
up and realized that it was time to be in Nelson. I gathered my things and said
my goodbyes then departed
Blenheim. I realized, as I left, that I would miss it more than I had thought I
would. Driving out through the wine country was a nice end to my stay there. I
drove through the mountains and eventually arrived in Nelson. I got some fish
and chips for lunch and then went to find a caver named Jane. When I found her
she took me to see some other cavers in the region. We ate dinner with the
president of the NZSS. The weather was extremely rainy and abysmal but the
company was very nice. I did miss the people at the hostel though.
This ends the poorly written notes. They were mainly just late night scratching and spare time thoughts.
Today (16-9-12) has been a really nice day. Jane and I woke up and talked for a while about the ways of the world then we went to town. We walked around to the numerous outdoor stores looking for a sleeping bag, which I was too foolish to bring. I thought before coming that I would just buy things when I got here but as it turns out NZ is much more expensive than the US. Also they don't have hot sauce... damn. Back in the hostel in Blenheim a guy went so far as to spend $100 to get a gallon of Franks Hot Sauce shipped to him with some Bisquick. The internationals were awestruck by biscuits and gravy.
Nelson is a beautiful town. It is in a large protected bay. On the other side of the bay is the Able Tasman national park. Near this park is Takaka hill which is where the Nelson Speleological Group has their hut. We are going over there this week to do some caving. Yes I am finally going caving. The NSG has vertical gear for a very reasonable price for hire so I am able to go vertical caving on the cheap.
Nelson is also where I am settling down and looking for serious work before Ellen gets here. I will probably end up across the bay looking for a kayak tour guide job or something.
The next upload should have pictures so I can finally show people what NZ looks like!
Dan
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