Chapter 7 – Hello North!

Our journey in the south island has finally come to an end. We departed early morning from Nelson towards Picton to catch the afternoon ferry. Before embarkation, we managed to walk down towards the Picton Harbour where most of the sight-seeing and a market were located in the vicinity. 

The ferry with its interior looked pretty much like a cruise ship, but it was not as grand as the latter. However, there were some services and facilities set up such as cinema, game machines, cafes, bars and VIP rooms for guests to spend their 3 hours fruitfully. But of course, you will need to pay to use those. So, we opt for a better choice – catch some forty winks…….great idea right? LOL.

The moment we arrived in Wellington, we were totally startled by the recklessness and rudeness of the motorists! The roads were congested with traffic (it was 5 pm) with lots of pedestrian on the move. Some of the road signs did create confusion, and it was like driving in a labyrinth. This was the second time we were experiencing the hustle and bustle of city since Christchurch. We finally navigated our way to the backpacker hostel. However, yet another annoying and unwelcome situation came to play. The bathrooms were seriously filthy and looked like it has never been washed for a decade! The kitchens were packed with people; the pots and dishes were just left in the sink; the utensils, dishware and cups were missing; the dish-washing liquid was not refilled; some of the doors were damaged. All in all, the whole place was a pile of mess! My first impression of Wellington turned out to be kind of disastrous, and at the very moment, there was a feeling of abhorrence towards the big cities in NZ.

Unlike Christchurch, goods prices in Wellington are extremely cut-throat. A good way to describe this is to metaphor with cities in Malaysia. Wellington is the capital of NZ, so does KL is to Malaysia, where the city standards of living are the highest in their corresponding countries, notwithstanding the heavy traffic especially during peak hours. Christchurch is similar to that Penang, as both experienced “tremors”- earthquake and political tsunami, respectively.  Auckland has the poorest public security of them all, and that is inevitable in JB too. But I’ve yet to discover that (Hopefully not…=.=|||). All I know was, getting out of Wellington as soon as possible would be the best idea, although the conveniences of getting free wifi are truly irrefutable. They were all over the town centre, free, use as much as you can. 

Wellington is a big city, but its tourist destinations are quite limited and less attractive, I would say. I mean there were a vast number of theatres, museums, art galleries and churches, but seeing too many of them at the same place will turned out quite dreary. Anyway, we did some walks along the Lambton Harbour, Frank Kitts Park, Cuba Street and visited some of the more “interesting places” such as the Museum of Wellington City & Sea, the huge Botanic Gardens, the Beehive Parliament and the Old St Paul’s church (but there’s wedding function). We were privileged to have free tour around the interior of the parliament buildings, entering the House of Representatives, the former Upper House and some of the function rooms. It was quite informative, and I'd learnt that their way of electing MPs and passing of bills are definitely more effective and justified than that of our country, at least we don’t see a bunch of monkeys fooling around in the House!!

It’s time to move on. After staying in the WORST backpacker hostel, enduring three nights of nasty conditions and obnoxious smell in the room, we were finally leaving here. Thank goodness! Soon after, we reached the Hawke’s Bay region, where apples are mushrooming here, particularly at Hastings. We checked into the hostel as soon as we arrived in Napier. It was a real pleasure to have free breakfast served at hostel again, since the last time we had it in Christchurch. So, it was hefty meal every morning before we kicked off our scheduled outing of the day. Our main reason of coming here was to find jobs in apple packhouses. However, the available vacancies seemed to be quite limited judging by the huge number of people also striving to look for employment opportunities here. After searching high and low for several orchards and packhouses, we had little hope…and we planned to call it off again this time and look for kiwi jobs later on. Subsequently, it’s playtime again! 

Napier is a big town and there were lots of happenings and events going around such as the “Art Deco Weekend”. Erm….personally, I’m not of particular interest with arty kind of stuff, and the streets will be crowded like hell. I don’t really like that atmosphere. We wouldn’t get to see it anyway, because we will be leaving for Bay of Plenty region after four nights stay. :) Most of the places of interests require, well, entrance fees. Then and again, we ought to avoid these. While there were some other options that provided free tours such as the Arataki Honey Visitor Centre and Classic Sheepskin Factory. The honey centre offers visitors to sample various types of honey flavour and there were lots of educational boards being put up to furnish visitors about the facts of bees and honey. We walked towards the Bluff Hill lookout where a clear view of Port Napier can be seen. And there was this Marine Parade which was like a hub for most of the activities to be carried out. Beautiful flowers, art sculptures, buildings, and scenic views also converged in this area. Last but not least, we had the chance to indulge in another serving of ice-cream here – Rush Munro’s 100% Natural. Which was better? I couldn’t really tell. But we know we had to pamper our taste buds once in a blue moon……Hahaha! Oh……yea!

It was time to move again. Our next destinations, Te Puke and Tauranga, were situated along the Bay of Plenty. With full blast of sun glazing over the region, it was a great spot for kiwifruit to grow in abundance. However, it would be quite a torture for us to walk on the streets under the sizzling hot sun, especially when it was still summertime. Upon arrival at the Kiwifruit Capital – Te Puke, we popped into several packhouses to fill in the employment forms, hoping that one of them would get us hired. Well, lady luck was with us. One of the packhouses agreed to employ us despite the fact that our visas will expire in a couple of months’ time. Owing to that, we drove to the New Zealand Immigration Department in Hamilton to clarify some queries regarding immigration and visa extension matters. Hamilton is a city, and like any other city, there’s nothing much to see. So, it’s all the way there and all the way back. Our accommodation was located in Tauranga, where we stayed there for one week, and it shot us to sheer boredom just hanging around, doing almost nothing. It’s a city, either you choose to pay for the entrance fees and activities or enjoy the “free” stuffs such as leisure walk on the streets or botanical gardens and parks or beaches or take a hike up treks or hills…blah blah blah………That was what we’ve been doing for the past three months. Seriously!! Frankly speaking, it’s not that bad anyway. That’s what backpacking is all about, isn’t it? We did a few retreats to some of the attractions and a nearby small town called Mt. Manganui. As the name suggested, there stood a mountain. We walked around the circumference of the foothill and along the coastline before heading back to Tauranga.

Finally, we shoved our butts away from Tauranga to Auckland, another big city……WHAAAAAAAT?? AGAIN?!! When we got there, it was noon, and the roads were jamming like hell, but it’s still at ease compared to that of KL. We inched our way through the traffic, and got ourselves almost lost in the web of roads and motorways. People were seen thronging the streets, especially students, as the University of Auckland was located right in the city centre. The next day started off with a hike towards Mt. Eden (Maungawhau), a sleep volcano forming the highest point on the Auckland isthmus. We were pretty lucky enough for not having to climb our way up to the summit as we happened to run into a shuttle bus in which the driver offered us a lift there. There are walkways surrounding the summit point, allowing tourists to have a view at the crater. With this, it ends our journey in Auckland, well……for now, as we will be back very soon. When there’s really no place to go in a city or town, supermarkets became our place to loiter. @@. “Countdown”, “New World”, and “Pak n’ Save” were those giants that dominated the whole of NZ. But most of the time, we did lots of window shopping. Yeah right, groceries are expensive and we would usually target at “Budget” or “Pams” brand, because they are the cheap ones. @@. 

Whangarei was our next pit stop. Some of the more popular tourist attractions were the Town Basin, Claphams Clock Museum and the Whangarei Falls. We had a real perfect timing checking into the backpacker lodge that day, as the owner was organizing a buffet dinner to celebrate his birthday, alongside with his friends and relatives. The good news was, of course, we were invited too!! Muahahahahahahaha… We had a typical western style buffet, served with steaks, sausages and salads. It had been the greatest dinner so far, after so many days of pastas, breads, instant noodles, pastas, breads and instant noodles…….Gosh! Our journey continues up north, a few hundred km away to a small town known as Paihia, which is categorized in the Bay of Islands region.

We perched in Paihia for 6 nights. From there, we departed to several other surrounding regions and its vicinity. Our first stopover was at Hokianga, which is famous for hosting behemoth Kauri trees. Two of the largest trees in NZ, with over 2000 years old, lie within the bush sheltered area of Waipoua Forest. There are walking tracks constructed to prevent people from stepping onto the roots of Kauri trees as they are easily infected with diseases once contaminated by fungal spores and germs. In this rainforest, we entered three different walking tracks to see some of the unique Kauri trees. Tane Mahuta, which means “God of the Forest”, hosted the largest Kauri tree, while the “Father of the Forest”, known by the name of Te Matua Ngahere housed the second largest Kauri in NZ. Another one was named the “Four Sisters” due to the positioning of four Kauri trees close to each other. Prior to that, we stopped at Wairere Boulders, as it was greatly recommended in the visitor’s brochure. But to our disappointment, we just managed to walk down a few minutes track and decided to have a turn back because there was really nothing much to see, and to make matters worse, it began to pour. This was also the first time we had to pay to see something belonging to the nature. Besides, the road leading to the site was mainly gravel, dirt road that stretched for over 10 km. It was quite a lame one actually. :(

Our next terminus stood at Kerikeri, another sunny place with rich history. We went to the Makana Confectionery to have a sampling taste on some of the hand-made chocolates. It was exquisite; but of course, the pricing was “exquisite” as well! So, we walked out empty-handed. Chris Booth Sculpture, a landmark mounted next to the visitor centre, was made up of vertically and horizontally stacked boulders. There were two historic buildings – the oldest wooden building known as Kemp House and oldest stone building, the Stone Store. We only visited the latter because the former required guided tour fees. Anyway, we walked around the Kerikeri Basin and went on towards the walkway which led to four scenic spots (Historic power house, Wharepare falls, Fairy pool, Rainbow falls). The walk itself took us an entire 2-hour, to and fro. It was a fatigue day indeed! 

The next day was a full-day journey to the Northland. We had booked a “cape runner” trip prior to which departed from Kataia. So, it was an early drive to there from Paihia, just before the break of dawn. Our first stop of the trip was at Ancient Kauri Kingdom, a place selling handcrafted wooden (kauri) furniture, arts, crafts and other souvenirs. Then it was a ride along the 90 mile beach, which is a stretch of coastline heading towards the northern part of the island. Only buses, 4WD and jeeps can make through this distance as there could be quicksand laying somewhere. We reached Te Paki where heaps of huge sand dunes can be found. This section hosts a famous activity of sand-tobogganing and sand-boarding. The difference between this two is that one sits on the sledge, while the other lie (face down) on top of the board. But before one can slide down the sand, one would need to climb up the steep slope of the sand dunes. It was pathetically tiring, and everyone was panting and gasping for air upon reaching the highest point. However, it was really fun gliding down the dunes, although that lasted only within a split of a second. We pulled over at Taputaputa Bay for picnic lunch, which include scones, snack bars and drinks provided by the tour company. It was not long before we reached the northern tip of NZ North Island, which is Cape Reinga, located at the Te Paki recreation reserves, with a magnificent breath-taking view overlooking the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean. We continued back on our journey towards the south via the state highway, an alternative route for those who planned to head Northland by themselves, instead of taking coaches. Along there, we stopped at several places such as the Rarewa Beach, where fine white crystallite sands embraced the beach and Houhora Heads, where Mt. Camel, a hill protrudes forming the North Head.

It has come to the time for us to end our on-the-move life and settle down while waiting for jobs to commence. We had rented two rooms from a Chinese landlady in Te Puke, and came to agreement terms that we must move in beginning of March. So, we started driving our way back to Te Puke, but made a halfway pit stop at Auckland again. The weather in Auckland was significantly different compared to that when we first arrived. It began to drizzle, and then stop. Several minutes later, it began to pour, with a spasmodic strong wind blowing until my umbrella almost flown away. Soon, the sun began to shine again.  And it continued in this precedent. At night, even burying under the blanket, we can still feel the chillness coming in. This “i-don’t-know-what-the-hell” type of weather was probably a sign of autumn coming I guess.

Chapter 6 –Déjà vu……It’s Travelling Again!

Our first escapade after a month plus keeping under the wraps in the outskirts was Lake Tekapo. This place is a famous tourist attraction, popular for its turquoise-coloured lake and breath-taking view. I thought it should be a pleasant and relaxing place to hang out, but the strong wind really blew it away. It was really tough to stand on your feet when the force of the wind kept shoving you away. It was even more difficult to open your eyes when the wind was hitting hard with the all the hair messed up and slapping on your face. As it was not a big place, we finished our visit within a few hours, after snapping a few shots of the lake and stopping over at the Church of Good Shepherd and the Dog Statue. The very next day, we took off to Mount Cook Village and dropped by at the scenic lookout of Lake Pukaki en route. This lake was superlatively better than its counterpart, Lake Tekapo, as the colour of the former was even more outstanding and superbly well-defined, overlooking Mt Cook. Upon arrival at Mt Cook, we were greeted by icy drizzle. The weather was so cold that the rain turned into ice as soon as it fell from the sky! It was definitely a surprise nonetheless. There were a few short walks and trails that tourists can take to have a better look at the surrounding area and vicinity such as the Kea Point, Hooker Valley and Tasman Valley. However as aforementioned, the weather was brutally cold and we did have our limitations in surviving through the chillness. Eventually, the idea was called off. We checked into Omarama on the very same day and departed early the next morning as we had to travel over 400 km to the glaciers region in the West Coast. 

After traversing through numerous creeks, bluffs, rivers, one lane bridges and the winding roads across the hills, under a non-stop drizzling condition, we finally arrived at Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier townships. As the tour fee for the Fox Glacier was cheaper, we decided to opt for the “Fox Trot Half Day Trip” option, which was a 4-hr guided tour across the glaciers. As the van drove us to the glacier, all we can see was lush greeneries, just like a typical rainforest. Who would have imagined there are glaciers forming within this vegetation? The van dropped us off, and we started trekking along the rocky terrains. The company provided a pair of leather boots, woollen socks and raincoat. As we moved nearer to the glaciers, we were asked to fasten up the crampons that will enable us to grip on the ice as we walked. However, walking with the crampons was not as easy as it seemed, descending was even more difficult than ascending. However, it was nevertheless a wonderful experience to be able to set our foot on the icy surfaces, although it’s quite throbbing at first to see our hard-earned money being burnt away with just a swipe of a card!! We were pretty grateful that the weather turned out very fine, as rain was pouring away when we arrived the day before. 

 

On the next day, en route to Grey district, we stopped by at Hokitika – the home of the Greenstone, also known as pounamu (jade), which are used to make jewelleries, accessories and for carving purposes. Black jade from Australia, gold, silver and NZ’s very own Paua shells were also available. Upon reaching Greymouth, we checked into Noah Ark’s Backpackers, a very unique animal-themed hostel. It was previously a presbytery before the occurrence of a big quake. Each of the rooms was decorated with one type of animal, be it kiwi, penguin, panda, cow, pig, dog, cat, sheep, bear, tiger, leopard etc, it simply feels like living in a safari. Thereafter, we travelled up north about 45 km to Punakaiki, which is famous for its spectacular Pancake Rocks and Blowholes. The formation of those rocks was dated back 35 million years ago, caused by the uplift of the sea bed, which were majorly deposits of marine organisms. However, the formation of the layers remained a mystery till today. The blowholes were best seen during high tides. That was when the forces of the waves will cause the expulsion of water out through the hole, creating a stunning and magnificent view. Our next station was Hanmer Spring, a place famous for thermal pool and spa. But as usual, it was expensive for us, and none of us had swimwear, so it was another day timing-out at the backpacker cottage.

The next day started off our journey to Kaikoura, which is prominent for divers to catch their own fish, crayfish, lobster, mussels and Paua shells. However, they must adhere to certain rules and regulations imposed by the Government. There are also a few seal colonies around the peninsula with high chances to spot on those animals especially during low tides. It was best not to disturb those wild animals as they can be very defensive. One of them that laid right before my eyes “coughed” so loud that it almost gave me a shock……=.=||| While there were activities catered for tourists, none of them attracted us. As we headed towards the beach, we saw lots of shells and clams glued to the stones. To our surprise, they were actually abalones, well, small and cheap ones, in abundance. At first, we were kind of baffled on how to actually remove them from the stones. By chance, one of us managed to figure out the technique and so very fortunately, we had some free seafood for dinner that night! Haha….While we tried to search for mussels, all efforts went in vain. So, we decided to buy some from supermarket to satisfy our cravings on the very next night. In Kaikoura alone, we actually had one of the few great meals that we ever had. There were some “free food” left by other backpackers, and most of the time, they will still be left there until expired. In order not to “waste” the food, we took a “salvation” on it. All I can say, it was food fiesta like never before!! :) :)

We arrived in Blenheim after spending two nights in Kaikoura. The most memorable occasion here was the opportunity to savour some of NZ’s finest wine for free. We headed towards Renwick where most of the vineyards and wineries are situated. Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Rosé and Merlot are some of the varietal mostly sold here. That was definitely one awesome wine trail we had ever experienced. Not only we got some free wine tasting, our knowledge on wine facts has widened as well. Our stay in a backpacker hostel owned by a Korean couple was nevertheless unforgettable too. The elderly couple were very friendly people and greeted us cordially with their infectious smile although at times it was quite difficult trying to comprehend what they wished to convey. After disconnected with the outside world for such a long time, we were finally receiving free, unlimited access of wifi in the hostel. So, most of the time, it was like……well……surf internet, eat, continue surfing, take a shower, surf again, eat, surf non-stop until finally midnight rose - time to sleep. Seriously a bunch of internet fanatics! But of course the best gift of all was the delicious homemade Korean sushi that was prepared by the lady owner exclusively for us before checking out of the place! Slurp…Yummy!

The distance between Blenheim and Nelson was about an hour and a half away. So, we reached Nelson quite early and decided to look around the city centre before checking into the hostel. We strolled towards the Sunday market where lots of recycled clothing, food, fruits and vegetables were on sale, and went on walking on the streets before searching our way to the hostel. After checking in and having our lunch, we headed towards the place where “the centre of NZ” was located. We were supposed to hike our way up the hill, but halfway through, we were too lethargic as the slope was quite steep (Not much exercise after owning the car…LOL), and there was no clear signpost showing the direction. Consequently, we tramped down as it started to drizzle too. Then we walked to the city centre again to have a taste on the famous and award-winning gelato/ice-cream – Penguino. It was pretty good actually, but I guess it was always good to have some food to relish especially on half-full or empty stomachs no matter what. Isn’t it? @@. The hostel we stayed in has free wifi and complimentary cake served during the evening. That’s what we were particularly fond of, but nightmare began as soon as night fell. The reason – we were sharing the same dorm with guys. There were six beds in the dorm, five were taken by us and the remaining was taken by another person. Three nights, two different guys, but both shared the same habit of snoring. The first was still bearable. However, the second, an old man, was having his loud snore sweeping across the whole room! Damn! I mean this was not the first time that we shared the same room with guys, but this time was the most horrible ever! Amidst the noise, I dozed off still as tiredness set in.

Our hunt for jobs kicked off again as apple and kiwi harvest seasons were about to begin. We went up to the northern Tasman region (Motueka and Riwaka) where most of the apple orchards/packhouses were located. However, to our dismay, most of them were either no vacancy left or they will only start hiring workers in March, when the apple season begin. So, we went on with Plan B, hoping to catch some luck in the North Island. That day, we headed to Kaiteriteri and stopover at Split Apple Rock, a rare formation of the rock which shaped exactly like a “split apple” emerging on the Tasman Sea. We hanged around on the beach for quite some time, enthralled by the astounding panoramic sea view, and exploring some mysterious shell-bearing mussel-like species attached on the rocks.

Chapter 5 – Getaways and Celebrations

There was no work available especially near holiday time (Christmas and New Year). So, we decided to set forth to Dunedin on Christmas Eve to give ourselves a big break after a fortnight of hard work, concurrently to have a look at the celebration in the city. To our surprise, there wasn’t really a festivity, especially on the Christmas Day itself. The streets were so barren that it looked like a “dead city”. Maybe they are fond of spending quality time together with family members instead of heading out. By the way, New Zealand is a country with very high percentage of elderly people staying around, while the youngsters build their careers elsewhere. So, it’s not an uncommon scene where some of the streets, especially in the outskirts are only crowded with grey-haired uncles and aunties on weekdays. LOL! 

 

The only thing that we treasured a lot in Dunedin was the easily accessible free wifi. Being in the suburbs for too a long time made us hunger for the chance to hook up with our families and friends back at home. Other than that, there weren’t really any interesting places for sightseeing though, except for the steepest street in the world, known as Baldwin St. Another noteworthy place to take a look at would be the University of Otago. It centred on a very large ground area, but the faculties were scattered everywhere, among other shop lots and houses. I’m not sure if this applies for other universities as well, but it was truly an eye-opener. The rest of them are just buildings, old buildings such as the Taieki Gorge Railway Station and the First Church, while places like Cadbury Chocolate Factory imposed tour charges. And finally, we gorged up a satiated meal of all-you-can-eat buffet at the price of $13.80/pax (plus public holiday charges) before we left Dunedin. 

When the holiday season was over, so were the cherries. The latter could last probably the most 6 weeks. Towards the end, our work load began to decrease too. Very often, we would work only for half a day and off for 3 days during the weekends. That’s pretty much a sad state of affair, and soon we will have to pack our bags and search for new jobs again, keeping our fingers cross again next time around. 

 

Since it was another long break for the weekends, so off we go once more for another daytrip to Queenstown. It was about a 100km from Alexandra, but the road was pretty winding and treacherous at times. Hence, we cautiously drove our way there in about an hour and half. Queenstown is the most happening town in the southern island and a must-go for the bold, adventurous people. Bungy jump, skydive, parasail, paraglide and jetboating are just some of the many adrenalin-pumping activities available here. If you are a thrill-seeker and are wandering how to spend your tons of money, please do not hesitate to come here. You would thank me for that! Due to the terrifically exorbitant prices, we only managed to engage in one slightly moderate and not-so-extreme activity – The Luge. The objective is to sprint down the winding and slightly inclined tracks in the sledge. Although it lasted about 2 minutes, we had a great time there, and were definitely worth it. Another memorable thing in Queenstown was the gigantic burgers that we had for lunch. Seriously BIG!!! We then had a scenic walk around the harbour at Lake Wakatipu overlooking The Remarkables. On our returning trip that evening, we made a short stop at a nearby town, called Arrowtown, where it used to be a gold mining area. Just like a typical small town, there was nothing much to see, and it’s another barren town especially after working and visiting hours. We took a stroll in the Chinese Settlement Garden before heading back to Alexandra. 

First time ever, we had to celebrate Chinese New Year far away from home. We had a simple 3-dish reunion lunch on the eve. No sumptuous food, but that sufficed. We were given an “off” day by our employer on the first day of CNY. Hahaha!! Do you really think we had such a great boss? This was just a sign of our D-day, and it fell exactly on the second day of CNY. The end of cherry season marked the end of our working days. Darn! But come to think of it, it wasn’t really that bad. At least the days of having to stay in an uncomfortable cabin that bring lots of inconveniences, plus the discomfort of having to use filthy amenities were finally over. On top of that, we were officially “liberated” from the uncertain days of the unreliable work, and we could start up on our voyage again. Lesson learnt: Be optimistic.

Chapter 4 - All in a Day's Work

Cherry picking/packing started two weeks before Christmas Day, in order to meet the season’s demand. This orchard is run as a family business, and it is not as commercialized as others. They require workers to manually sort the cherries according to sizes that fulfil export and local market criteria. On the contrary, bigger orchards have machines to do the work, whilst they only require seasonal workers to help them choose and remove the spoilt cherries. We expected to be given a proper training on how to sort the cherries before work commences, but ridiculously, there was none!! So, it ended up pretty much a lame work on our first day of work. Sorting cherries count wages as per bucket, which means more buckets, more income. Slower people will be sent to do packing/filling in the boxes job, and the wages will be counted as per hour. And that’s how I ended up doing the latter. But, it was better than getting fired. Some orchards actually did that for not hitting the target amount! Seriously pathetic! Logically, you can’t get quality without compromising quantity and vice versa. *sigh*

 

                                         

It had never come across my mind that working with “mat salleh” can be such a pain in the neck. The management was so horrible that we could see no practical system or standard procedures at all. The staffs seemed like they weren’t trained to handle chaotic situations. In the first place, there shouldn’t be such disarray, more like an aftermath disaster, as this is a well-established orchard/packing house. Frankly speaking, we did feel a sense of discrimination from some of staffs there, and their attitudes were simply despicable. Luckily, not all of them were behaving as such, which otherwise would have us working in hell!! Sorting cherries wasn’t an easy job. Packing the cherries into the boxes was neither. But they were two different jobs with their distinctive job scopes for sure. However, the manager sucked pretty much in telling apart between them. It’s a long story anyway......

Despite that, we still have our feel good moments too! We could just simply grab those cherries and eat them anytime we want to, even during work. No worries, we were already given the green light to do so. Hahaha! Besides cherries, there were peaches, apricots, nectarines and apples. Spoilt, cracked or fallen ones were being thrown away into the bins as food waste to feed the sheep (Yikes, those damn lucky ones!). But often, you can actually find the good and big ones were also being disposed. So, once a while, we rummaged through the waste for the fine ones to make peach and cherry jams during weekends. But most of the time, we pocketed away those large and juicy cherries that cost a bomb back to our quarters! Shhhh……….

        

 

Chapter 3 – It’s Summertime (Well…………Almost >.<)

Summer is coming, and that’s also the sign of cherries harvesting season. We had previously asked for seasonal orchard work through the net and finally it pays off. An orchard owner decided to take in five of us for cherry packing job….Woohoo!! After spending for so many days, our pockets almost dried up. But we did not squander all our money. Half of them still are being kept safely in the bank. In fact, we have been so frugal in our expenditures by opting for the cheapest supermarket to get our groceries, and selecting only the cheapest brands at the most economical prices. The most lavish meal we had so far was at McD – burgers and fries….Darn! Eating out in NZ is utterly expensive, so most of the time, we cooked ourselves. Pastas, breads, instant noodles and biscuits became our staple foods. Rice is slightly pricey, so we had it once in a while. Of course, they weren’t as tasty and scrumptious as that of diners’ standard, but we were glad and thankful enough to be able to stick together, and have food laid on top of the table to fill our empty stomachs. Omitorhood _/\_

From Oamaru, we drove to Alexandra and prepared ourselves for the new challenges ahead. Cherries harvesting period depends very much on the weather, so we will have to wait for the owner to call us when the time comes. Meanwhile, we just laze around in Alexandra, reluctant to travel far as the petrol is damn costly, and it gets costlier down south. Travelling from one town/city to another took several tens to hundreds of kilometres. Our wagon averagely runs at 19 ₵/km and one full tank costs over a whopping $100, which is equivalent to RM 250!! *swt*. So, we only visited several nearby places like Clyde and Cromwell. Other times, we just hung around at our hostels, watching dramas/movies, eating and sleeping. Haha…Bunch of lazy pigs!! It was kind of difficult to get free wifi in small towns and countryside area, which otherwise would have us surfing the net whole day long. This is in contrast to big cities like Christchurch, where free wifi can be obtained at the public libraries and several hotspots in the city. Otherwise, we will have to pay to use the service. The cheapest would be $2/hr and again it gets costlier down south, and in remote areas. 

The weather was not set at all for the cherry season. Cherries need full blast of sunshine to ramp up their ripening process and to increase their sweetness as well. But it was freezing cold and windy for most of the time, especially from dusk till the break of dawn, and the lowest temperature recorded so far was 6^oC. At other times on the contrary, the weather was intensely hot and stuffy. Highest temperature reached up to a whopping 31^oC!!! Darn! We had been shrouding ourselves from the hot weather and not wanting to travel to other places for almost a week. Alas, we could no longer withstand any more of the sheer boredom. So, we head off to a town slightly further away from here – Wanaka. The one place that one would never miss out when step foot on Wanaka, is the infamous Stuart Landsborough’s Puzzling World. So, what’s so spectacular about this place? As the name tells it, it encompasses several eccentric illusions and puzzles that will dazzle and bewilder your mind. For $15, we obtained passes for the combo package (includes maze garden and illusion rooms). It’s pretty embarrassing to say that we were on the verge of giving up when we got “trapped” in the labyrinth. Fortunately, we still managed to flounder our way out eventually. Anyway, that almost got us spending the whole afternoon immersing in the bizarre world. Next on, we took a breath-taking view at the Lake Wanaka and had a long walk down one of the streets, to and fro, before leaving Wanaka.

Chapter 2 – Encounter on a Stranger’s Land

After some 10 hours flight, we finally arrived at Christchurch. Although the pickup van turned up quite late at the airport, we managed to embrace ourselves through the incessant cold wind that almost got us frozen up. Phew! This city was severely damaged by the quake and it was kind of a waste that many of the places were barricaded. But we were lucky enough that the Cathedral Square was partially re-opened to the public despite the main city centre area still being cordoned off for safety. 

For the first few days, we had the longest walks that we ever had. Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island, so getting from one place to another on foot was really strenuous. The effect was even more significant under the hot and cold weather. Yup, the sun was scorching hot especially in the noon and yet when there’s that gust of wind, you’ll just get the chill down to spine!! Just make sure you have some real thick clothes, jacket, socks and gloves. Snug into your cosy blanket and don’t get into the streets when the sun sets……We haven’t got the opportunity to actually check out the sea and mountain views of Christchurch as we were in a hurry to get to another place, but we will be back soon…….Some recommended places are the Botanic Gardens, Hagley Park and Canterbury Museum. The reason: because they are free of charge!! 

After we got our Subaru Legacy 1994 at the price of $1800, we left Christchurch to our next destination – Akaroa. It was a beautiful, quaint village which was previously a French settlement area. The French bay was simply an awesome sight, with crystal clear blue water spanning across the Banks Peninsula. There were some ongoing activities there like swimming with dolphins, penguins viewing, wildlife cruises, sailing and kayaking, but you’ll need to pay some hefty amount for that. As backpackers, that’s a big no-no. So, after spending two nights there, off we go heading towards the south with our next stop at Oamaru. The route to Oamaru took about 4 hours. Driving in New Zealand is so much different compare to that in Malaysia. The state highway allows speed limit of 100 km/h, but in the city, only 50 km/h is allowed. Back in Malaysia with that speed, I’ll be cursed to hell. =.= By the way, being a pedestrian in NZ makes you feel like a king…Hell ya!! 

Oamaru is well known as home for the blue and yellow-eyed penguins, and it’s a must do to catch a glimpse at those cuties. One can choose to pay to view the penguin colony, but there’s a better option of not having to pay a cent for it. We got on to the Waterfront Rd and waited till dusk set in; the blue penguins eventually climbed up to the shore and crossed the road to get back to their colony in the woods. These blue penguins are the smallest in the world. As such, they move in a flock, two members at least. They are afraid of the lights, so it’s advisable not to use flash when capturing them. The next day, we headed down to Moeraki village and made our way through to the Kaitaki point near the lighthouse. Guess what? Several yellow-eyed penguins and fur seals “greeted” us…Haha! It’s just about timing, seriously good timing. We saw some dolphins too, but they were really far off, so it was merely a glance, but hey, that’s better than nothing!! Prior to that, we stopped by at the Moeraki Boulders to catch a few snapshots on the remarkable sphere-shaped stones formed due to geological effects several million years ago. It was another fruitful day. Another not-to-be-missed place is the Oamaru Public Gardens. The landscapes of the garden were beautifully crafted and the bountiful flowers in various shapes and sizes have filled the air with freshness. 

Chapter 1 – Working……….Holiday?

It wasn’t really a hasty decision, as I’ve mulled it over several times before clicking on the “Apply” button. So here I am in New Zealand – the Land under the Wind, under the working holiday scheme, along with another four girlfriends. So, what’s working holiday? Well, I didn’t know about this either, not until two years ago. But the name speaks for itself. It is an offer for not-so-wealthy people like me who cannot afford to go for long holidays that will cost RM XX00 ++. This scheme provides a work visa that allows the holder to legally work and earn money to cover the holiday expenses, there and then. This is nothing new, many have applied before, and many more will be applying. The vacancies are limited, so it’s on a first come first serve basis. New Zealand would be the easiest to obtain, others I’m not sure, but some will have to go through interviews. Several weeks prior to departure, there was a mishmash of feelings – fear and excitement. Despite that, now five of us will embark on a brand new journey on a stranger’s land, not knowing what will be ahead of us for the next few months but it will definitely turn over new pages in our lives.