Cleaning up Wanaka -- well, a small part of it, anyway

It’s a great week to be in Wanaka.  The weather has been absolutely incredible and the weekend’s WanakaFest was a hoot.

I participated in a bunch of activities with a nice German girl I met at the hostel.  We got a little tipsy at the food and wine tent where we sampled some of the truly delicious local wine.  We watched the cardboard boat launch and the urban mountain bike race.  Most of all, we got a kick out of watching the “Perfect Woman” competition.  Before you judge me for backing a beauty pageant, hear me out.  This was like no pageant I’ve ever heard of before.  For one thing, it was sponsored by Tui, the kiwi equivalent of Molsons.

The 30 girls vying for the title completed traditional tasks such as cooking a meal and sewing a button on a shirt. They also had to do a number of less, oh, let’s say “girly” things, and that’s where things got fun.  They donned fireman gear and shot a target with a hose, they chopped wood, they drove a backhoe, they skinned dead rabbits with their bare hands, they opened beer bottles with various objects (belt buckles, lipstick, flipflops), they welded, they hammered, they scaled a 50-foot pole.  It was wild.

The long list of events the Tui's Perfect Woman contestants took part in.

The girls suit up for one of the competitions.

Competititors were aided up the climbing pole by Canada's own world champion speed climber.  This "Gingah Ninga" posesses not only three world records, but also a splendid name lifted straight out of a romance novel: Stirling Hart.

The rabbit skinning -- I'm glad I didn't see much of it.

Less wild is what I’ve been getting up to the past three days. I found myself an undemanding gig cleaning for two hours a day in exchange for accommodation. It’s OK.  It would be great, if the cleaning wasn’t so, how can I put this?  Intense.

The place in question is a former gym that was converted some time ago into a shared house.  I’m sure at one time it was a glorious place with its big lounge area, Japanese baths, stone showers (those are still pretty sweet, actually), big backyard and climbing walls. 

Buuuuuuut along the way it’s definitely lost its charm.  The owner is an Aussie who grew up in Japan and bought the place during her ski-racing days.  She only comes to town twice a year when the running of the place passes from one caretaker to the next.  I don’t know what the recent caretakers have been taking care of, but it certainly wasn’t this place.

It. Was. Disgusting.

The lounge, mid-clean.

The kitchen, pre clean

Soot, dirt, dead flies, grime, random socks, beer bottle caps, rolling papers: you name it, it was lying around. How do people live like this?

To give you a better idea of what I’m dealing with, it took me four hours just to clean the lounge, and cleaning the accumulated grime on the computer took a full ten minutes. This morning I started on the kitchen, and I think it’ll take two of us at least six hours to get that room up to liveable standards. Ew.

On the upside, it’s kind of rewarding to see the progress of this place going from pigsty to just dingy.  And I have a free room to myself (woohoo!) and free Internet (double woohoo!), so I figure I’m saving about $30 a day, which goes a long way. 

Another great thing is that by noon, I’m free to do what I wish, and the stunning vistas here are a great way to cleanse my visual pallet after staring at filth for a few hours each morning.

Mostly my afternoons have been spent sitting by the lake, enjoying the sunshine and a good book, watching the ducks and ducklings swim by, and marvelling at the scenery.

Yesterday, however, I was rather ambitious and set out on a marvellous hike along one of the nearby rivers and around one side of Lake Wanaka. At 16km, it was by far the furthest I’ve walked in a single session since I’ve been here.  I’m happy to report that it was mercifully flat, and other than the plentiful mountain bikers with whom I had to share the path, there was little to complain about.

By the river.

Would you look at the colour of that water?  Can you believe it?

Along the path.

I even managed not to get sunburned, despite the relentless rays.  Some of you may not know this, but NZ is the unlucky landmass that finds itself under the hole in the ozone layer.  The sun is very VERY harsh here. And with so much of the population being fair-skinned, and sunscreen exorbitantly priced, it’s no wonder skin cancer is such a problem here.  I myself had a mole removed after spending three summer months here two years ago.  I’m armed with lots of SPF 30, a wide-brimmed hat and a fierce determination not to burn (or wrinkle!) this time around. Still, I’m freckly as.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I’ll say a somewhat reluctant goodbye to Wanaka on Saturday, when I take off for Christchurch. That night I’m going to see the Black Seeds, a kiwi Dub band, in concert.  Check them out for yourselves. Should be good a good show.

Dunedin to Wanaka

On my last full day in Dunedin (Wednesday the 20^th) I finally did a touristy thing and took a tour out to the Otago peninsula. It was another “return” for me, as I had visited the peninsula during my first ever week in NZ more than six years ago.

My lasting memory of that excursion was a view from Lanarch castle that had reduced me to tears. It was really neat to revisit the same site and discover that little had changed, and that my memory had served me quite well.

The Otago Peninsula

There were only three of us on our little tour (really, this is a great time of year to visit) and we were brought to the above mentioned Lanarch Castle, the Royal Albatross Centre, and Nature’s Wonders Naturally in rapid succession.

In the 10 whole minutes at Lanarch Castle I took a few dozen photos (thank goodness for digital photography) and raced back to the bus.

Lanarch Castle

Cool sculpture in the award-winning gardens in front of the castle.  it brings to mind someone hunched over into the crook of their arm. 

In the 15 minutes we had at the Albatross Centre, I took all of five – one tres cheezy staged shot of myself looking wistfully out to sea, one of the only albatross that I saw, and three of the HUGE flock of seagulls (“meet a girl like you-ou-ou”). It was a bit boring, and smelly, frankly. Apparently if you pay to tour the grounds you get to see them nesting, which I’m sure is much cooler – alas, time and money was not on my side.

Camera?  What camera?

The highlight of the day was, bar none, the Nature’s Wonders Naturally. Owned by a family of sheep farmers, the land occupied by the company is home to stunning views of the sea, a healthy colony of seals and not one, but two kinds of penguins – the little blue penguin, which stand at about 25cm tall, and the very rare yellow-eyed penguin. Squeee!

To navigate the somewhat rugged terrain, we were bundled onto eight-wheel drive vehicles and given attractive green ponchos so we blended in better with the landscape. As we jostled over bumps, splashed through puddles, I was giggling like a little girl. Of course, my enjoyment of the excursion wasn’t hampered in any way by the fact that our driver and guide was an attractive redheaded kiwi (a weakness of mine).

These are apparently a Canadian design.  Who knew?

The seals were cute and chill – some five-month-old pups were sleeping not five feet from the path while others frolicked in the shallow water. The penguins were cute too, if a little inactive. They’re nesting at the moment, and those who weren’t sitting on the nests were out hunting. Still. PENGUINS!

A yellow eyed penguin.  Too bad it's not in focus.  It was a fair ways away.  These little guys are quite nervous and are known to have heart attacks if people get too close.  so sad.

Sleepy seal pup and playful seal pup. they were cute. 

Penguin beach.  The (hot) guide said that no human has been on that beach in 10 years, so the penguins are pretty chill.

A little blue penguin.  He was no more than 5 feet from me.  These guys aren;t too bothered by humans, so we could get really close without disturbing him.

Wednesday was significant for another reason – I voluntarily ate fish. The guide convinced me to try the blue cod fish and chips (or, as kiwis say it “fush und chups”) at this dingy little takeaway shop in town. Lo and behold, it was pretty good. Don’t expect me to be chomping on lobster or oysters anytime soon, but I may indulge in some more deep-fried fishy goodness from time to time.

Thursday began dull and grey in Dunedin: perfect weather for spending in a bus. Luckily, that was just what was on the agenda. I boarded the Atomic bus at 10:00 and over four and half hours, the bus wound its way through a few mountain ranges and much rain. As if like magic though, as we pulled into Wanaka, Mother Nature shrugged off her dark, wet shroud and showed off the bright blue sky she'd been concealing.

I'm here.  You're not.  Neener neener neener.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh…Wanaka.

A little history here. When I was here some 18 months ago, my usual travel companion and I could not stop singing – to the tune of Adam Sandler’s Hanukah song from his days on SNL – “tell your friend Veronica, that I’m in Wan-a-kaaaa!” It’s been running through my head for the past two days.

Anywhoodle. Wanaka. Is. Beautiful. The fact that I’m emphasising this says a lot when you consider the sheer plethora of panoramas this country has on offer. It’s awesome. Trust me.

An oft-photographed tree just casually growing in the middle of a big lake.  No biggie.

Wanaka is often overlooked by thrill and party seekers for nearby Queenstown, the self-proclaimed Adventure Capital of the World. Too bad for those who skip it, cause they’re missing out.

Nestled on the shore of Lake Wanaka, at the base of a bunch of mountains and near skiing and hiking in Mount Aspiring National Park, the town is decidedly a touristy spot, but not in a gaudy, showy way. There are a few chain stores in town – Flight Centre, Paper Plus, New World – but there are no McDonalds, Starbucks, or Burger Kings to be seen. The vast majority of businesses are independent and quaint.

The whole town is dominated by the snow-capped mountains to the West, and I’ve spent much of my time just gazing at them in reverence.

Other things I’ve gotten up to since I’ve been here:

• Gone to see Inception at the kooky Cinema Paradiso where the seats are couches, chairs, and even a car. Great venue. Great flick.

In Cinema Paradiso during intermission.  That brown lump on the napkin on the pillow next to me is the best cookie ever.

• Watched the parade that signals the official opening of WanakaFest, a community festival going on this long weekend (Labour day is Monday).

The wanaka dancers do their thing in this tiny and cute parade.

• Hiked up Mount Iron, which at only 750m in height is dwarfed by the many mountains around.

Mount Iron seen from the other side of the lake.

• Visited the Rippon Winery – the home of some of the best wine I’ve ever had.

At $16.50 a bottle, this is the most expensive wine I've ever bought in NZ (yes, I can be cheap). It's worth it though.  It's delicious. 

• Took a nap by the lake.
• Done my homework K
• Found a job of sorts.  For the next week I'll be spending two hours a day cleaning an old gym that's been converted into a 12-room lodging.  In exchange, I'll have a free place to stay.  Should be OK. I start tomorrow, so I hope it's OK.  I'll be sure to gripe if it's not :)

One final picture: I got to feed an orphaned lamb at the place where I saw the penguins.  How cute is that?

Getting busy in Dunedin (not THAT way)

I’ve now been in Dunedin a full week, and a good week it has been. 

For the first time in months, I’ve had obligations and a schedule, and it’s been rather nice -- a little respite from my flotsam and jetsam existence.

My first foray into the world of Wwoofing was successful, if atypical.  Not having my own means of transport other that my tired feet, I chose a place for its proximity to Dunedin (aka, within it). I was delighted to find myself hosted in a section of the city I’d never been before.  Opoho is on the northern side of town, waaaaaaaaaaaaaay up the hills. The views were amazing.

This is what I woke up to for three days.

My host was a delightfully kooky woman who works a full-time job, is starting two small businesses, rents out a room to students, and hosts woofers. Oh, and she has a rambunctious and adorable dog who needs a lot of attention.  Phew.  I’m tired just writing about all she does.

Isabella Rosselini -- though she's only as tall as my mid-shin, she can jump to nearly shoulder hight.  We had many a "fetch" session.

While there, I busied myself setting up a flower garden (man, do I not know much about gardening), cleaning, weeding, taking care of the dog (Isabella Rosselini), and reworking some text for a website she plans on launching soon.  I learned a lot about lynchgates, and hopefully some of my handiwork will help make a few sales!

My handiwork (I have much to learn).

There was another woofer staying with her at the same time as me, and she was great company.  An American in her early 20s, C____ (name withheld in case she wants to remain anonymous) has been in Dunedin a few weeks and happily took me around to St-Clair (nice beachy area) and Lookout Point (even further up the hill in Opoho – it was a 45-minute climb!) where we did a bit of walking and chatting.  Twas grand.

St Clair.  Though I was shivering in three layers of clothing, some crazy kiwis were actually swimming. brrrrr.



From atop Lookout Point.  It was crazy steep and a loooong walk up.  But what a view!



I reluctantly left my private room in Opoho yesterday and returned to my hostel, only to find that I had a private room! No one else was staying in my dorm, so I had yet another night of solitude.  Never take a night by yourself for granted folks.  It really is a luxury these days J

Today was spent at Arthur Street School which literally is just around the corner from my hostel. It’s a pretty small school with some 120 students, and it reminded me a lot of my own primary school, Ste-Croix, in that all the students seemed to know each other, regardless of age.  I had a good day there.  The principal and deputy principal had set up a whole schedule for me (printed and everything!) so that I am spending time with every age group over the two days I’m spending there.

I expected to like the younger groups and dislike working with the older kids, but they were all so well-behaved, that both experiences were good. 

We’ll see how tomorrow goes, but I’m feeling a bit more confident about it all now.

So what’s next? I’m thinking Wanaka deserves another visit, and hopefully I’ll be able to do a bit of woofing there too.  Perhaps a few days basking in the gorgeous views in the tiny valley-village of Mount Cook are also in the cards.  Eventually though, I plan on heading up to the top of the South Island where I hope to do some more tramping, and maybe warm up.

In other news, I submitted an editorial to one of the papers here, but so far, it doesn’t look like they’re going to run it (booooooo).  If I don’t hear from them in the next few days, I’ll post the text here, so at least my brilliant prose won’t be lost in the ether.

Oh, and at the tender age of three months, my laptop battery has decided it’s had enough of this cruel world and has quietly and suddenly expired.  Luckily I can still use my computer if it’s plugged in, but no wandering for me.  It also looks unlikely that I’ll be finding a replacement here, so it may have to wait until Christmas and Canada.

Dunedin Botanical Gardens

Some cliffs in St Clair.  There are sections that look like Giants' Causeway.

From Lookout Point.  I really should learn to smile like a human being in photos

Charming sign about a 30-second walk from the (seriously) very urban house where I was staying.

Bunch of posts at St Clair beach

Some sheep just going about their business, completely oblivious to their stunning surroundings

Dunedin offers me steep streets and structure.

Tuesday morning I was up early to grab a bus at 8:00, destination: the city of Dunedin, some five hours South of Christchurch.

It was a pleasant route that I must have done back in 2004 when I drove from Christchurch to here, but for the life of me, none of it looked familiar.  Not the delightfully kitchy Salmon World in Rakaia, not the pretty towns of Timaru or Oamaru, not the distant snow-capped mountains.  Nothing.  It was like seeing for the first time. It was great.

My enchantment during the ride contined as I arrived in Dunedin.  It was definitely helped by the absolutely gorgeous weather.  The sky was a completely cloudless brilliant blue that makes a bad mood almost impossible.  What could make a good mood bad is having to trek nearly a km to my hostel with some 40 pounds of stuff on my back.  Almost all of it uphill.

Cause nearly everything seems to be uphill in Dunedin.  It is a city in constant battle with gravity.

The train station, on its side (sigh)

Inside the train station (right side up! huzzah!)

If you first arrive, like I did, at the train station, you might be lulled into a false sense of levelness.  As you make your way into town via the descriptively-named Octagon – an eight-sided open area fringed with bars, restaurants, theatres and shops – you start to get an inkling of the steeply-angled hell into which you are about to ascend.  The roads to the west suddenly and sharply veer upwards, and every step becomes an ordeal. 

I hate this photo program.  The photo was taken lengthwise, while the photo below was taken widthwise, yet here, they are both topsy turvy.  Screw you Blogger!

Yet another NZ city not built on a grid.

Hunched over, sweating profusely, you’re painfully aware of each and every ounce you’re carrying on your person when going uphill.  When you’re headed downhill, it might require less effort, but it’s still not easy.  In order to avoid going ass over tea kettle, you must adopt an odd backward-leaning posture by scooping your tailbone underneath you and taking exaggerated steps, like you're wearing too-big clown shoes.

The world's steepest street is some 5km from the downtown.  I haven't seen it myself, but I've read that it's an asthma attack-inducing 19 degree incline.

Going up up up!

Up some more (though it looks sideways)

Luckily, Dunedin makes up for its unwelcoming inclines with lots of charm.  The views are great, many of the buildings are impressively attractive, and it has a youthful energy thanks to the university around which the city seems to be built. (Unfortunately, a lot of this energy seems to be expelled via the smashing of beer bottles.  I’ve never seen so much broken glass on sidewalks before).

It’s Otago University that brought me here too.  I had my interview with the College of Education yesterday in the hopes that I’ll be accepted into their Graduate Diploma of Teaching program, which would start in January.

It’s hard for me to say whether it went well or not.  I do think they liked me and some of what I had to say seemed to impress them (“very insightful!”). But the fact that I haven’t spent any time in a classroom, other than as a student myself, has them a bit worried that I may not really know whether this is a career I’d be interested in. 

It’s something that has been weighing on me a bit too, so they suggested I contact one of the local schools and see about coming in for a few days next week.  So I have.  On Monday and Tuesday I’ll be sitting in on a bunch of classes at the school just behind my hostel (I can actually hear the kids playing outside as I type this). I’m looking forward to it.

A few more photos for you:

The view from near my hostel.

A church. (duh)

Some building near the train station (see how deceptively flat it is down there?)

And that’s not my only obligation this week (see, I can still have structure J ). On Thursday (as in, today) I’m going to be trying my hand at WWOOFing (Willing Workers On Organic Farms).  Basically, you help out on private farms for a few days in exchange for room and board.

I believe I’m going to be helping the owner with updating her website and doing some cleaning and maintenance work around her house.  Should be a good experience no matter what.

To the outskirst of Christchurch -- Lyttleton and Sumner.

 

Wow does NZ get a lot of earthquakes.  Check out this list of just the most recent ones: http://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/quakes/recent_quakes.html

On Sunday and Monday, I moved out of the downtown core and out to the suburbs where I got to see a bit more of the damage.  Have a look for yourself:

Cracked facade in Lyttleton

A positive-minded Lyttleton bakery

There are three kinds of these notices posted on buildings around the city.  The white "all's good" notice, this yellow "uh uh, not so fast" notice, and the red "don't even think about coming in here" notice of doom.

This R&R Sports store unsurprisingly had the red notice on it.

An entire block and intersection right in the city centre is still completely blocked off.

I really don't know why some of these pictures keep spinning themselves sideways, but others don't.  It's infuriating.  Anyway, this was among some of the worst damage I've seen.

Cracked pavement in Sumner.

Still, the vast majority of buildings are looking pretty good. 

Like the Chritchurch Cathedral in Cathedral Square.

On Sunday I gladly escaped my smelly dorm room (this one guy’s feet were intensely pungeant) and decided to venture out to Lyttleton.  It’s a burb on the other side of a range of small mountains, or big hills, I’m not sure.  In any case, the bus went through a tunnel, and it took us 2:14 mintues to get to the other side, and he wasn’t driving slowly either. 

Lyttleton is a burb built around a port, and has a gritty look and feel about it – thousands upon thousands of logs were piled up near the docks where rusty, decidedly un-picturesque barges were moored – yet also manages to be a bit artsy and a little boho.  I found myself a table at a bakery on the main drag and had myself a "Splorg" slice (chocolate cakey-type thing with crunchy caramel topping). It was nice.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t, so I didn’t linger. 

A few tourist vessels alongside some more robust boats.

Despite the obvious utilitarian nature of the port, these people still have a pretty fantastic view.



The clouds roll in.

 On Monday I met up with a friend I had met during my last visit to NZ, who has requested that I refer to him here as “Inki.”  He’s a Yank by birth who, as his adopted moniker suggests, possesses a rather impressive collection of tattoos.  He also now possesses something I covet very much – New Zealand residency status. 

We’ve managed to keep in touch these past many months, and he's provided a lot of encouragement towards my move here.  He stopped into Christchurch for a day on his way up to Auckland to start a new job.  I’ll flatter myself and think that it’s because he wanted to see me J

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(Sorry about that, I just accidently found a way to insert a bunch of symbols.  Strange, but cool!)

It had been hailing on and off most of the night and a good chunk of the morning, so we sought refuge indoors at the Art Gallery.  It reminds me somewhat of the National Art Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in that the building is mostly glass, is rather interesting in and of itself, and its front doors are guarded by oversized statues. (sorry, no pics)

It’s not a huge gallery though, so it didn’t take long for us to exhaust what it had on offer.  After a nice lunch at an Indian restaurant, the weather had improved, so we took off for Sumner, another Christchurch burb on the water.  Unlike Lyttleton though, Sumner is all posh and beach. 

Sumner

Inki began our little tour by bringing me to one of the many caves in the cliffs in the area, many of them just under houses. The opening was mere feet from a sidewalk and was no more than 3 feet high. I neglected to take a picture, but trust me, it was tight at first. It required a tight squeeze and a bit of a shimmy to get in, but then opened up to an area where we could stand up.  A day later I was still finding sand in my pockets. It was pretty cool.

It was low tide, so we then walked along the water and at times in it (brrrrrrrrr) before hopping back on a bus to downtown. 

Don't I look comfortable?

Cave Rock, at the juncture of Sumner and Scarborough beaches at low tide.

We finished off our visit with a trip to a (rather empty) pub with two guys who were staying in the same room as us and played a bit of pool and enjoyed a few pints. 'Twas a grand, if too short visit with Inki, but I'm sure we'll be meeting again soon. 

Next up, Dunedin.