Don't shoot the neighbor's cat

Australia is now a little behind again and New Zealand is also coming to an end.

Shortly before Sydney and in rather modest weather on the west coast of Australia, we decided to make a detour to the Blue Mountains just before the city. Ciccio remained loyal to us and bravely made his way through the mountains. But soon it was time to say goodbye to our home on wheels. Feeling a bit nervous about whether we would be able to sell our trusty vehicle with 400.000km on it, we put it up for sale online. The goal was clear: recoup the purchase price.

Hidden in the forest of the Blue Mountains, away from the tourist crowds, we shut everything out and snuggled up by the campfire. The next day, Ciccio received a general overhaul and then we went on a selling tour to Sydney. The inquiries remained low for the first few days and the credit card began to struggle. A viewing with two Frenchmen seemed promising at first, but then it fell through. So we spent the following days driving around Sydney and its surroundings, diligently playing tennis on the tennis court and going to bed in the only free rest area near Sydney in the evening. Since Jakob had also become addicted to the battle for Westeros, we spent our evenings watching episode after episode...

As a farewell, we went to the drive-in cinema the next evening with Ciccio. Corned beef with minced meat and "Logan" were a fitting finale.

With a dwindling bank account and time moving forward, we moved into a small Airbnb apartment in Freshwater for our last days in Sydney. The small suburb was perfect for reaching the city by ferry and still retreating to small, not so expensive and crowded restaurants and beaches.

Soon, the relieving inquiry came, a couple from Holland wanted to buy our camper van. So we immediately jumped into the car for a test drive to Cugee Beach. The two instantly fell in love with the little Mitsubishi and the next day, the full €3500 were in our account. Joyfully, we went to the Italian restaurant for a feast in the evening. Now we could continue the trip with a clear conscience and a filled wallet. We spent the last few days strolling, eating, playing tennis, and a bit of beach time. Then it was time to pack our bags and head to New Zealand, where our Woofer family was already waiting for us.

Arriving in Auckland and setting our clocks two hours ahead, we checked into a completely overpriced hostel, had delicious Malaysian food and went to bed early. In the early hours of the morning, we continued to Paihia. Already the atmosphere in Auckland and the view from the bus looked promising and New Zealand immediately captivated both of us. Paihia was a small backpacker transit village on the beach. The backdrop was fantastic, but the backpackers were annoying. After one night at the Pickeled Parrot Hostel, we continued north to Awanui.

We were picked up in the red truck with cowboy hats by Damien. When we arrived at Waiharara on the Wataview Farm, we immediately felt at home. We met Kath, Cole, Charly, and the little Colby. We were also welcomed by three dogs named Sess, Queeny, and Cliff, the horses Ned, Rocket, and Fixen, two ducklings, a bull named Brutus, a cow and a calf, and a small chubby pony. Our new sleeping place was a small but nice converted horse trailer.

The next few weeks we spent with the Holloways hunting, riding, cooking, fishing, weeding, building a barn, working on the avocado construction site, and selling cattle... We lived the simple, yet completely satisfying country and farmer's life. The morning began with feeding the horses, then either going to the construction site or doing gardening work. In the afternoon, we went horseback riding, slept, rode motocross, or rearranged the cattle. In the evening, we enjoyed delicious dinners by Kath. If we still had energy, we ended the day with a few beers and went night hunting with Toni and Damien at the fishing hut.

Damien and Jakob quickly discovered that they were brothers from another mother and were inseparable. The children Charlet and Cole enjoyed the attention and the new playmates and constantly convinced me to play hide and seek. We learned how to catch, gut, and smoke fish, shoot, pour concrete, drive tractors and excavators, overate with fresh avocados, cuddled with the dogs, horses, and ducks, became part of the family, the village, got stuck in pubs, went canoeing, and fell into bed every evening, completely exhausted and satisfied. Clothes, appearances, showers didn't matter, what was important was that the animals were fed and cared for, the horses were ridden, and the barn was being built. As simple and straightforward as life seemed there, it was so fulfilled and draining that we went to bed tired every evening. In the seclusion of Waiharara and the vastness of New Zealand, we felt so comfortable that the cities we grew up in seemed more distant than ever before. At the other end of home, a second home was created. How would a real life feel here? Would we miss education, culture, and exchange? Should we just stay here?

The three weeks flew by.

The readjustment back to the city went smoothly. Checking into the hostel, which was dripping with poorly tattooed backpackers, a receptionist who would rather be somewhere else, and our modest windowless room with a double mattress and a floor lamp that went strobe if you got too close to the dimmer. All of this for the modest price of $70. So we quickly went out onto the street to check out the arcade in the basement around the corner from Burger King. We shot, played Tekken, and raced, all accompanied by little Asians who seemed to have merged with the gaming machines. After 40 minutes of flashing lights, cold sweat, and a couple of smaller nervous breakdowns, the credit was gone. After that, we urgently needed a drink at the next bar. Since we both looked very young and were without ID, the drink had to wait a bit...

Now we are about to leave rainy Auckland and head to the Philippines.

Summer, sun, Pina Colada. Relaxing completely, fasting for the first time for a week, and finally, finally riding a jet ski....

Cheers & Ciao Ciao.

#Lena#Jakob