Work, work, work...

The last 3 months have passed so quickly and there is so much to tell... I will start with our experiences of how to earn a living here in New Zealand as backpackers. There is this great website (for those interested: http://www.backpackerboard.co.nz/), where all the jobs for backpackers are listed. We also tried our luck here and wrote countless employers an email, of course with our CV, a personal cover letter, etc. So there we were, sitting in the shopping mall in Tauranga (our hometown) and typing away. Unfortunately, we didn't get a response quickly, so as mentioned in the previous block, we tried to buy a job - as kiwi pickers. Here, the intermediary receives $50 and then organizes a job for you with kiwi employers within a week. However, Tracey (that was the intermediary's name) ignored us and didn't call, so we desperately searched on backbackerboard.com instead. "You should call the people, it makes a good impression," as our working holiday counselor recommended at the information event, came to mind. Alright, then we made some calls. Voila! We immediately set up 2 interviews for the next day, but in Auckland, about a 2-hour drive away... Whatever. On the same day, we also received a confirmation on a sweet potato farm above Auckland and on a kiwi plantation in Gisborne. Wow, things were going smoothly. We finally received a response from Tracey as well, saying that we can start as kiwi pickers in Te Puke. We decided to wait for the 2 interviews in Auckland, as they promised better money. After another interesting night with a couchsurfer in KatiKati (we got schnitzel! Not as good as ours, but still), we headed to the well-known Auckland the next day. On the way there, Gerlinde spontaneously scheduled a third appointment at a hotel. Crazy! After parking well in a parking garage in Auckland (3 hours - $50!!!!!!! WTF), we started fresh, with newly styled hair and of course dressed in black, for our appointments on Queen Street. The first appointment was at a marketing agency called "Culture Marketing," which urgently needed backpackers for a marketing job. The interview went very well (it was like in Austria with strengths profile, why you are right for the job, etc.). We felt really confident in our English and the lady invited us directly to the next round the next day. Yes, baby! The next interview was at the Kiwi International Hotel, as housekeepers. The manager was very nice to us and we even got an offer to start the next day. We were naturally thrilled, but we still gave ourselves some time to think. We had another interview at a fundraising association. That was also very funny. We sat in a group with several other applicants and each had to introduce ourselves, talk about our greatest role model, describe ourselves as if a friend would do it, and of course explain why we are the right person for the job as donation collectors. Here too, we were invited to the next round. Phew, what a day! So many job offers, so we had the agony of choice. After a hearty dinner (we were famished), I decided to attend the second round at Culture Marketing the next day to get a better idea of it (I'm a marketing graduate ;)). Gerlinde decided on the housekeeper job right away. The next morning at the appointment, things got down to business right away. I was assigned to a nice German lady (but she only spoke English with me :D) and off we went to New Lyn, a neighborhood in Auckland. Here, we went from door to door in a street, trying to raise funds for the "Forest and Birds" community (an environmental non-profit organization). Was this really advertised as a marketing position?? Going door to door, almost getting eaten by dogs, and begging people? That was a bad joke... I still enjoyed myself throughout the day and was amazed at how many people were willing to sign such a contract right on their doorstep (1$ per day). At the end of the day, around 8:00 p.m., there was a fun written test and a conversation with the boss. I did well, of course, and showed my Austrian charm, and was offered a position. After this day, I had to go home and gather myself... Should I start a housekeeping career with Gerlinde the next day or become a donation collector on Monday?? I spontaneously decided to go with Gerlinde in the morning. After all, we were a team, living in the van together, and it would surely be a blast. What awaited us at the Kiwi International Hotel, we couldn't have predicted.

The hotel, which is more like a hostel, was located in the beautiful center of Auckland on Queen Street (the location and the free parking were probably the few positive things about the hotel itself). When we arrived at the hotel, as always, ahead of time, we were taken to the staff room. The other backpacker girls were already there (we got along very well right away, especially with Adela and David) as well as the permanent workers, aka Fiji beasts. At around 8:15 a.m., Shakun, our supervisor, arrived and assigned the groups. In the morning, the "public area" (the public showers and toilets of the economy rooms), the "reception," and the "outside" were cleaned daily. But it was just a superficial cleaning... After the general housework, we were divided into pairs and started with the check-out rooms. We had to remove all the bed linen, make the bed again (there were 5 layers - first the mattress protector, then the fitted sheet, then the sheet, then the blanket, and finally the cover).

quick coffee break :)

The bathroom had to be thoroughly cleaned and checked for even the tiniest hair, the dust was wiped, milk/sugar/tea was refilled, the towels were folded, and in the end, we had to vacuum. If you forgot something or didn't do it properly, you would be exposed by the supervisor right away, and praise was rare or almost never given. After we, as a team, finished all the check-out rooms, it was time for the stayer rooms (room service). After a well-deserved lunch break, the public areas were checked again, including the kitchen. Such a day went by relatively quickly and the work was quite easy. Plus, we found groceries every day, which was quite convenient :)

We were 11 girls, plus the Fiji beasts. It's easy to imagine that there were some small disputes here from time to time. However, the way the supervisor and some of the Fiji colleagues treated us was not right and inhumane. That's why we, like almost all the other backpacker girls, decided to leave without announcing it at the end of December. We wrote a "nice" email to the manager, detailing everything that had happened, and packed our bags after 7 weeks. After a sad goodbye to our beloved colleagues, we set off on our journey through this vast and beautiful country on the 30th of December...

Housekeeper team, including supervisor Shakun

Our dear colleagues from the hotel at the Christmas party