Cherry picking

...We were actually lucky to set up our tent in Val's garden (the owner of the hostel).
We spend the evening of December 31st together with other backpackers on Val's property. She invited her son from Melbourne who was in charge of the music. The evening was very relaxed and the new year begins without fireworks!

The first few weeks of 2019 are very intense. We started picking cherries. We, about 150 pickers, were divided into teams on the first day, which then drive to the different orchards to harvest the cherries. We have a 12 kg log strapped to our stomachs (which actually weighs between 15-16kg, yes, we weighed it!). We get 10.50 AUD per bucket filled to the brim, and if we stay for the entire season, we will receive a bonus of 1.50 AUD per log.
We start work at 6am and the last log can be started at 2pm. On very hot days, we start at 5:30am and usually only work until 10 or 11am because the heat later becomes unbearable and especially because the cherries without stems fall from the tree. We have to pick them with stems and separate them if they are connected.
The entire cherry orchard is covered with nets and even protected from above by a rain cover. When the sun shines on it, the heat builds up under the cover and there is hardly any wind. The trees are all nicely lined up and are pruned every year after the season so that they don't grow too big. We can pick the cherries without a ladder, which I like very much because it saves me a lot of effort and time.
Every morning, everyone receives their own small cardboard card with their name, number, and the variety of cherries. The numbers from one to fifty are lined up around the edge. When a bucket is full, we take it to the person who will check it. The corresponding number is punched out on the card for each log to track productivity. The criteria: stems, all separate, rotten ones, and leaves in the log. If you have ten each in one, you get a cross. If you have collected three of them, you can go home and the bonus will be cancelled for that day.
I enjoy picking cherries. I like being outside and I even like getting up so early. Nevertheless, it was not easy to get through the season. At the beginning, I had problems with competition, it was very difficult to pick beyond my limits and still be slower than others. After about a week, I realized that I couldn't continue like this, so I tried to pay less attention to others and concentrate more on the trees.
The weather has been very unpredictable since the beginning of January, the days are very hot, sometimes almost 40 degrees C, and as soon as the sun is gone, it cools down to 5 degrees C and you notice that quickly at Val's in the mountains. Everyone in the backpacker is not feeling well and I get sick. Sore throat and a strong cough torment me for almost two weeks, and for two days I actually spend sleeping in the tent. But I practice acceptance and it is very quiet at Val's. A good place to regain some strength.
With each passing week, my body starts to rebel more. My legs hurt and are covered with scratches and bruises. My arms don't look any better and my back complains about the heavy load. The days when I am very tired are particularly difficult, it's not easy to motivate myself and the buckets feel even heavier. On other days, I feel very good, I'm happy and motivated, the cherries are big and every new day is a race to beat my record.
In the afternoons, I enjoy the peace in the mountains. We bake and cook a lot and spend our time playing cards and other simple activities. A week ago, we got a room in Val's house. That was the highlight! A queen-size bed and a wonderful view!

In the last days of the cherry season, the weather changes! The heat remains but the wind adds to it! It is very dry and bushfires are quickly caused. At first, we didn't really realize what that meant. The days are very hot and the smoke hangs like fog over the surface. The sky draws incredible pictures with smoke and sunrises and sunsets. Sometimes ash falls from the sky and it is difficult to breathe.
The situation is getting worse and worse. Due to the increasing wind, the fire is uncontrollable. Firefighters are requested from New Zealand and the mainland, but because of the wind, they can only do little in some cases.
After a few very smoky days, the firefighters advise us to leave the house. They will let the forest burn down because they have no chance of controlling the fire.
So we are back at the backpacker with the others. But we are allowed to sleep in beds, even if we get a different one every night because new people check in. These are very tense days, Val is worried on the one hand about her house and on the other hand she is excited to be able to design a new one. It is exciting and at the same time very frightening to experience such a natural disaster.