Blenheim

I will not forget my time in Blenheim so quickly.

When I arrived here two weeks ago, I had no expectations, so I was even more surprised by the hostel, the job, the people....and the wonderful time I had here.

When Lea and I left the North Island and took the ferry to the South Island about 2 weeks ago, Jonathan, Tilman, and Tessi picked us up. So we drove from Picton to Blenheim to the Arrow Hostel and went into a room together with Tilman, Jonathan, and Tessi.

After two days, I had my first day of work at a vineyard. I had my first real employment contract here in New Zealand and worked a total of 7 days for ACE.

My job included netting and leaf pulling. We were a great group of about 15 people. Our work day started at half past 7 in the morning. Jacob, our supervisor, picked us up in front of our hostel and then we drove for about 10 - 30 minutes through the beautiful hilly landscape depending on which vineyard we were working at.

Once we arrived, we put on the totally sexy worker vests and then clipped nets on both sides of the grapes so that the birds couldn't eat the fruits. Occasionally, there was also a bird liberation action.

Of course, the clips and grapes were sometimes used for throwing, but there is still enough wine left for you. ;)

For leaf pulling, we had to remove 80% of the leaves so that more light could reach the grapes and they could ripen faster and better. The problem was that the rows were sometimes so long that you felt like you weren't making any progress, which was sometimes a bit depressing.

The work was actually quite comfortable. We had two breaks a day and were allowed to listen to music and talk to others, which made the work time more bearable. In the end, I have to say that the job was really okay and it was much better than I had imagined.

Aside from that, our supervisor was also really cool. He often told us to work slower so that we could accumulate more hours and earn more money. Together with our supervisor, we sometimes sat between the rows during work time to delay the time.

After 7 days of work (we often had days off), we received a message that ACE no longer had work for us and we were basically fired.

So if you ever drink a wine from the Marlborough region, think of me and enjoy the wine. ;)

The last week here in Blenheim, I enjoyed without a job, but with great people from the hostel.

We wanted to participate in a mud run among other things and bought a great costume for it. When we arrived there, we were unfortunately told that the mud run was cancelled, so we drove back to Blenheim and made the city unsafe with our sexy costumes.

For the most part, I spent my time here playing cards, drinking beer, going to the cinema, playing table tennis, partying, or at the beach, which is about 30 minutes away. It was a wonderful time here in Blenheim and I already know that I will miss this hostel a lot. It wasn't a normal hostel, it was more like a large shared apartment because I got along well with almost everyone and we had many great evenings together. The hostel owner was also rarely there, so I had the feeling that I could do whatever I wanted.

------

My plan now looks like this:

On Sunday, I want to hitchhike to Christchurch with Lea, then to Wanaka, and finally to Queenstown to do my bungee jump there. Then I will meet up with Jonathan again to continue traveling with him. I'm curious to see how much my plan will change again.

I still find it interesting and amusing that my plans almost always change.

Now I will enjoy my last 3 days here in Blenheim and I'm excited to see what will happen next.

I hope you're doing well and I wish you all the best.

I kiss your eyes and sending you a big hug.

Your Miri :)