Living in New Zealand

Ashlie and I originally said I would live with her in her little house on Waiheke.  This little house is below the boss’ house.  We gave it a trial run of about a week.   You never know how living with someone will end up.  We both survived the week well enough and decided me staying with her was a good idea.  I could help with groceries and cooking and cleaning.  It made both of our bills much cheaper in the long run.  Heinrick and Leslie (the bosses) thought it was a good idea as well because now they had a tenant after Ashlie was gone.  There are a few things wrong with the house and Leslie and Heinrick said they will fix it up while I travel in May.  I hope so.  It will be nice to come back to an insulated house and a bed instead of a mattress.  The house is like a little slice of paradise, I love having my own space, garden and kitchen.

I think I love being in New Zealand for my kitchen!  I can bake again.  I have made steak, king’s cake, cheese cake, breads, granola, oatmeal cookies, black and white cookies, fun dinners and everything else I could stuff in my toaster oven.  Ashlie ended up complaining, but in a good natured way.  She says I cook too well, that I need to step down my game or she needs to step up hers.  Also I am now blamed for all the weight she’s gained in New Zealand.  I saw BAH to that… but maybe half. 

 One thing that I think is pretty weird about New Zealand is that there is not good internet anywhere or it’s expensive.  You would l think a western country would have it’s technology more up to date than Asia, but that just isn’t true.  Phones are expensive and data and internet are too.  It makes keeping in touch with people quite difficult.  Even bars and restaurants have limits on internet access.

I did heaps of wine tastings with Mike and Ashlie on Waiheke.  I mean, when in wine country you should get a bit tipsy right?  At first I tried to go to some alone, but my touring around the island trying to look for wineries became just that.  Touring around the island on my scooter, discovering new things, not wineries.  I met Mike at work and he had been living on Waiheke for a while but hadn’t visited more than one or two vineyards.  So on days off we would hop in his car and try new wines.  Ashlie and I also visited wineries, but it ended up being much less often.  Our days off rarely synced up.  The last day off we had together, Sarah joined us and we went around with the top down on her VW.  We also sung our head off in the car to wild world, cap Stevens.  It was a blast and a time to remember.

When I lived in Korea I went out often, not all the time, but at least once a week.  I didn’t even think of it.  Here on Waiheke I hardly ever go out.  I like seeing friends, but it’s a wee bit expensive.  I did manage to find my way into the local spots a few times and it was really fun.  My favorite night out was at the Rum bar and they had a burlesque show.  The bar I frequent most, Charlie Farley’s, has free internet and now knows how to make a Bloody Mary to perfection.  I visit them at least once a week to check my e-mails and try to blog. 

I was warned of how expensive New Zealand is by Ashlie and I had a taste of how expensive things could be in Australia as well.  So in short the cost of living in New Zealand is high.  The minim wage is high as well.  When I first came I thought $14.50 an hour was great.  But after I added everything up, it’s not that great.  So working full time I would make around $2,000 a month.  After food, drinks, and other bills I end up only saving around $1,000 a month, and this is only if I get full time work, which I usually don’t.  Living and working in New Zealand is defiantly not the same as working in Asia.  But I got spoiled living there, I have to have a real job now.  Sometimes I feel like it is similar to living in the United States, where I was working two jobs to save money.

New Zealand’s scenery is amazing.  You see the pictures and you think this is only once in a blue moon and with a professional photographer… but it’s not.  It’s gorgeous 80% of the time.  There is hiking everywhere, I feel like the people in New Zealand are super active.  There is hiking, skydiving, boating, parasailing, skiing… anything that has to do with the outdoors I feel like people do.  Around my house there are heaps of trails to hike and explore.  And of course being on an island the views are spectacular and usually of the ocean and bays surrounding my little island.  I made a point to hike them every afternoon.  But of course when we started harvest that got put on the backburner.  I was just too tired.  I’m going to hike as much as I can in New Zealand.  They have so many national parks, I’m sure I’ll get my fill before I leave.  It’s just too beautiful not to.

A little extra on work… I forgot to include it earlier.  So here are some lovely photos of our first pressing of the wine.  We celebrated with bubbles, cheese and bread.  Yum!