Two Months!

It has now been more than two months since I left Colorado and started traveling. I've got a little more than two weeks left in New Zealand before I head to Thailand.

After a few days of vineyard work at the Two Paddocks Vineyard, I got a job working on a regional landscaping crew. I actually really like my job, getting to run a weed eater among some of the most beautiful backdrops in the world. The pay is also pretty good at $15 an hour, so I am able to break even on a weeks rent in a single day of work.

The crew is also good- I work with two Kiwis and occasionally we join forces with other two and three person crews for big jobs. There are lots of parks and community open spaces all over this part of New Zealand, most of which need to be mowed weekly to keep in top form. This means consistent work in Wanaka, Hawea, and Queenstown. I find that the work really is not hard at all by my standards, even though other people seem to think that it is. My opinion might skewed after a season of wildland firefighting though.

I think I might have a week left in Wanaka since I will have to go to Christchurch to sell my car before heading out. There is a slim chance that I could sell it here in Wanaka, but it is not likely. This Sunday I'll be flying over Mt. Aspiring to Milford Sound and then back again with Victor and Eric, the two Swedes that I worked and traveled with for about three weeks. Victor is a pilot, so he will rent the plane and Eric and I will only have to pitch in for gas. All told, it will cost me about 40% of what it would cost normally for the flight.