Wellington Adventures

Hello from Wellington! We've pretty much settled into out little life here, so I thought it would be a good time to update you on what we've been up to! On April 8th, we left the sheep farm and headed towards Wellington. Helen dropped us off at the ferry in Picton and we were on our way! 

The ferry was giant! With a few little cafes and a movie theatre too! I'm sure the views were amazing, but I was awfully seasick, so for those four hours I just sat and pretended that the waves of nausea weren't happening... 

I managed to step outside and take a picture, right as we were leaving Picton

The first few days of Wellington were dedicated to finding a job. Our first day we wondered around to 13 different agencies, inquiring about jobs and dropping off CV's. The second day we walked from business to business to hand out CV's. On the third day, we spent the day in the library and applied for jobs online. With all of that wandering though, we were able to get to know the city pretty well. Wellington is a happening place! Filled with culture and things for people to do of all ages. We found lots of beautiful spots just by walking around. 

Hannah posing near the water, with part of Wellington in the background

So many vibrant colors! 

Just a cool looking house near our hostel. 

There are a lot of book stores in Wellington, but this one is my favorite.

We are staying at a hostel called Worldwide Backpackers. It was once a house, but now converted into a hostel with 38 beds in 9 different rooms. We have grown to LOVE this place. Every morning between 8 am and 9 am, Wendy (the owner) puts out free breakfast. Everyone wakes up for that and we all sit around the one giant table at the hostel. This turned out to be the perfect way to force people to talk to each other. We quickly became friends with a group of people who later called ourselves "The Breakfast Club". Every morning we would sit for a few hours and chat. We would also decide what we would do for the day and if we wanted to have a group dinner. One of the German guys is a chef back at home, so he wanted to make us schnitzel. I had never had it before, and it certainly didn't disappoint!  

Working hard to feed "The Breakfast Club"

Stomachs becoming full of schnitzel

At night we would all come back together, eat dinner, maybe play some cards and watch a movie. We quickly became a little family that settled into a routine. 

We may or may not be playing "Lord of the Rings" board game...

The whole crew

One member of "The Breakfast Club" was the solid planner. She was always planning things for us to do. We were able to go on all sorts of little adventures! One day, a few of us went to the Botanical Gardens... the lovely stroll through the gardens ended up being a hike because we got lost a few times...

View at the top of the Rose Garden

So many beautiful flowers!

Our hostel is small enough that every once in awhile everyone joins in on a party giant party! It was always fun to get to know the other's in the hostel. And without a doubt, the sombreros always came out! 

Every Sunday, the farmers market come to town! The food in grocery stores is pretty expensive, so we take full advantage of this market. We can usually get fruit and vegetables at half price! 

Wellington is home to TONS of Lord of the Rings scenes. One of these days we will go for a proper tour, but until then, we have to take advantage of these photo opportunities. 

"The Hobbit" bad guy... look out Hannah! 

Another day, everyone was busy, so I decided to take a hike up to Mt. Victoria. It's an hours walk up to the top of the hill, to a view of all of Wellington. 

Beautiful day for a hike! 

"The Breakfast Club" decided to take the bus to a Marine Reserve, where there was also a hiking trail to the Red Rocks. We ended up hiking for 4 hours around the coast, climbing the red rocks and exploring the lagoons. 

Living the thug life

"The Breakfast Club" album cover

Lots of little sea critters all over the place

Room 6, Top Bunk Club! 

Hannah bet me $5 to jump in this puddle...the bus ride home was $5, so I had no trouble doing that! 

Hannah chasing the seagulls 

On April 18th, we had a great surprise! Dejan, Hannah's boyfriend, arrived here to surprise Hannah! So the American Duo has turned into the Three Musketeers! It's been fun, hanging out and getting to know Dejan better. He brings a lot of riddles to the group :)

On Saturday, April 25th, was ANZAC Day. Anzac Day marks the first day of conflict at Gallipoli during World War 1. The forces from New Zealand and Australia, fighting as part of the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps), played an important part in the Gallipoli campaign. Wellington celebrates this day by putting on a parade and having several services at the memorial. 

Hannah, Dejan, Pier, and I all stood to watch the parade. 

We went to the Commemoration Service, it was mostly speeches and a few songs, but still cool to see. 

WW1 Memorial

On Sunday, Dejan got invited to go to church by a potential employer. Pier and I tagged along with. It ended up being a really cool experience! The service was run by people of the Pacific Islands, so there were songs and stories in Fijian, Samoan, and Tongan. 

The Samoan Children's choir 

In case you were wondering, I never did find a job... Hannah found a job at the YMCA for when she comes back to Wellington. In a few days we are taking a mini trip to New Plymouth, then we will be back in Wellington for another few days. After that, we will do our big 12 day tour of the north island before I head home. The days are counting down! Lots to do and see in the next few weeks! 

Sheep Sorting and Puppy Playing

It's been a CRAZY and busy few weeks. Helen, Ron and Greg are keeping us busy on the farm. I thought it would be a fun for everyone to see a typical day on the farm: 

Bright and early in the morning, we would make our way to the farm to help with morning chores

First thing in the morning we would feed the puppies, which always turned into playing with the puppies until Greg came to get us.

This little one's favorite thing to do is take naps in the wool

I don't know what's worse, the pups using my hand as a chew toy or them chewing holes through what little clothes I brought with me to NZ...

We are here on the farm just in time for mating season. So I spend the mornings with Greg, mustering the sheep in from the paddocks. They are spread among 1000 acres in the hills, so it takes a few days to bring them all in. 

The dogs ready and eager for a hard morning of work

My job was mostly opening gates and keeping a lookout for sheep. The dogs did the rest of the work.

Sometimes we would have to hike a ways to find the sheep

Hannah and Stefanie (another WWOOFer) trying to find the path through the brush

Quick photo op on top of a hill that had BEAUTIFUL sights! Mate (the dog) wanted to be in the picture too!

Not a sheep...but close...kinda

There are some pretty ladies!

Bringing these "Super Models", as Greg called them, in to be sorted for breeding

Mustering some rams over to the farm yard

In between mustering sheep, sorting sheep, feeding all the animals and playing with puppies, there were also tour groups that came in from the cruise. These were always entertaining, and many of them were Americans who have never set foot on a sheep farm before...rookies...oh wait...

Greg showing how to shear a sheep

Helen demonstrating how to weave the wool 

Hannah and I were also there right before the grape harvest. Ron would bring in samples of the grapes to see if they were ripe enough to harvest. Since we are grape experts... or so we claimed...we decided to test them out for him. 

Hannah is very serious about grape juice testing

Ron, Helen and Greg taught us a lot about farm work, but they also taught us about farm fun. We gathered some sheep bones from the yard and Helen taught us how to play knuckle bones. 

Hannah's a natural 

After lunch, it was time to feed the puppies again...which of course turned into playing with the puppies until Greg came to get us. 

These pups are getting older and are starting to attack each other 

"Please take me in your backpack with you"

With the puppies worn out, our job was done, time to find Greg

Most of the afternoon's were spent helping Greg sort the sheep that we had mustered in that morning. The sorting was hard work for Greg so we made it easier for him by holding sheep, writing down numbers, and marking their noses. Each ewe (female sheep) was matched with one of the six rams based on wool density, size, ear thickness, teeth, and more. There are a whole array of things that Greg had to think carefully about. 

Every now and again the rams would need a little pedicure, gotta look good for the ladies

Ready for "action"...if you will 

After the sorting, we helped with the evening feeding. Usually it involved feeding hay and sheep nuts. With the sheep trying to breed, they had to be fed more. 

Sometimes we had a random job. For example, collecting Walnuts.

This friendly ram needed a little snack

These girls are excited for their dinner

and to end our day with a beautiful sunset! 

The days go by so fast here. I'm going to be really sad to leave this place. I've really enjoyed working with the animals and learning more about farming. I think people take farmers for granted and this experience has really taught me to appreciate all the work they do to feed the world. 

We are heading to Wellington to start our new adventure. Hopefully we can find some paid work and a decent place to stay. Update soon to come!