So we worked one more gig at the motels at Blenheim, in March. And tried to get some jobs with the grape harvest. The big companies are awful. It’s all on-line applications and you cannot get to talk to anyone about the possibilities and it’s all don’t-call-us-we’ll call you. Except they don’t. We were looking for something to tide us through April until the kiwifruit season kicked off. The kiwifruit was going to be very late this year in Te Puke, like early May – instead of late March.
So we were sitting around enjoying not working at motels when a couple of motel opportunities came along. One in April for a couple of weeks and one for 4 weeks in May. At places we’d not worked at before. At places bigger than we’d worked at before. We signed on for both and flagged away the kiwifruit for 2013. And flagged away the grape harvest as well. And enjoyed some down-time and took in the Omaka Airshow at Easter which was interesting.
Then after another week of motel managing in Blenheim, we took a ferry to Wellington. It was our roughest crossing yet. We were able to park our motorhome up at the motel we were going to work at in May and we caught a Jetstar flight down to Queenstown. Just in time for the weather to turn cold – snow on the hills and all that. We had a very busy time there and didn’t get to see much of Queenstown. But it was lovely watching the sun and the shadows on Cecil Peak across the lake.
As soon as our two weeks was up there we flew back to Wellington. On one of those bleak Queenstown days when the planes might or might not fly. Ours got a cheer when it arrived. We were lucky. The passengers coming from Wellington got dropped at Christchurch and put on a bus.
Since then it’s been managing motels in Porirua. We’ve not got out much – each managing a drive around to Titahi Bay to see the sea and the world. It’s a lot like home detention managing motels – with one ankle bracelet between two. The first week was not too busy which was lucky as it gave us a chance to get used to things. Then it got busier, and we just went from day to day. At the very end it has gone quiet and given us a chance to sort things out. We finish tomorrow.
And then head north, sort of. Wairarapa first. It better not blow like last time. Although any weather will be OK as we’ll be freeeeeeee……
