small town girl at heart

We spent one night in Auckland, at Base, the backpackers hostel in the middle of Queen Street, yes another hostel........so fun... sharing toilet and bathrooms, no seriously it wasnt as bad as I thought it would be.  Now if only the hostel would use some WD40 on the creaky bathroom door then all would be good.

coast of Paihia

These hostels are pretty good, basic, but decent enough to just have a place to sleep (i still wont do a shared dorm type room) and shower.  we also left our big luggage here as we were headed to the Bay of Islands for a couple of days.  Early morning again we were off, walking down Queen Street to the bus pick up point.  Naked Bus, as the company implies, its a budget coach service but its a decent cheap service.  So in New Zealand take the Naked bus and look for specials as their deals are worth it!.

Waitangi grounds

Paihia - We arrived in the afternoon, at another Base backpackers and as they didnt have the room we booked, we got a larger dorm room with a promise that no one would share with us.  We also got a free dinner and 2 glasses of wine thrown in at the bar at the hostel.  It was a rugby final that night and the bar was showing it so the plans all fell neatly into place... sweet!

Waitangi grounds

Church in Paihia

I dont know about you but small towns like Paihia appeal to me.  I think its got something to do with the fact that I grew up in a small enclave of Singapore where shopkeepers, neighbours, everyone knew each other.  Its probably old age creeping up on me, where I hanker after the days gone by!  Anyway

Pahia  is an amazing little town, one street, one jetty, one long coastal

Sunset at Paihia

road to the Waitangi Treaty grounds (for a bit of history and you can walk it too as WL and I did).  I am sure in the summer months its buzzing with lots of people all over the place enjoying the fresh breeze, the laid back atmosphere and the lack of a Starbucks and MacDonalds.  Although WL did grumble about that.......
Maybe I should buy a business here......................

Northern Explorer to Auckland

I have mentioned that I love trains, and when I found that there was a train that went from Wellington to Auckland with the name Northern Explorer, I was adamant that I would get on that train.

Its a good thing the friend and ex colleague wanted to do the same trip, so WL and I set off early from Wellington with our bags and snacks all ready for the 10 hour train ride.

There is a viewing deck on this train as it journeys through the centre of the National Park and offers amateur (very amateur)  photographers like me the opportunity to gape mouth open and forget to take shots of the rugged natural landscape of this wonderful country.  You stand there on the deck mesmerised by the view before you kick yourself and start clicking furiously.......

It was cold on the deck and we sat in the railcar that was right next to it

and our seats were by the door, so we could dash out and back in to warm up before we were off our seats again to capture that little bit of magic we saw.  The landscape changed as we went up, some places it reminded me of the gentle rolling hills of the English Countryside, then it would turn rugged and remind me of Scotland.  There were so many different shades of green and blues (the coast ) that I couldnt believe that I wasnt in some painting or a well shot movie.
 We went through tunnels,
over bridges, through small little country towns and I saw babbling brooks, gently flowing rivers and gushing streams.  For someone like me, a born and bred city girl this was a visual stimulation like no other. I took thousands of pictures so these are just a few of the views of just that journey from Wellington to Auckland.

i somehow lost wednesday

I am one of the lucky few in Singapore that has a collection system every two weeks of our rubbish for recycling.  I keep my plastic bottles, glass and old newspapers in a neat pile in the kitchen and put it outside my front door on Tuesday night for collection on Wednesday morning.

Yesterday however,  I forgot it was Wednesday.

Somehow in my hazy, cloudy brain it was only Tuesday yesterday.  I did leave my flat to go to the supermarket and I did read the papers in the morning but I still managed to retain the thought that it is only Tuesday.  I even looked at my neighbours and noticed that they had put out their recycling but it still didnt register.

My mind is rotting and melting away,  I can feel the brain cells oozing out of my ears!
Methinks I need to start (seriously) looking for a job

willys and Wellington

I wanted to see some of the country while I was in New Zealand and managed to do that after spending time in Rotorua with my uncle (he is my Dads younger brother and it was special spending time with him as we would chat whenever we could and he would reminisce about the old days which gave me insight into my fathers childhood)
Anyway
My friend and ex colleague joined me in New Zealand and we headed south of the North Island first to see Wellington.  Its a lovely city (pity about the earthquakes) quaint and pretty and compact.  Its smaller than Auckland, which was too crowded and city like for me.

My friend managed to persuade me into trying the hostels to save money (I have Never stayed in one) and I was up for the challenge as I figured, yeah why not, have to try something at least once........

curved staircase at the hostel

We stayed at the  Downtown Backpackers which was right by the bus drop off point (Naked bus!! love that name) and in front of the Railway station.  Saves on bus or taxi fares and lugging suitcases miles to get to the stations as we had an early morning train to catch to Auckland as well.

love the green toilet!

I was a bit apprehensive at the thought of sharing a bedroom with strangers so we put in a bit more money and got private rooms.  We also got a room with a bathroom. I did however,  feel a little out of place knowing that I probably would be the oldest person on the property but thankfully  there were other baby boomers wandering around.  Downtown backpackers was once the Hotel Waterloo, an art deco hotel that actually hosted Queen Elizabeth in 1953, pity they didn't see fit to keep the hotel as a hotel instead of converting it to a hostel......

Wellington is a great city to visit, in the off earthquake season if there
actually is an off season for earthquakes.  I was woken up at 1am to feel the bed shaking and no it wasn't me shagging anyone just a 4.something tremor.   I loved the buildings, from art deco to the late 1800's that dot the city centre, loved the little train that took us to the top where the botanical gardens are.  The views up there of the city and harbour are amazing even if my friend and I  got an eyeful of a young lad running straight into us with his willy hanging and bouncing along....and by young lad I mean a young man of about 16 or 18.  Highlight of the trip as I haven't seen a real willy in ages........

Its Gandhi!

views from the top....no willy shots though

sunrise and sunset over Lake Rotorua

My uncles motel is within walking distance from the shores of Lake Rotorua.  Right next to the property is a lane (Whittakers I think) that runs down to the lake shore, we cant walk along the shore from there as houses hug the shore of the lake in that area,  we could however walk there to take spectacular pictures of the sun rising and setting.

sun finally emerging over the horizon

sunset

It was freezing that morning and even though I did wrap up, my fingers and toes froze.  I somehow cant take pictures with gloves on, but the serenity of the sunrise was worth the almost frost bitten digits.

The sunset was equally spectacular and somehow its always pink and purple when the sun sets.  My camera didnt do the colours justice.

even the lake looks pink

sunrise lake rotorua

lazy

Adjusting to a life of doing nothing is getting me down.  I am bored, restless and getting lazy.  I have spent the last 2 days doing the bare minimum (not even doing laundry) and vegging out on the sofa with a book (e-book actually)
I haven't planned my grocery shopping very well and had to run to the supermarket yesterday, a Sunday no less, to brave the manic Sunday hordes just to get a few bits for my Guinness and beef pie.  Cooking in not doing work, its a labour of love for me as I do love cooking and trying out new stuff.....and licking the bowls and pots after everything is cooked. sort of my reward?  not so, light bulb moment this morning while groaning and moaning as my stomach heaved and churned (amazing what insights you get while on the toilet)  was that Guinness stout has fucking gluten!

Anyway

NZ was mostly work and no play and I had a purpose each day which gave me the incentive to get out of bed each morning.  Back in Singapore I have sorted the kitchen and cleaned out all the cabinets and laid the bug paper in every cupboard, and that's it.  I have no incentive to start my re grouting of the bathroom tiles ( what did I buy from NZ.... a box of grouting to do my bathroom tiles...seriously) or even download the hundreds of pictures that I took in NZ (this week,  I promise, a collage of pictures of sunrise and sunset in Rotorua)

I also wanted to stay fit (all those amazing walks in NZ and the active lifestyle made me fit and trim) as in getting up each morning and going for a walk before the heat and traffic set in, but haven't been doing that as the book I am reading (game of thrones series) is too good to put down and I end up going to bed at 1 or 2 am each night.

Utterly lazy and non productive..........

order has been restored

It looked like the laundry basket had thrown up all over the kitchen.
Clothes lay on counter tops, in the onion basket and all over the floor as if the laundry basket had had one too  many and couldnt hold it down anymore.....
That was the chaotic scene that greeted me on my return.
and the sight of my fast fading limp  plants looking at me accusingly and gasping for water, and saying 'how the hell could you leave us with that man/boy'

There were things all over the place, the coffee table in the living room became an extension of his bedside table, the kitchen counter looked like plastic and glass bottles were trying to start an invasion and the sink.......was a science experiment gone wrong.

and I had caught the flu in Auckland, which made for a miserable flight and when I got home and witnessed the chaos that was my home, I just gave up and didnt even try to tackle the pile of dishes in the experiment gone wrong sink.
When son no 2 finally came home, he brought with him fried rice (i asked) as I was too sick to cook or go buy my own dinner, and he looked equally exhausted from working, and he announced he was going to Moscow for work in a couple of days.

The lecture I had prepared in my head went out the window my silly stupid heart melted at his exhausted state and I knew I had to tackle his pile of washing before I got to mine.  He left on Friday night and it has taken me the whole weekend and more  to sort things out and to have my home back.
and the plants are getting better too

Homeward bound

And so it's been 5 weeks in New Zealand. How time flies.
It's been a fabulous adventure with learning all about running a motel, actually being in charge of it and then going to see some parts of this beautiful country.

I missed home, my place, my bed, my bathroom, my plants (which may be dead by the time I  get home as i dont know if son no 2 has watered them or not) my kitchen.  Eating gluten free on the road has been such a challenge only because fish and chips seem to be everywhere! I did indulge, as there is one fish and chip shop in rotorua that is worth the pain. I have had to add dairy to the no no list and I did have ice cream only once.   I  am after all in the land of milk and honey..... Seriously!

This trip was also part of the reflection plan, to reflect on my life to see where and what the next phase of my life will  be.  I do know what I want to do but it's just how to get there..... So I don't have all the answers yet.
What I do know though is that  this time tomorrow I will be home...

Leaving Rotovegas

It's been a whole month.  4 weeks or so of living in Rotorua ( nicknamed Rotovegas) and helping my uncle at his motel.
It's been an excellent adventure, a great learning experience.  I have learnt that I can interact with people, I can make small talk and that I actually like talking to different people.  I have also learnt that I am good at running a motel.
It's a been a dream of mine to do something like this for a long time and I am glad that I took this opportunity to come help my uncle and to see if I liked this life.  And I do, I love it!

New Zealand is a  country I could live in, it's got lots of open spaces, small towns, walks and treks, scenery to die for.  I like solitude and quiet and actually have had enough of a big city with the noise and fast pace.

So I have decisions to make when I get home next week,  on where i see myself living and what I want to do.......
But before that,  it's off to Wellington..........

Hamurana springs.....the wonder of nature

So we went walking again, this time to Hamurana Spring.  Its close enough to the town of Rotorua, which the locals pronounce differently and sounds so much better than when we say the name of the town.....  But anyway, like everything around lake rotorua, Hamurana Spring is just another lovely nature walk with a spring where people go to make wishes.  The picture below is of the spring, it doesn't look like it but that is all under water, a clear softly rippling spring and stream...... Coming from polluted Singapore where we don't get nature walks like this, no clear streams, no pure oxygen in the air, this has been a real treat!

The spring....that black hole on the right...

sunset at hamurana spring, with the moon in the background

couldn't resist a black & white of the trees

looking up through the trees

redwood trees in New Zealand

the water is so clear!

one week to go

Its been three weeks, that I have been here at the motel.  I still love it, I still can see myself doing this for the rest of my life.
I still love New Zealand and I still want to be able to stay here (even knowing that this country has a very thin earth crust and prone to earthquakes) but who knows where my future lies.

Next week, my friend (female and someone i used to work with....just saying) and I go to Wellington, which has just had an earthquake off its coast and is assessing the damage done, then we take a rail journey up to Auckland and then up to the Bay of Islands.  Our little trip around NZ before we fly home to Singapore on the 7th of August.

One week left to deal with people, who I have found to be nice, nasty, sweet ( like the old couple from the South Island that take off every year in July to drive around and see where the car takes them) honest and yes the dishonest (people who turn up with likely stories of the ridiculous prices we quoted them) but generally I have found that people are pretty decent.  I have realised that I can interact with people and I can make small talk......if I want to.  One week left to enjoy Rotorua. 

Master key

I have a master key, it unlocks everything on the property including all the guest rooms, the linen room, the laundry and any padlock.  As long as its locked, the master key can open it.

I have established my daily routine of setting up the linen changes for the checkouts and the room cleaning/service the night before and in the morning its folding towels that are in the drying room, opening the staff kitchen, the laundry room and the linen room, then its feed the cat, and the birds ( my uncle feeds the wild birds in the garden) and check the mineral pool temperature.  message the housekeepers that we need for the day, Then it's the recording of room and guest numbers for statistics,  then it's getting out the registration forms for the checkouts for the day.  All this i do only if my uncle isn't in, if he is around the work is shared.

Checkouts are easy but the mornings are usually hectic with laundry, we wash towels in house only, and there can be lots depending on the number we have in each unit.  It's washing, hanging  the towels which include, floor mats, hand towels, pool towels, dish cloths and tea towels. It's a good thing the sheets and pillow cases are outsourced! 

All that and man the reception,  answer the phone and take bookings, again, chores are shared if my uncle is around.
It's quite an interesting job/vocation/living but it takes a couple of people to run it.  It's a 7 days non stop till night time work and you need to have a partner you trust and can depend on.

One good thing has come out of this though apart from the fact that I love this and can see myself doing it, is the fact that the running around and hanging towels has been good, I have lost weight and my bye bye arms have firmed up........and of course having the master key that opens all doors!

flirting with the man on a harley

one of the Hot rods

So this weekend we had a few motoring enthusiasts stay at the motel.
the Hot Rod club, the vintage car club and a group on their Harleys.

The harley men and one woman rider, had stayed here before and they knew we had an old shed where they could park the bikes at night.  So this morning  I opened the shed for them to get their bikes and as I have embraced the open and chatty way of life, I got talking to one of the guys and I dont know what it is but a man with a Bike between his legs, in leathers ......well what can I say, the need to flirt instinctively appears....

another Hod rod club member

Its a pity the vintage club didnt bring their cars into our lot and I only managed to get a couple of pictures of the Hot rod club members cars.

the Harleys leaving

it takes all sorts

I always prided myself on being fair and non discrimitory (is that even a word?)
but is it discrimination if I discriminate against people who are of the same race as me?

Well I had a bit of a scene this morning with the Indian family that checked in yesterday.  we charge by the number of people and this family blatantly lied when they said only 4, when there were 8 of them (four were hiding in the van) .  On my lock up walk around the property checks last night, I found 8 of them in the pool with the two men having their beers in bottles.  Now we all know no glass by the pool as once glass breaks in the water, someone will get hurt and we have to fucking drain the whole pool.
So very politely I informed them that
1.  No visitors were allowed in our pool only motel guests ( i was assuming that the other 4 were their visitors, giving them the benefit of the doubt)
2.  No glass bottles, no food or drinks by the pool, they obviously missed the sign on the pool gates.

They did get a little annoyed but I 'helped' them by moving the beer bottles back to their room patio and they then vacated the pool.

Now we all knew that 8 people were staying in the unit so this morning I approached them as they were packing the car and politely, seriously, I was polite, informed them that they needed to pay for the extra 4 guests.  Well lets just say that the woman was very rude, I was told off about bad service, no kettle in the unit and they were going to inform the owners (my uncle & aunt, who are away on a long overdue holiday) how rude I was and they werent going to pay, and were never coming back to the motel again( good riddance I say)

well what was I to do...... I told them to vacate immediately (it was 9am) if not I was going to call the police and I was going to send a circular to all the motels about them..........

On the other hand, one of the other families that checked out left our feedback form with an excellent rating for service, room, cleanliness, and us being so nice........

I have lots to learn about people and how to deal with the nasty ones but it certainly takes all sorts.............

The people, the accents, the idiots

So one thing in New Zealand that I have to get used to is the accent.  They pronounce words differently.
Six is Sux and this is thus .....

what makes it worse is that I have to talk numbers often with room rates and credit card numbers (its a wonder how people happily give out credit card details!!) and sometimes I have to listen really hard to understand the numbers they are giving me.
oh and they call an electrician,  sparky, postman is a postie, bricklayer a chippie! 

Anyway
I have met alot of different people here while sitting at the front desk of the motel.  families, truckies, couples from the US, Australia, a group of giggling girls from South Korea, a whole bunch of interesting people.
I checked in a man who wanted a room for the night and when he filled up the registration form I realised he lived in Rotorua, ah a secret assignation.... my uncle said that he was a regular and he and his girlfriend would check out later that night....well at least someone was getting laid.

Then there were the family of Indians, 4 people they said, in a 2 bedroom unit......they pulled up in a van and later I saw 4 more people climb out of it......we charge extra for more people.  and yes it had to be the Indians doing this. and to top it all off all 8 went into the lovely heated pool......why!!  why did it have to be the indians!!
So its been interesting and this weekend is going to be full with new guests....lets hope no more stupid sorts check in...

Too tired to blog

So the whole idea about this New Zealand holiday was well not quite a holiday but more of a discovery exercise.

My uncle runs a 30 room motel in Rotorua and my retirement plan was to do something similar so I took this opportunity to come down to NZ to see if I liked  or had the brains to run a motel.
I am glad to report that brains are functioning well and more importantly I actually like it.! It's something I could easily do.  I am damn good at the admin side of things, lets not get into false modesty and just call it as it is, But I do however feel that my people skills are not as good as they should be when welcoming guests.  

I tend to be shy and don't engage people in conversation that easily, but here in beautiful New Zealand with the friendly people I have let my guard down and actually  enjoy chatting with all the different people that walk through the door.....  I am partial of course to the gorgeous men that do walk through the doors..... Perfect opportunity to find a new boyfriend!

Anyway
It's hard work and the hours are long, and it's not something  you do on your own. But it is something I know I would love to do!

Picture of Happy the cat at the Cleveland Motel Rotorua 

Walking through the redwood forest

So my Uncle that lives in New Zealand is and has been as long as I can remember, always inclined towards the outdoors, healthy living and exercise.

In New Zealand what does one do, one embraces nature and does activities based on the stunning landscape that is New Zealand.   A five minute drive from Rotorua centre is a red wood forest, which is where we ended up yesterday evening.

The air was so clean and crisp that my lungs were in shock for a full minute as they couldn't understand that what was being breathed in to them was just pure clean air.....oxygen overdose!
I probably will get really healthy here and expire on return to the smog that is Singapore!

Terminal 1 Sydney airport

So the flight wasn't so bad, well technically I am 3/4 of the way done so lets not jinx it but.......
The flight was pretty smooth and service was good.  Food not so good, I swear it was the same  meal that I had the last time I flew from Singapore to Australia on qantas. Cardboard chicken with some cranberry sauce and rice crispie crackers.  Breakfast was orange juice and rice crispie crackers again......thank goodness I brought my GF muffins with me.

What is interesting though is the security checks that we have to go through as we get off the flight and make our way to the gates for our next flight.  What do they think we managed to pick up or hide in our bags as we walked off one plane and into the departure area for the next flight?
We left from a secure area, enter into another one and are still put through the scanners (this scanner was like a pod where you stand in and put your hands up....a first for me and yes not all the passengers had to go through this, I as usual was randomly selected)

Another interesting thing was the A$3.25 I paid for a bottle of water.....

Free wifi in the airport is a blessing so I shan't complain further, but will sit back and relax and surf the net, eat my muffin and drink expensive water......