WWOOFing and other such things...

---

Let’s see…. Where did I leave off? Janelle and I spent two nights at that awesome hostel in Waitomo. On Saturday we walked the Waitomo Walkway. But don’t let the name mislead you- there is no “walkway” involved. It had been pouring the night before, and the trail was not much of one. It was the muddiest thing, and the path was hard to follow as some parts were under huge puddles of water and other parts were through cow pasture. It was beautiful, and totally worth it ((see pics on the fbook page)) but by the time we were done I couldn’t see my shoes at all, they were so covered with mud. That night we made a point to go get a hot, filling meal, since we had pretty much been living off spaghetti for the last week. ((Side note: beats on a veggie burger- DELICIOUS.)) The next day I took the bus to New Plymouth and had to say goodbye to Janelle for awhile so she can explore the South Island for a few weeks. I wasn’t expecting much from New Plymouth, but I was definitely pleasantly surprised. Not only was Sunday the very first sunny day since I got here, but New Plymouth is a little town on the coast with a long boardwalk, a free museum, and great views. If I ever have kids I’m moving immediately to New Plymouth and raising little wool-hat wearing children with curly hair. The hostel that I stayed at was cute and clean and about a block from the beach, but there were only 4 of us staying there, and there was no TV, movies, or internet. Much Yahtzee and Connect 4 happened. ((Other random side note: who decided that Connect 4 was ever a game worth playing? It is fun for about three seconds before you realize no one will ever win.)) The next day, yesterday, I took the city bus to Waitara for some WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms). This is a program in which travelers (willing workers) help on a farm for a few hours a day in exchange for room and food. My job, thus far, has been to sort the cracked macadamia nuts. Is it bad that I actually really like it? I just listen to music and zone out for 5 hours, and then they feed me avocados, macadamia milk and cobbler afterwards. Really, what’s not to love? Unfortunately, I think I will be switched from sorting to harvesting in a few days, which could be miserable if its raining and windy. Will try to keep you posted, though there is a serious lack of inet around here. Miss you all!

---

Comments

[Tracey]

I am so enjoying reading about your travels! I hope you get to stay on sorting for a long while.

[Alyssa]

Dude! That's awesome! I want to sort macadamia nuts in exchange for food...i'm glad you're doing well and you're having lots of adventures :) not much going on here...training really sucks b/c its just reading through policies and such, but at least i'm getting paid for it :/ i'm hoping to move out within the next month, but we all know how those plans have worked out so far...Chewie got fixed yesterday. He was the saddest little thing! He's doing a lot better now, but he's not allowed to play for a week! poor puppy. Love you Cassidy!!!!!