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This week has been quite rough. I'm just getting over being sick with bronchitis and a chest infection. Now I'm feeling a whole lot better. I'm thankful that i am staying at someone's house rather than a farm or a hostel.
Those would be much worse scenarios. While I was sick and the family was off on holiday I remember laying in the bath before going to bed and just zoning out. Staring at the fake marble walls that surround the bathtub and noticing how the pattern perpetuated. I started seeing faces and figures within the marbleized print on the panels. I was relaxed and I could finally breath. This reminded me of how one looks up at the clouds and sees mysterious shapes and fantastical creatures. This made me smile.
Today is the one year anniversary of the famous Christchurch earthquakes and we all watched a documentary that showed the events, reactions and the aftermath of the disaster. 183 people died, 116 of which where all in one building. The CTV building. People where living in their backyards under tarps because they didn't want to take the chance of being in their house and having it collapse on them when another after shock came. Compared to Japan or Haiti, this was a minor disaster, but to be brought into the stories and lives of the people who where there, witnessed and lost loved ones in the quake makes it seem just as terrible. I'm glad I saw it because I was pretty oblivious to what really happened. All I had heard was that there was a big earthquake in New Zealand and I went on with my life, but after knowing that there are only 4.4 million people living here 183 all of a sudden becomes a really big number.
I'm really am grateful to be staying where I am with a family who is treating me really well, but damn am I bored. I want to get a move on as soon as I can and hang out with people my own age. I was feeling really homesick today, more than I ever have on my whole trip so far and I think that's why. I've been in Paekakariki for about two weeks now and I need to start traveling again. My next hopeful destination will be Picton or somewhere near there. Picton is where the ferry lands from Wellington. I'm going to try an find another farm to WWOOF at and meet some more people my own age.
Anyway sorry I haven't posted in a while, I guess I have been a bit lazy apart from the time that I was sick. I will try and post more frequently.
I'm checking out for tonight with hopes to have my spirit lifted in the near future and to keep having amazing experiences.
Yuval




P.S. to anyone who's a Lord Of The Rings nerd this is a picture I took where they shot the seen of Gullem catching fish and singing in the forbidden pool in the second movie, or is it the third movie? I can't remember.

Location:Te Miti St,Paekakariki,New Zealand

So I moved again

I left Taupo on the 25 and took the Kiwi bus to River Valley where I went on an awesome white water rafting trip. The next day I was off to Wellington the capital of New Zealand. Here I am staying two nights in a backpackers and then tomorrow I will take a train to a Wwoofing place not far from here called
Paekakariki. That's what up so far.
Cheers!
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Location:Courtenay Pl,Wellington,New Zealand

I leave tomorrow

Today is Sunday. I leave Te Koha tomorrow and I'm a bit nervous about moving on, especially because I'm on my own. I feel like when I first arrived here in New Zealand I was pretty confident in myself because hadn't really pondered what was going to happen next, but now I have and I'm very uncomfortable about being on my own in a place I'm not accustom to.
Yesterday was filled with excitement.
First thing in the morning I had two chase two small pigs who had escaped their pen all around the apple orchard. Finding them was surprisingly the easy part. We finally herded them back to their pen and turned the electric fence on. The two pigs seamed to take no notice to the electrical current as they once again ran through the wires. We finally got them back into the pen and locked them in their shed. We then brought a bunch of apple bins and lined them up a long the fence so they wouldn't be able to escape.
Mean while the mother pig "copper," had just given birth to 14 little piglets three of which did not make it. But the remaining eleven where the cutest baby animals I have ever seen. They where all competing for breakfast as she panted heavily, exhausted from her birth.



After work I went to the beach with another wwoofer and we spent about 2 hours talking, making sand castles and playing cards over a couple of beers.









Then we drove home welcomed with a big pan of chili and this awesome sunset.



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Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

Sorry for the wait

So I have finally finished the oven here on the farm and it looks awesome. I am very proud of myself for getting it done so fast. My Hosts are are also very happy with it as well. I had a pretty good New Years. I got my first hangover which sucked, but I soon drank some coke and I got over it in no time. I went to the beach for the first time in New Zealand and that was fun. I made a couple of sand art forms, but didn't go swimming because it was quite cold. Everything so far is sweet as. Almost every wwoofer is gone besides me and a Girl from Normandy. Other jobs I have been doing are weeding pumpkins, harvesting and cleaning garlic, picking raspberries, boysenberries, black currents and strawberries.











This was a f&$@ing massive fig!

Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

To everybody who views this blog!

If you want to enlarge the photos you can by left clicking once on them
Thanks to David W. for bringing that up.

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Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

This where I am

The red dot is Auckland, the biggest city and the blue dot is Havlock North.
That's where I am right now



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Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

I meant to say awesome people

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Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

Shabbat dinner

This is my first dinner on Te Koha farm with all these awesome I met.


Here are some pics from a hike we did earlier

Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

Just got the next farm

So I just arrived arrived at the next farm that I'll be spending the next couple weeks on. I met all the wwoofers and they are all really nice people. We too a small hike up to a peek in Hastings and saw some amazing views of Hawks Bay.
Gotta go bout to have din din


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Location:Te Mata Mangateretere Rd,Havelock North,New Zealand

Farm pics

It's been a good week

So it's been a week since I last posted because I don't have wifi at the farm I'm staying on. I could not be happier though. Marg and Rob are the nicest people. They don't let me go to work without a good breakfast and a cup of tea. Work on the farm has been really interesting. My first day out Rob took me on his ATV up to the pastures and shifted the sheep from from one lot to another. I thought it was incredible how man figured out how to work with dogs to herd the sheep and cattle. He uses a whistle to signal the dogs and tell them what to do.
Besides sheep and cattle they have chooks, ducks, 2 piglets, a dog " Zugar" pronounced "zooga," and two cats.
The other day rob had me help him tag his cattle. It was not a fun thing to watch. Basically he punches a hole in the cow's ears and tags them with numbers. In order to do this you have to herd the cattle into a long narrow corridor so they are squeezed in single file. Then one by one we tagged them. I'm pretty sure the cows where scared because they where all pissing and shitting. One cow tripped up and got lodged sideways in the corridor and couldn't get up. That was sad to see because Rob had to make all the cattle walk over him.
A couple day before we drenched lambs and cleaned up the U's rears.
There is another workawayer working at the farm as well. Her name is Clair and told me that a week before I arrived Rob took her up to tail the lambs. First of all I never knew sheep had tails. They look so weird with tail. Tailing means taking a hot iron and burning off the lambs tail. "Lovely"
Any way life on the farm is swell. I am having a very good time.
This Friday I am going to stay on a different farm in Hawks Bay which is supposed to be very beautiful. This is an organic farm and most of the work will be apple thinning, but the owners Clare and Erin are interested in maybe having me build them an earth oven with the other volunteers. That's exciting. I really enjoy see other people interested in this stuff.
They will host me for at least two weeks and maybe through Christmas.
This is how I plan to work my way down the east coast of both the north and south island and then back up on the west coasts.
Everything here is going great. I met some awesome people in the hostel I stayed at in Auckland and I hope I can maintain those friendships through Facebook. There are tons of Germans here. Most of the people I met are German and they all wanted to marry me to get my name "Zonnenschein."
I'm not sure if this next farm has wifi so I don't know when I'll be able topmost again. Sorry for the long wait.
Health and wealth to everyone
Yuval


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Listening good music and enjoying New Zealand beer

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Location:Music and art fest

Eyebrow raise

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Location:Ruskin St,Auckland,New Zealand

My accommodation for the past 4 nights and the view from the hostel balcony

This where I'm staying till I leave for the farm in Gisborne. Everybody's cloths keeps falling on my tent.they don't stay clean or dry for long. Ha ha!!!

Location:St Georges Bay Rd,Auckland,New Zealand

Taste of reality

Well last night I had a taste of reality.
I went out last night with a few friends to a pub to have my first official legal drink out, but the bars where all closed except one and I wasn't going to pay $10 for a beer. So I didn't. On the walk back to the hostel we where crossing a street a car drove past us and they threw a glass beer bottle at me. I was lucky because I don't think they had very good aim, unless they were trying to hit my foot. Anyway I'll go out to a bar another night. Today was our lazy day.


Oh yeah I'm probably going to shave soon. Ha ha

Location:St Georges Bay Rd,Auckland,New Zealand

Wow I wish I could live here

I just got lost in the city of Auckland for like 6 hours. I walked around and saw all the sites and people. There are so many different kinds of people here. Asian, Indian, Maori and white. My feet hurt. I'm going back to my hostel now to get some rest. Tonight is my last night at Oaklands lodge. I'm going to try to find another accommodation in the city for tomorrow.


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Location:Karangahape Rd,Auckland,New Zealand

Just bought my first beer!!!

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Location:Oaklands Rd,Auckland,New Zealand

Finally here!!

I've just arrived in New Zealand and I'm resting in my hostel. I barely slept last night. I think I slept 2 hours, if that on the plane. I am so exhausted. I almost fell asleep on the bus into Mount Eden Village.
The flight from LA was extraordinarily long


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Location:Oaklands Rd,Auckland,New Zealand

Ready to fly!!!!!!!

Here I am having a second go at this after this application crashed right after finishing writing my first draft. I'm in SF International waiting for my plain to arrive and relaxing. I had a great experience going through security waiting for the TSA to put my stuff through the X ray 3 times because of some wires I had in my bag and some traveling candlesticks."Rabbi Sarah":)
Here I am waiting and relaxing. I'm checking in with loads of excitement and anticipation and a whole lot more nervousness than when I last wrote, but nonetheless I am ready to face what I have coming.

Location:W Field Rd,San Francisco,United States

Havin funnnn

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Location:Arlington Blvd,Richmond,United States