riverECHO

This was the first week, since we arrived in New Zealand two months ago, that I would classify as a “typical” week for us. We returned from a weekend away . . . in this scenario, hiking the Kepler Track. We’ve worked a regular schedule from Tuesday through Saturday . . . one day of which we spent in a very busy internet café in town as our house had its quarterly inspection. I spent two afternoons volunteering . . . in this case, tasting samples I had pulled last week and pulling new samples from lots that still need sulfur. We cooked at home every night . . . chicken tikki masala, pasta with garlic, mushrooms, and homemade rolls, pasta with recently killed venison from our roommate Steve, and grilled chicken salad. And yesterday afternoon, we went on our first ride on our new-to-us mountain bikes. I guess this last activity isn’t so “typical” for us down here, but because we spend so many summer afternoons at home in Victor biking, it is in fact very “typical.” The part about the ride that was atypical was that I took a huge digger within the first 20 minutes of the ride. Let’s hope taking diggers like that one do not become the norm for me.

Here’s a kiwi lesson for the week: Although they may drive on the left side of the road, they certainly don’t have any rules about walking to the left. BJ and I have tried to fit in by making a point of veering left while walking on a sidewalk or passing someone in the grocery store. In our efforts to act like the Kiwis and walk left, we have been faced with sidewalk standoffs and confusing moments. I wouldn’t say this really bothers me, since the solution is easy . . . veering right, but it confuses me. I’ll report back with findings for next week’s research project . . . walking right!

On another note . . . my dad and Fran just arrived in the country. They are travelling around the north island for a couple weeks before joining us in Queenstown. Welcome to New Zealand!

One mountain bike has arrived and we are waiting on another. Currently we can take turns on the one, but neither one of us has been motivated to leave the other person behind. The other bike will show up soon enough and we can’t wait. The bikes are exactly the same year and model . . . would you expect anything different from two people who dress alike and have the same of everything? Although they have a little less travel than the bikes we left at home, I don’t think we will be complaining too much once we are riding them. We already have a list of biking trails that we want to explore.

Meanwhile, I have taken up a bit of volunteer work at a local winery called Mount Edward. Kind of random I suppose, but I thought it would be fun to learn a little bit about how wine is made since it is such a big industry down here. I’ve only spent two afternoons there so far helping add sulfur to all the ba rrels of pinot noir. We also sampled some chardonnay yesterday (as this is their first year making chardonnay) to see how the lot was coming along in barrels where they had used different techniques. Don’t think I was drinking on the job though, we all spit it out after smelling it and swishing it around in our mouths. Duncan, my “boss,” is helping me in my ability to describe wine, a skill which seems to take either years of experience or some real bull$#!^ing. All I have been able to do so far is say what I like and what I don’t like. To help me learn, Duncan sent me away with a homework assignment . . . 3 bottles of pinot noir, all from different vintages (2005, 2006, and 2007) . . . hardly homework. I am supposed to come back next week with a short speech prepared on their differences. If only we had homework like this in college.