Those you that know me, might be aware that I earn a meagre living on the internet. This might pay for a simple lifestyle in Asia, or support a van bum in Oz, but it would not afford a ski season in Queenstown. Nor will it pay for a sky diving, bungy jumps, canyon swings or any other delights that the south island might have to offer. So for the first time in nearly two years I had to bite the bullet and get a job. And when in Rome… pick Kiwi Fruits!

We met our new boss, Colin, by the side of KFC in Te Puke and weren’t exactly buoyed by his team talk:

“Its hard work. Plenty of backpackers come here and quit after two days because they can’t handle it. It’s hard, and you’ll struggle.”

“You!” He said as he pointed at James.

“You’ll struggle because you’re tall. Tall people find it difficult under the orchards.” Then after damming James he looked at me and said:

“But the rest of you might manage.”

I don’t what he was getting at?

My heavily romanticised image of wondering around a sunny orchard picking fruits at my own will was smashed further as we were thrown in with a team of islanders, who had obviously been picking for years. As our backs struggled with the heavy bags and low orchard, the islanders blazed a trail, leaving nothing but bare Kiwi trees in their wake. Even the old women were laughing and joking while we agonised our way through the long day.

Thankfully it got easier, and when we were moved from gold to green Kiwis the money even improved. Eventually we got pretty good at the Kiwi picking game and one day, with a great deal of pride, our backpacker team out-picked the islanders. The only thing that let us down was our indifference to the management, and to the kiwi industry in general. After warnings for kiwi throwing, talking, slow picking, and tardiness, we were eventually told that Colin had no more work for us. Lukily our old mate Ali, from whom we had originally done a runner had loads of work left.

I only picked for Ali a few days before scoring a job in a packhouse. Moving from picking Kiwis to putting kiwis in a box might not sound like an improvement, but it was a welcome change. However Ash had told me about the imminent snow in Queenstown and after a 13 hour shift one Tuesday, I’d had enough. I was glad to leave the work behind, but it had been an awesome time in Tauranga. Although the work was crap, everyone was in the same situation, and we managed to have some pretty sweet banter along the way. Most importantly though, the work allowed me to purchase my season pass!

On the wednesday I headed to Auckland to pick up my new snow gear, namely a Burton Hero V-Rocker (thats an awesome snowboard for those that don’t know). Thankfully I managed to convince Kenny and Solli to make a similarly swift exit, and we were away by the Thursday morning.

We decided to take the 3am ferry to the south island, allowing us to do the 32 hour trip non-stop. It might not sound appealing, but was the most scenic drive I’ve been on during my travels. The views on the drive down to Queenstown were awesome! We arrived on the Friday night and the first ski lifts opened on the Saturday morning. I could not wait.