Stuff and Things + Accents on the Park - Take 1

As our faithful followers are aware, we missed last weeks blog entry...so, we've condensed the happenings into a short day by day recap to get everyone up to speed.

Day 1: Monday. blah, blah, blah...

Day 2: Tuesday. Theatre night with the flatmates, Moonlight Over Magnolias. The writing of the screenplay for Gone with the Wind. Interesting American accents.

Day 3: Wednesday. Work for John and wedding dress shopping time for Shannon with Kat (so there's no confusion...Kat and Jeff are getting married :). Followed by work stuff and movie night.

Day 4: Thursday. Work day turned into tramp day to the Marahau and Kenepuru Sounds. You thought your roads were windy. Nothing some honey soy chicken potato chips can't cure - seriously delicious. Set up camp at Nikau Cove. Dug for clams as well as found some mussels - fresh, sweet, quality seafood. We are now gatherers. Bastard marmot woke us up in the middle of the night...kazoo type noises...still no idea what it was. Possum?

Day 5: Friday. Queen Charlotte Sound, sheep. Picton - gem of a town - small inlet community we highly recommend. More sheep. Mussels at the Slip In in Havelock (green lip mussel capital of the world) - good, but not as good as ours. Johns shitty 6-pack challenge, booooo Carlsberg...still more sheep.

Day 6: Saturday. Kat's birthday. Mussel Fettuccine = brilliantly amazing (mussels were purchased in Picton out of the back of a truck) Jenga challenge with the kiwis, first time for John. More practice needed. Lots of  kiwi friends, beer drinking and good times. Movie time - Shannon asleep 5 minutes in. Weird.

Day 7: SUSHI Sunday. Started the day with the first breakfast including bacon in NZ! Search for the elusive sushezi, not today unfortunately.... using the flatmates sushezi we made the best sushi yet by far. Salmon, smoked chili mussels, avocado, scallions, carrot, capsicum...sriracha! Yummy.

Now that we're all caught up...heres what's been happening over the past week.

We spent our last day at the pimpin pad relaxing and enjoying all of the luxury and space that comes along with living in an actual house. Made pizza with the flatmates for our final meal, Pie #1 - seafood medley and Pie #2 - sausage, onion and mushroom paired with fresh herb garlic bread. Absolutely amazing...homemade pizza may soon become a weekly ritual as well.

Tuesday morning we packed up the Adventureship in anticipation of moving into Accents on the Park. A bit of a transition but nevertheless an exciting new chapter in our New Zealand life. After settling in and a brief meltdown (lack of closet space - okay - space in general) Shannon started her first day on the job. John being amazing surprised me with a bottle of champagne and handcrafted local chocolates from Kerstens (Yes, Carolyn and Mary, we will go when you are here) in celebration of my first day of work. Such a stud.

The week continued with work for both of us...very exciting that we are finally a little more set up to be able to continue on with the holiday. We caught our weekly movie - Hangover II - hilarious. Spent Friday night at the pimpin pad with our old flatmates...bacon (canadian style) carbonara and garlic bread...yum.

We spent Saturday morning at the WOW (World Of Wearable Art) Museum. A perk with the hostel job is being able to do tourist activities at a discounted rate or often times free. Something for free in NZ?...we never thought the day would come. A combination of a wearable art exhibition, handcrafted jewelery and other medium and a classic car showroom. The cars were real classics. John got into the '67 Mustang used in Bullit with Steve McQueen, that might mean more to those who are over 50 or have seen that movie. (Lorin and Jim H) There were a few Model A's, one used in the original Scarface. 3 Mini Coopers, from the original Italian Job were there as well as some amazing Jags, Cadys, and Ferraris, Dad you would have enjoyed these. The wearable art portion of the exhibit are samples from the prior years annual Brancott Estate World of Wearable Art Awards show. Artists create various costumes or textiles based on a specific theme - most of the costumes are developed using imaginative techniques and everyday objects (wine corks, plastic, formed metal etc). Besides finding THE ONE RING, the wow museum turned out to be not as WOW as we had hoped...crazy overpriced for what you get, glad it was free. Nevertheless, we made the most of our trip and enjoyed spending the day experiencing something new.

Last but not least...John's favorite part of the exhibit.

Thankfully he didn't disappear after that little stunt.

That's about it for now, stay tuned for next weeks update and more info on hostel life and brewery sales!

Tramping...BBall with the Flatmates and Sushi Sunday

After settling into our new home, and having it to ourselves for the weekend...we decided it was time to set out on our first tramp (note kiwi converter to left of page...tramp = hike). One of the reasons we settled in Nelson was the close proximity of three national parks and a state park to the town. A quick 45 minute drive and we were at the Coastal Track start centre in Abel Tasman. Still working on our Kilometer to Mile conversion skills, we set out on a 28K trek into the park. Amazing, amazing, amazing. The path was nicely maintained and every corner presented something new to experience - first of many were rock messages left in the sand visible only when the tide is out. Just under 9 miles later we reached our destination, a little more than we had planned. We made good time going in, all the hikes offer K's to hours converters and are overestimated on hours. The hike was through a rain forest with a variety of growth: ferns, flowers, fungus, pine trees and many other undergrowth. Plenty of singing birds seemed to accompany us as we made our way.

Te Pukatea Bay is a beautiful little campground set directly behind a golden sandy beach. A campsite with an approx. 10 tent capacity, we were the only people to pitch a tent and stay the night. With an entire beach and campsite to ourselves, we set out exploring the shellfish, flowers, birds and seashells strewn about.

Always searching for critters...

I made it...my first backpacking trip!

love love love

Panorama shot of Te Pukatea Bay the morning before we headed out.

Dinner and a couple of cribbage games later, it was time to turn in, tomorrow was another 14K trek back to the Adventureship. John marked our visit on a picnic bench in the campsite, looking forward to finding it down the road :) After the long trip out...which we were both ready to be over by the end...we decided a much earned beer and burger were on the agenda. Where to go on the Queens Birthday?

We landed at an Irish pub, Motty Malones, for a brew and after conversing with the locals decided to head down the block to a local favorite The Happy Chippie. On the menu...anything you could dream of having battered, fried, charbroiled, whatever your poison. Regular cheese-burger for Shannon and a bacon-burger for John (fell short on the bacon, as of course it was a slice of ham) but other than that the food was incredible. The chips were as hot as hot can be - Mary Barz, your temperature sensitive taste buds would have loved them...mine did! Made it home, full, happy and clean after a much needed shower and fell asleep soon after. Time to hit the computers tomorrow and finalize this job situation.

Tuesday night is movie night in Nelson, which means cheaper fare... always good for the budget conscious. This seems to be date night for us in the weeks to come. Water for Elephants was the selection, with a nalgene of Pilsener and some snacks, followed by a couple of pizzas from Steffanos - great neopolitan pies.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were filled with talking to potential employers, making dinner, reading, watching movies and playing crib with the flatmates.

Saturday we found ourselves walking around the market, and enjoying our first taste of the famous New Zealand meat pies at a corner store. I must say, they were good, but definitely not good enough to be worth the calories...500 per pie. No thanks. Saturday night headed off to the local basketball game, The Nelson Giants, with Kat and Jeff. The Giants are a semi-pro team that is about the same talent as the MSU Bobcats-so a few inches short of a dunk or a triple double in turnovers, charges, and airballs. Lots of beer and lots of wine later the Giants were victorious and we marked that event off our to do list.

John - Shannon (yes Dad, same shirt) - Kat - Jeff

  

Trafalgar Centre

Sunday turned out to be a typical recovery/relaxing day after the crazy Saturday night we had. One good thing that came out of our otherwise uneventful day was a new tradition. Sushi Sundays! Kat and Jeff have an amazing machine - the sushezi - a great little tool and something we're looking forward to making together every week.

Sushi Sundays...our new tradition.

Job Updates:

Shannon landed a full time gig with Accents on the Park, a hostel located in Central Nelson. The position is primarily Reception driven with a large emphasis on hostel operation. Along with the position comes room and board in exchange for after hour supervisor shifts. We will sign a 4 month contract and call Accents our home for the next little while.

John is getting to know the craft market and talking with another brewery for a potential opportunity. Sales for Stoke begin next week and hopefully some new accounts and some more hours. Make sure to check out the brewery news and updates tab.

A special birthday shout out to Jenna Eberhardt, Shannon's niece, as she turns 15 today! She'll be out on the open road in Boise soon, so drivers beware ;) Love ya Jenna Bug!

Next up, The calm before the storm of the Accent's job and business time.

Awwwwwwwwww Nelson!

the Oystercatcher 

Enter Accents on the Park...a quaint little hostel in the CBD (Central Business District, AKA Downtown) that we headed to upon arrival. A nice place to stay the first night and much better than the previous nights Holiday Park in Blenheim. The place is situated between two main roads that run straight through town and continue to the coast - less than a 5 mile stretch. We were given some info on local bars and once we dropped our stuff headed out in search of a beverage.

First stop, the Free House. A great venue for a bar, situated in an old Church. Is there a better way to feel closer to God than having a quality crafted pint in an old Church? Enthusiastic knowledgeable bartenders serving up a plethora of local wines, ciders and beers. The place was so full finding a spot to sit was a bit of a challenge, so we took our drinks outside and enjoyed the crisp winter air (low 60's). That's what they call winter! Sprig and Fern was a bit too crowded - on the list for next time. Last stop on to the 623, a chain restaurant which wasn't quite as awful a chain as most are in the states. Case in point, they had Erdinger beer on tap from Germany - John was very happy. We'll call it a night after hitting Liquor Land, grabbing a bottle of vino for a nightcap. Still sticking with Montana as the best value wine we've tried thus far (within our small budget)...wine updates to follow once the funds are rolling in.

Saturday morning brought sunshine and an opportunity to enjoy the local market. Tons of artisans, local produce and plenty of wool focused vendors lined the car park. So many great treasures, definitely heading back there once the job is solidified to do some major damage.

Checked out of the hostel and headed to the beach.  Sunshine reflecting off the water, very windy... Tons of seashells and a few people walking the shore enjoying the weather. Local kite-boarders all over the water, jumping through the air - barely missing each other...very cool to watch. After our day at the beach, time to find a new place to stay...decisions, decisions, decisions...

The Nelson City Holiday Park it is...our most cost friendly option and we get to have our own cabin! Sounds pretty glamorous for what they were asking per night... until you see that the 'cabin' looks just like a shed you'll find in the backyard housing the lawnmower.  It's a room all our own, no matter what you call it...sold for a 4 night stay.

The next four days go something like this...

1. Wake up, shower, breakfast
2. Drive or walk to library...job hunt, and hunt, and hunt
3. Grocery store
4. Dinner, bottle of wine or beers (sometimes both, depending on the day)
5. Shed time reading
6. REPEAT



Forward to Wednesday, an awesome find on Trade Me. A listing for a "Pimpin Pad" (which name my dad had some comments about when forwarded the listing). The house, located in the wood district of East Nelson is West facing overlooking Tasman Bay as well as Matari and Lookout Mountain Ranges. Not a bad view. The thought of moving out of the Shed was sad but we knew it was time. We toured the house and after a brief glance at each other, we knew...this was home (for now). When asked if we wanted to move in over the weekend, we politely asked if tomorrow would work...they obliged and we spent our last night in the Shed. Tomorrow was a new day...

oysters...oysters...oysters!!

The next morning, checked out the Library for old times sake and headed down to the Nelson City Marina for lunch. So many amazing things to see...beautiful boats (Jeff Anderson, yours would fit nicely...think about it), water so clear you can see fish swimming around and oysters, oysters, oysters. Another task on the things to do list is to investigate how we can score our own shellfish. Later that day, we moved into the Pimpin Pad, finally a house, and have enjoyed getting to know our new flatmates (as the Kiwi's call roomates) Jeff and Kat.

The view from our new porch, a step up from the Shed.

Now that we have internet at home, the days are not so monotonous and the Library is a fond but distant memory. As you can see, the view here is much different than you can expect to see at a library. Interviews took up the rest of our week...

John got a part time, performance based sales position with Stoke Brewery, under the McCashin family, in Stoke about 20 min West of the house. There is great potential to start Marketing, Social Networking and Event promotion there. We will see how the NZ craft market welcomes a Yank from the States (as the Kiwi's refer to us Americans). More brewery interviews to come, the plan is to land around 40hrs worth of Sales, Marketing, Consulting, and whatever else pays the bills time.

Shannon has been applying for any job under the sun from Wine ANYTHING to Salmon Marketing to Selling Kitchens to Hostel Greet/Meet/Front Desk Lady to Project Management...a few great opportunities on the horizon.

Making sure to not to lose sight of why we're half way around the world in the first place. To enjoy ourselves and experience new things (too bad bills still come with the territory). Stay tuned to hear about the job situation, hopefully next week will bring great news to our blog update!

With our packs ready to go...we're off early tomorrow morning to Abel Tasman and one of the Great Walks on the South Island. Photos to come...

Beer News and Brewery Updates:

Other notable Breweries around the area with potential. Founders Organic Brewing: Lagers brewed to the German Law of Purity. They also have an excellent ESB and Fair Maiden brew. Solid brews. Nelson Bay Brewing: brews a Doppelbock and traditional Lager for the only German Restaurant called Kraut's in Nelson. Townsend Brewing on the West Side of the Bay has an excellent darker Hefe, not quite Dragon's Breath but it will suffice for awhile.

A major difference between NZ pubs and US bars are as follows. There are Free Pubs and Tied Pubs, similar to how it was before the 3 tier system of Supplier, Distributor, Account in the States. In NZ pubs can be "Tied" to a brewery, usually DB(like Bud) or Lion Nathan (like MillerCoors). What this means is that the pub basically sells out to the brewery and either sells anywhere between 50% to 100% of their product. Not what you necessarily call competitive business practices. Free pubs are just that, free to put on tap whatever the customer or pub manager wants and it usually is local quality craft beer.