Has Christmas really come and gone already? We hardly noticed it. Sure, there were get togethers and even some presents exchanged, but where are all the decorations and christmas music and shopping frenzy? Poor Steph was so disappointed that there were no Christmas sales at the few shops she has to choose from around here. The lack of Christmas cheer leading up to the big day nearly put her in a state of depression, but she perked up once she saw all the candy I got her as presents. We had a cookout on Christmas eve at our place which went well. It was the same crew as Thanksgiving (me, Steph, Simon, Alison, Sean, Garth, Stephen and Rachel) along with Fiona and Juliane, two girls from Ireland that Simon and Ali know who just arrived in Queenstown a few weeks back. Though it wasn't very Christmas-y, we had a good time sitting out on the balcony, talking, and even playing a round of Steph's famous "Know Your Bro" game.
Since it was technically past midnight by the time the cookout wrapped up, we decided to go ahead and open up the few presents we all had under the tree. Steph and I basically gave each other lots and lots of candy as well as a couple small gifts. I got Steph some lotion and an IOU for a necklace she's been looking at in town (classy, right? actually I did go to the shop and look for one but they didn't have anything good so we'll have to go back). Steph got me a nice journal for documenting and planning the rest of our travels. Christmas day we slept in a little, went to church, then over to Sean and Garth's for Christmas lunch. They made some sort of chicken roll thing which may or may not have been a traditional African dish but was really good nonetheless. A few of the other river guides came over, and we sat around and played party games and hanging out. Overall a completely different Christmas experience than we're used to but we're happy to experience it.
ever had Christmas lunch outside?
river guides (from left: me, ross, stephen, sean, simon, garth, guido, bjorn)
I do have some good news to report today: last night I caught my first fish in New Zealand!! Woohoo! I was pumped. Simon got a fishing pole for Christmas, so I was determined to catch a fish before he did. Last night (while he was at work) I went down there right as the sun was going behind the mountains (about 9:30). I guess it was right after 10, as I was about to call it a night, I was all of the sudden fighting something. Holy crap, a fish! I was terrified I'd lose another one, but fought him hard into shore and dragged him up on the rocks. I wish I could put a picture of it on here because I think it was a little bigger in my memory than reality, but I can say with some confidence that it was a good 14-15" long, maybe somewhere between 2 and 3 pounds, brown trout. I had been told that a sharp knock between the eyes would put a trout out of its misery, but either I wasn't hitting him hard enough or this trout had an extra thick skull because I couldn't kill the poor thing. I kept smacking him on the head and trading up for bigger rocks. I felt horrible. Then the camera dies as Steph was trying to take a picture of it, though we did get a couple good ones. Next I had to gut the thing on the counter (while Steph was gagging in the other room) - let's just say it didn't go well, but who cares? I finally got one! Yes, a proud day indeed.
Update from the river: still not guiding but I have been able to get some work "babysitting." Basically, we allow kids ages 8 and up to come down the river, but anybody under 12 gets their own personal guide. Even though I'm not certified to lead a group, I am able to be a personal guide. I guess because it's holiday season there are a lot of families in town, so I have been able to get a decent amount of babysitting trips under my belt. They are actually a lot of fun, especially if you get a good kid. Some kids are scared and cold and a general pain to take down, but most of them are happy and excited and a lot of fun. You get to tease them (this is where the crocodiles live) and talk to them a lot so I generally enjoy it. I've still only done 2 of my 5 assessments so it could still be a couple weeks before I'm doing any real guiding.
One of the big perks about working for an activity company is a thing called "famils" - short for familiar - which basically means I get to do most of the other activities in town for free. A lot of people coming down the river ask for suggestions of what else to do in town, so other companies let us come out for free so we can recommend them to tourists. Works out great for me of course. First a few of us went canyoning (the same company I had applied at when I first got here). There is this really cool little canyon about 15 minutes out of town, and we got all kitted up in wetsuits and helmets and stuff before doing ziplines across the canyon, rappelling down, riding down slides, jumping off cliffs, etc. It was a lot of fun but the water was super cold and there was a good bit of waiting around. About a week after that we went on the ziptrek, which is a brand new attraction in town. Basically you get a free ride up the gondola, then do a series of 4 big ziplines through the forest. The ziplines were pretty cool, but not that fast and there was a schpeal (sp?) on conservation and sustainability at every landing. So overall kind of boring compared to the other activities in town, but the view of town while hanging upside down was worth the trip (plus it was free!). Eventually we'll do some of the jetboats, bungee jumping, canyon swing, and whatever else we can do for free.
Well I hope everyone is having a good holiday season. It is finally warming up here so that is at least taking away any homesickness we are having over the holidays. Along with doing some of the activities in town, we'll hopefully start getting out more on hikes and maybe even break out the tent that we got 3 months ago and is still sitting in its box unopened. Stay tuned
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