The World of Hokey Pokey

For most of you, Hokey Pokey is a dance that you learned before you
knew the alphabet and a dance that you are embarrassed to still know.
For most Kiwis, Hokey Pokey is the only true New Zealand invention: an
ice cream flavor. Well, soon after followed an infamous edible line of
Hokey Pokey products: cookies, cakes, candies, and all things
wonderfully crisp and sweet.

At Koanui Backpackers in Blenheim, Hokey Pokey is not simply that; it
is an obsession, a world of utopia, a name that conjures hours of
conversation. It is a superhero, an inspiration, a savior.

When there seems to be no way out of the forest, Hokey Pokey comes to
the rescue. See this: Andre, Stuart, Nancy and I tramping hours…and
hours….and hours through the mountains, then reaching a sudden dead
end in the trail. Behind is the deep, dark, mossy forest. In front is
a devastated logging area with the sun relentlessly firing scorching
rays. Where are we on the map? What are we to do? Tonight, stuck in
the dense dark forest…cold, wet, starving. Sick images running through
our heads…

Then a voice emerges, whispering 'Hokey Pokey…Hokey Pokey!' That
delicious, light, fresh, crispy taste tingles our tastebuds. That
creamy subtle caramel flavor melting down the tongue, then biting
down, the hokey pokey bits crunch through, dissolving into a sweet
trickle to finish the taste. Our eyes perk up; our steps become
lighter, quicker; and somehow, we find our way down to the main road
as the sun sets.

And when life is hard and mind numbingly boring, Hokey Pokey keeps us
alive. Some days at the vineyard bake like an oven. Some days pass by
unbearably slow. And still others combine the above to drain every
lingering strain of energy. Doing the same thing over…and over…and
over again; Monotony overcomes your mind, causing repetitive thoughts
syndrome: 'Hokey Pokey, Hokey Pokey; Bloody hell, I could really use
some Hokey Pokey Ice Cream. Hokey Pokey, Hokey Pokey, Bloody hell…'

And when arguments turn into bets, Hokey Pokey is the shining trophy.
'Dare you to eat a spoonful of wasabi without water!' Now any normal,
sane homo sapien with a brain would say 'No' to such a silly dare. But
when Hokey Pokey enters the picture, all logical reasoning is clouded.
And hence, the original 'No' becomes 'I'll do it if you will give me a
bag of Hokey Pokey Cookies'. Even the most absurd arguments such as
"'Bet you the next new person at the hostel will be
German!''Definitely Japanese!' 'Dumbass, you KNOW he will be Canadian"
will balloon into a battle where a 2 L tub of Hokey Pokey is the
hostage.

And finally, there is the battle within thyself. To you, eating
contests are about the fastest eaters. But with a 2 L tub of Hokey
Pokey ice cream, it is about how long your tub can last. Poor: <2
hours; Fair: 2-4 hours; Good: 6 hours; EXCEPTIONAL: >10 hours. How
could you though? It's here. It's yours. You bought it. You love it.
You know you love it. You don't have to resist the urge. Really, you
don't.

You and me
and Hokey Pokey
we were meant to be. ☺ ☺ ☺

I Heard it Through the Grapevine

Time 6:00 am. Beep Beep Beep. I sit up sleepily. Must get up. 5
minutes to get out of bed. I stumble to the kitchen, grabbed a bowl of
cornflakes and milk. Ten minutes to eat. Ten minutes to change, put in
contacts, brush teeth and pee. 5 minutes to grab lunch, water, and
warm clothes. 6:30 out the door. I meet up with Annika (German), Kevin
(American), and Garrell (black Parisian) outside the hostel and we
wait together for Linda to drive us to the vineyard. Work at the
vineyard starts promptly at 7 am. Today we are vine thinning.

'Dontcha know that I heard it through the grapevine; Not much longer
would you be mine; Oh I heard it through the grapevine; Oh I'm just
about to lose my mind; Honey honey yeah…'

As I pick the leaves off the vines, Marvin Gaye is singing through my
head. I look up: at the edge of the vineyard is a stretching landscape
of mountains. Half the hill is filled with grazing sheep, slowly
moving about. The other half is shrubby wild vegetation. I turn
around: beyond the stretch of vineyards is another scenery of hazy
blue mountains. These are covered in dense pine forest. Farther beyond
on the horizon, mountains are capped with a blanket of white.

I take a deep breath. The cool wind fills my lungs, sending a shiver
through my body. But I feel cleansed, and refreshed. I finish my row,
and join Garrell on the next. We stand opposite, removing excess
leaves to help the vines breathe, and the grapes grow. Garrell tells
me about his travels through the North Island in his campervan. Even
though his English is broken, I can understand him, and he likes
practicing his English.

We are luckier than most other backpackers working on vineyards. We do
not do budrubbing as often. Budrubbing! Just the sound of the job is
treacherous. Our supervisors work with us, not above us. And most
important of all, they give us a good amount of break time. We have
tea time at 10 am, lunch at 12:30, and we finish at 3:15. All in a
days work.

Back at the hostel, everyone is just getting back from the vineyards
and fighting for the showers. Most of them are complaining about
budrubbing for 8 hours. After spending a day bending down and standing
up every few seconds, anyone's back and knees would be hurting: truly
the devil's work.

My roommates Mogdeh (Persian German), Misaki (Japan), Lim (Korea), and
I discuss the day and what to eat for dinner. Mmm…beans (muscles
hurting = need protein), corn, fresh tomatoes, and pasta sounds
wonderful! After cooking and eating together, some evening TV,
socializing, and winding down sounds good. I'm tired now…early to bed!

------
where am i? read my next email.

zealand hoppin'

in the last week, i traveled many places. partly because i'm so indecisive. i hate when i spend so much time thinking and thinking about the best decision, when really i should just DO.

since i have arrived in New Zealand, i stayed in and around Auckland (the big city) for 2 weeks. for the last 4 days that i was in Auckland, I went WWOOFing in a little town called Titirangi. The best thing i love about WWOOFing is that in exchange for some hours of work, you have everything that you need (food, accomodation, someone to drive you places). the food part is a special bonus. one day for lunch we had only salad. the salad was crisp, fresh, and organic. it had nuts, sunflower seeds, tomatoes, sugarbeet, lettuce, lemon juice, carrots, feta cheese, avocado, balsamic vinegar...all fresh from his garden...truly heaven.

you also learn a lot from the host family just from living and talking to them. i still can't believe i ended up in a Thai meditation center, feeling completely foolish in jeans and a bright orange patterned white shirt (while everyone else was in all white) and not being able to speak Thai. but it was an experience that i could keep in my story list. david also told me some things about organic farming...how to farm so that you don't need chemicals and still keep the bugs off. i find myself becoming more interested in how things are produced and made without the use of crazy chemicals after reading 'cradle to cradle' (a d-lab book).

The major downside to WWOOFing is that you don't make any money. it seems to me that for any activity or experience, the more learning that is involved, the less pay that it gives. i've been here for 2 weeks and i haven't made any money, just spending. So i decided to go on a quest for a job.

I first headed to Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. I was hoping to get in touch with Charlotte (a kiwi i met when i volunteered in ecuador a few years back), but no reply. I then hoped to get an interview from an mri company that an MIT alum hooked me up with, but no reply. well then, there was nothing keeping me in Wellington. I hopped onto the ferry to cross from the North Island to the South Island the next day.

i just want to say here that the interisland ferry ride was the most beautiful,stunning ferry ride in the whole world. my favorite part was passing through the narrow Queen Charlotte Sound. you really feel as if you're in a part of the lord of the rings; amongst secluded islands, mountains, green wilderness, turquoise blue waters, and a bright blue sky. it's like an endless postcard stretched before your eyes.

i hopped on my tour bus and headed for Nelson. along the way, we stopped by a vineyard and did some free wine tasting. i wish i could've done some wine tasting, but i knew that going through those windy roads with alcohol wasn't good. luckily, next to the wine shop was an olive oil shop, and there was free olive oil tasting as well. mmm...the garlic olive oil...and lemon olive oil...

the trip to the vineyard inspired me to work on one. most backpackers in New Zealand end up in the harvesting industry because it's seasonal, and suitable for making money in a short time. depending on the season, you'll pick different fruit! the season right now is for grapes, so the vineyards are dying to find people. I took the bus from Nelson to Blenheim, and here I am! in Koanui Backpackers, where they said they would help arrange vineyard work for me. now i just have to wait for Monday to come. in the meantime, I'm going to make some extra money housekeeping at the backpackers.

the backpackers environment here in Blenheim is a bit new for me. i feel a bit secluded because most people who are here have been here awhile (they are working), and have formed their groups. this is the first time i've encountered this in NZ. usually it is really easy to meet people in backpacker hostels because everyone is new to the place, and trying to figure out their situations, so there is a lot to talk about. but i'm sure after some time here, i will figure this place out too.

cheers!
mw