I have worked at the potato factory for 2 weeks. I think tomorrow I am going to tell them I will work 2 more, and give them the date of March 15th as the last day I can be scheduled. That way, if someone can come get me Saturday, I will be ready to go back to Adelaide.
I just can't believe how soul sucking the job is. You hold out and hold out waiting for that little bell that means you have 10 measly minutes of rest. Then when you think you can't stand another second, you wait some more. I have discuss with everyone who will listen the idea that they could actually do more potatoes in a day if they split the day into two 8 hours shifts instead of one 12-14.5 hour shift. Also, I have been receiving some grief from reception here about not grape picking. well, they haven't said anything to me directly. This job has made me more agitated and I am waiting for the opportunity to tell someone off. I wish they would say something to me. They want us to work our insane potato job, then pick grapes on our only day off. Well 1) 12-14 hours, 4-5 days a week, is more than a full time job. I am ok with money and things to do, not bored, not in need of other work. 2) When I took the potato job, I was told it was "a couple days a week, to pay your rent, and you can pick on your days off." See #1. 3) Grapes are so unreliable and low paid. I would love to do grapes exclusively, but I still have yet to be paid for the time I first picked two weeks ago. I would not enjoy having to chase down payment every time I worked.
I am disappointed that grapes didn't work out, but I got a taste, and now I am just focused on the money, keeping my head down, and getting through the next 2 weeks. I probably seem antisocial to my group lately, but as an introvert, I have to have my "alone" time to recharge. This job takes everything I have, in energy, in patience, in physical strength. I have to recharge when I get home, in the like hour I have before I go to sleep to get ready for the next day. I don't want to be this way, I just have to.
I don't know how long I am considered "training" as I said today was 2 weeks, but people still treat me like I don't know what I am doing and each supervisor gives me new instructions for each sections I am in. I take deep breaths and think of the paycheck.
This weekend was so nice. I went to Adelaide for Sarah and Emmanuel's engagement party. I caught the train from Elizabeth after following someone from work to it and getting a lift the rest of the way there. I had to wait almost an hour for the train, so I ordered almost everything on the McDonalds menu next door and had dinner while I waited (did I mention this was the day I worked 14 and a half hours?) I texted with Hannah while I waited, a little concerned, since I had heard only bad things about Elizabeth. But I told her I was blending in well with my fluro work vest, covered head to toe in dirt. I finally got home around 9, talked to Roger a minute, took a shower, then collapsed in bed and slept until around 8:30 the next morning. The engagement party was the next day, and it was lovely, in a nice park with lots of trees. I hung out with Marie and Sam the whole time, which was nice to catch up with them. When we got back to the house, I helped Sarah and Emmanuel record all their presents. They really liked mine- I had framed a picture I took of them from Moonta Bay and wrote a message on the back of the frame. Oh, and I gave them some chocolate too, haha. I enjoyed the weekend (and sleeping in my Adelaide bed!) so much, I didn't want to go back to Tanunda. Marie took me back later on Monday, after I had run a couple of errands at TTP.
Deep breaths, deep breaths, 2 weeks, 2 weeks, I can do this.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Money money money...
2/21-
Ok, so a lot has changed since my last post. I walked into work Monday, and in a complete 180 reversal of what she said Friday, I was offered a month contract. I have worked now Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and will work Friday and Saturday. My feet want to kill me. It's really the only part of me that is hurting, which makes sense, as my shoes are too old and worn out to be standing on for 12-14 hours. I was rejoicing at the thought of having Thursday off; I had a whole list of errands to run, some fairly important, like grocery shopping (I took some week old pasta to work as lunch today, and found mold on it, and ate peanut butter and banana for my lunch instead), some less important (I had scheduled some sunbathing- I am losing my tan!). So you can imagine my dismay to find when I walked into the hostel that I had been scheduled for grape picking on Thursday. It should only be 6-8 hours of work, which I can now do standing on my head since I am used to 12-14 hours shifts, so I still plan to hit up the library (the book I requested is in!) and Foodland when I am done picking. I really want to find a way to Adelaide for Sarah's engagement party. The buses in Tanunda don't run until 2 on Sunday, and I work Saturday, so I am wondering if it is even possible. I am going to ask Mondas, my womanising, I am guessing Greek(?) supervisor who calls me "My Darling Courtney" if he thinks Saturday will be a long or short day. I will go ahead and pack and be ready with stuff I need, and if we make it back in time to catch the 4:15ish bus at the post office, I will go ahead and get dropped off their after work and spend the weekend in Adelaide.
My life is so crazy right now. All I do is work and sleep. I don't even really want to eat because I am tired and most of the time, very hot. It was cooler yesterday and today, which meant I actually slept at night. The night before last, I woke up at 12:30 drenched in sweat, grabbed my blanket and sheet and pillow, and slept outside in the grass for about 2 hours before I needed to wake up for work. So have I mentioned we leave here at 4:15 to go to work? It's pretty insane, and by the time I get home, it is like 7 pm, then I eat quickly, shower, and try to be in bed by like 8:30, which trying to get sleep around here at 8:30 is pretty impossible anyway. I only plan to do this for until the 2nd week of March. I want to make enough money for Perth (which I will probably have this week, haha), but now I am thinking I want to do one more trip before I go back home. I was toying with New Zealand or Singapore, or Thailand, but I am now thinking about doing a good trip around Tassie instead. I feel like I missed out the first time, as I spent the whole time in Hobart, which is lovely, but not really "Tassie." Plus, it would be cheaper than leaving the country, and it would be nice to come home not completely broke this time. I am going to do some research and let you know what I decide...
Ok, so a lot has changed since my last post. I walked into work Monday, and in a complete 180 reversal of what she said Friday, I was offered a month contract. I have worked now Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and will work Friday and Saturday. My feet want to kill me. It's really the only part of me that is hurting, which makes sense, as my shoes are too old and worn out to be standing on for 12-14 hours. I was rejoicing at the thought of having Thursday off; I had a whole list of errands to run, some fairly important, like grocery shopping (I took some week old pasta to work as lunch today, and found mold on it, and ate peanut butter and banana for my lunch instead), some less important (I had scheduled some sunbathing- I am losing my tan!). So you can imagine my dismay to find when I walked into the hostel that I had been scheduled for grape picking on Thursday. It should only be 6-8 hours of work, which I can now do standing on my head since I am used to 12-14 hours shifts, so I still plan to hit up the library (the book I requested is in!) and Foodland when I am done picking. I really want to find a way to Adelaide for Sarah's engagement party. The buses in Tanunda don't run until 2 on Sunday, and I work Saturday, so I am wondering if it is even possible. I am going to ask Mondas, my womanising, I am guessing Greek(?) supervisor who calls me "My Darling Courtney" if he thinks Saturday will be a long or short day. I will go ahead and pack and be ready with stuff I need, and if we make it back in time to catch the 4:15ish bus at the post office, I will go ahead and get dropped off their after work and spend the weekend in Adelaide.
My life is so crazy right now. All I do is work and sleep. I don't even really want to eat because I am tired and most of the time, very hot. It was cooler yesterday and today, which meant I actually slept at night. The night before last, I woke up at 12:30 drenched in sweat, grabbed my blanket and sheet and pillow, and slept outside in the grass for about 2 hours before I needed to wake up for work. So have I mentioned we leave here at 4:15 to go to work? It's pretty insane, and by the time I get home, it is like 7 pm, then I eat quickly, shower, and try to be in bed by like 8:30, which trying to get sleep around here at 8:30 is pretty impossible anyway. I only plan to do this for until the 2nd week of March. I want to make enough money for Perth (which I will probably have this week, haha), but now I am thinking I want to do one more trip before I go back home. I was toying with New Zealand or Singapore, or Thailand, but I am now thinking about doing a good trip around Tassie instead. I feel like I missed out the first time, as I spent the whole time in Hobart, which is lovely, but not really "Tassie." Plus, it would be cheaper than leaving the country, and it would be nice to come home not completely broke this time. I am going to do some research and let you know what I decide...
Friday, February 15, 2013
Working... Updates
2/15- Yesterday I worked in the potato factory for the first time. It is how everyone makes it sound- boring, mindless, soul crushing work. The only part of my body that is really aching is my feet, probably because you stand for 12-14 hours while you are sorting these potatoes. You stand at a conveyor belt moving potatoes at a respectable speed, and your job is to remove the clearly rotten and inedible potatoes, and also the slightly imperfect, but still edible potatoes. Those are called "specials" and are used to make french fries and stuff, because they were not pretty enough to be sold as is. The day is very long, and you only have 1 hour out of it that you are on break. This is split into three 30 minute breaks, every 2-3 hours, and a 30 minute lunch at 12:30. You get so messed up watching those potatoes go by for hours at a time, that when you come off the conveyor belt, you experience what I am calling "treadmill effect," where it feels like you are still moving for a while. It's not a fun time. I don't rally understand why we have to stand up; chairs would improve productivity for me. Also, a 1-2 minute break every hour, to just stop the machines and let me sit in place and let my eyes adjust for just a moment, would improve productivity as well. Also, we can't listen to music while we work, so I find myself singing to myself or counting the potatoes I touch. I got up to 2,684 before I got interrupted by someone.
It was really worse than this. Potatoes were moving a lot faster, and I mean, that's chocolate, not rotten potatoes.
Today, even though I just turned in the rest of my paperwork to become an official temporary employee, I was informed that they were offering temporary employees 3 month contracts, and that temporary employees that did not accept the contract may not be needed for work anymore. Well, I have only about 2 months left in Australia, so a 3 month contract is out of the question. So I am not sure how much of a future I have at this potato factory, a thought that isn't all that troubling, but I do need the money. On top of this, I am afraid that I am probably at the bottom of the list for grape picking now. So if I am no longer employed in potatoes, and grapes are still weeks away, I may have to consider throwing in the towel and heading back to Adelaide. As it is, my profit margin working the little bit I did is about $200, but if I pay to stay another week and do not work at all that week, I lose that profit. I am frustrated and disappointed that work has evaded me so much in Australia. It's an expensive place, and it's fairly impressive that I have made it this far living entirely on savings and donations from Christmas and family. It also helps that I pay very low rent in Adelaide to stay with the Pollocks. But I may still be able to visit Perth before I got home, if I pool my money and my mother's donated airline miles.
It's really still up in the air. I am going to talk to the receptionist Sam when I can to find out my place on the list, and talk to my supervisor Monday and see how much work I can hope to get from the potato factory. If it looks like nothing is going to pan out, I may be back on a train toward Adelaide by Tuesday next week.
2/16- I spoke to my mom and grandparents this morning to let them know the status of my work situation. I loved to hear Pop laugh and laugh when I told him I didn't want to see a potato for weeks after spending a couple of days at this job. I walked to town and got a hotdog and a spider (coke float) for lunch, then went into Foodland to get some cheap soda and sausages to make for dinner tomorrow night (and to spend time in the AC). It is sooooo hot here. I cannot sleep at night. We have to close our window because people are so loud outside at night, but in doing so, it gets unbearably hot and humid in our room. I lay perfectly still in my minimal amount of clothes I can wear in a 10 share hostel room, with my head as close to the osculating fan as I can possibly get it, and I am still drenched in sweat. I long for my double bed with a ceiling fan and open window at Chateau Pollock in Adelaide...
It was really worse than this. Potatoes were moving a lot faster, and I mean, that's chocolate, not rotten potatoes.
Today, even though I just turned in the rest of my paperwork to become an official temporary employee, I was informed that they were offering temporary employees 3 month contracts, and that temporary employees that did not accept the contract may not be needed for work anymore. Well, I have only about 2 months left in Australia, so a 3 month contract is out of the question. So I am not sure how much of a future I have at this potato factory, a thought that isn't all that troubling, but I do need the money. On top of this, I am afraid that I am probably at the bottom of the list for grape picking now. So if I am no longer employed in potatoes, and grapes are still weeks away, I may have to consider throwing in the towel and heading back to Adelaide. As it is, my profit margin working the little bit I did is about $200, but if I pay to stay another week and do not work at all that week, I lose that profit. I am frustrated and disappointed that work has evaded me so much in Australia. It's an expensive place, and it's fairly impressive that I have made it this far living entirely on savings and donations from Christmas and family. It also helps that I pay very low rent in Adelaide to stay with the Pollocks. But I may still be able to visit Perth before I got home, if I pool my money and my mother's donated airline miles.
It's really still up in the air. I am going to talk to the receptionist Sam when I can to find out my place on the list, and talk to my supervisor Monday and see how much work I can hope to get from the potato factory. If it looks like nothing is going to pan out, I may be back on a train toward Adelaide by Tuesday next week.
2/16- I spoke to my mom and grandparents this morning to let them know the status of my work situation. I loved to hear Pop laugh and laugh when I told him I didn't want to see a potato for weeks after spending a couple of days at this job. I walked to town and got a hotdog and a spider (coke float) for lunch, then went into Foodland to get some cheap soda and sausages to make for dinner tomorrow night (and to spend time in the AC). It is sooooo hot here. I cannot sleep at night. We have to close our window because people are so loud outside at night, but in doing so, it gets unbearably hot and humid in our room. I lay perfectly still in my minimal amount of clothes I can wear in a 10 share hostel room, with my head as close to the osculating fan as I can possibly get it, and I am still drenched in sweat. I long for my double bed with a ceiling fan and open window at Chateau Pollock in Adelaide...
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Working!!
2/13- I was waiting outside at dawn with 8, yes, 8 boys to go grape picking. All the girls on the list have since been given potato jobs, so it's me and lots of testosterone today. We paced outside until around 7:20, when Matt, a guy from another hostel who helps the lady named Jacky that we are picking for, arrived. I crammed into the van with the French and a couple Italians, and Andy and Tom, some of my UK friends, rode with Matt. It only took about 10 minutes to get there. Jacky asked each of our names and where we were from, then handed out clippers and explained what we would be doing. We were partnered up, or given "work husbands" and then each of us went to one side of the row and clipped grapes into buckets. My work husband for most of the day was a guy named Ming from another hostel, but we shuffled around a lot during the day. It is hard and hot work, but I was allowed to listen to the Red Hot Chili Peppers on my iPod, and I don't think it would have been quite as bad if I could have had water with me the whole time. She had given us breaks about every 2 hours in the morning, but in the heat of the day, she was anxious to get the work done and didn't excuse us to our water bottles again. She did occasionally pass around some of her own water bottles she brought, which were frozen and therefore much more desirable than my now slightly beyond room temp water in my bag by the van. But you only got a few sips and it was HOT day. But I lived, and picked a lot better than a lot of the boys (and I call them boys, as they are all younger than me, some like five or six years younger). Jacky seemed to think so, as she kept sending me back behind some of them to re-pick what they had left behind. I am not sure when I will be working again, but I am glad to know I can hang with a bunch of boys and hold my own picking grapes in the Barossa Valley!
I am potato sorting tomorrow. I am only doing this temporarily. The hostel requires you to accept a job offered to you, or you go to the bottom of the list for jobs. So I accepted it, on the condition that Sam, the receptionist, has said it will be only a couple days a week and I can still do grapes. If I had said no, I would go to the bottom of the list anyway, and not be able to pick grapes for a while, hence no money. All the girls hate this job, so I can't say I am looking forward to it. And even though it's not contract, Jess seems to think it is going to be 4 days a week. I will talk with the people tomorrow and find out. Worse comes to worse, I work the job for a week or two and make some money, then quit and hopefully do grapes or go back to Adelaide and do the last bit of traveling I want to do. It's pretty frustrating though, I get a taste of picking grapes, then it's gone. I will let you know how tomorrow goes...
This is the true story, of 80 strangers... The Real World, Tanunda
1/29
I didn't do much today, walked to town twice- once to get some essentials (read spatula, as there are NONE in the kitchen, and I made my breakfast with a spoon) and once later to check out the library and visitors center. People are generally nice here, but sleep a lot, I think since they are bored, and smoke a lot, maybe because of the same reason. The kitchen is so small, so I think I am going to start eating a real breakfast when I get up at 8:30 (no one else who isn't working isn't seen until at least 9:45), then have a snack instead of a real sized lunch at lunch time, then eat dinner at like 5 pm to beat the crowd. I am going to try to grill as much as possible, since I get claustrophobic in the kitchen, and it is so nice outside, and I love grilling. I have missed grilling. The scenery around here is also a major bonus. I cannot believe how far you can see the hills from our hostel, and we are literally smack in the middle of a vineyard, so the fields are very pretty. I'm not really sure what I am going to do here until I find work. I am working hard on trying to bribe someone to take me to volleyball Thursdays, especially since I am not going to be working. I guess I will work on my tan, like I was doing in Adelaide, but now in grass instead of sand. We have had unusually cool temperatures lately (like 60's and 70's during the day, 40's and 50's at night), which is affecting the sugar in the grapes, and thus delaying the harvest. I never like to wish 100's on myself, but it seems like it would help my work situation if it would hurry up and warm up again!
2/1
We had a warm, sunny day, then a cold, rainy day, and today started cold, but will hopefully be nice. I have just been hanging out here at the hostel. I walked the town one evening with one of my roommates Jess, then drank the most expensive "cheap" beer I will probably ever have- it was $7.80 a pint, which isn't even a real sized pint here, with bud light quality beer. Disgraceful. So I usually can't justify buying alcohol here, unless it's nice wine, which is like 100 meters from my hostel, but I can't justify buying that until I actually begin work. Highlights of the day have been daily trips to Foodland, to drain between $9-20 dollars from my account for food, even though I have food (I haven't done this daily, but I went for milk and apples and a drink yesterday and got some chocolate too- $9!). I have also gotten season 2 of Fringe from my roommate Hayley and have been quickly watching a whole season. I will probably finish today. Internet is expensive, so I have been writing my blogs on notepad on the computer, then getting online long enough to post. Jess spoke to one of the hostel workers here yesterday and he said he suspects that vintage for at least one of the vineyards should start Monday. We work on a rotating basis, so not everyone will work everyday. If it starts Monday, I will be surprised if I work Monday, as I am probably near the bottom of the list. It just depends on how many positions they have at the vineyard. But, as you can probably tell, I am very anxious to work. I really wanted to catch the bus to Galwer last night, play volleyball, then ride home with Joel and Sam, then get a ride back later this weekend. I resisted, seeing as I had not set this plan up with anyone, but I will be just sitting around probably.
Friday night was a crazy party night. There was singing and drinking and hula hooping. One of the highlights was all the Europeans singing "American Pie." They also played Gold Digger and a couple other rap songs, and I thought it was funny to hear rap songs in English accents.
2/3- Sunday we went to the beach as a hostel. We were originally scheduled to leave at 11:30, but when I got up, I saw that the partiers had pushed the departure time back to 12:30. We ended up not gettng out of here until about 1pm, then having to stop for petrol as well. Anyway, we didn't get to the beach until about 2:30. It was a crazy-windy day, and we sat in the sand and watched the boys play soccer. As usual, we were split in French and UK people, a literal line in the sand. I think it's mostly the language barrier, but it's kind of weird how the groups are so divided. After sitting around a while, my group decided they needed McDonalds. We drove to the nearest one and they were so excited, haha. I think a McDonalds in Tanunda would make a fortune off the backpackers. Some of the people said their favorite part of the beach trip was the trip to McDonalds. I laughed and said there was definitely one closer, we didn't have to go all the way to the beach for a McDonalds trip. There was a little communication problem later on. My group thought we had to have the vans back to th hostel by 7 pm or be fined $50, so around 5:30, we were ready to head back to make sure we didn't get fined. The french people were not ready to come, so they didn't. Jess and I sat in our van and waited for 20 minutes until they decided to come. Then the car we were supposed to be following left us and we had to find our way back on our own. We did a pretty good Job remembering landmarks to get back, and when we asked the French people in our car if they remembered, they would say "It's right." "It's left" "It's straight," so Jess and I figured it out ourselves.
2/5- Tuesday Marie is came to have a wine tasting day with me. We went to 3 wineries and also Maggie Beer's Farm Store, which specializes in pataes and had lots of samples and a beautiful pond out back with turtles and ducks. We also found a case of discounted wine for $24. I could not pass it up, so I got it and when I brought it back to the hostel and told my suitemate Hayley what it cost, she jumped up to get one, and spread the word around the hostel. They were sold out by later in the afternoon. I think I should have gotten commission.
11 girls got jobs yesterday, so the hostel is quiet this morning, and estrogen drained.
2/6- I was offered a potato job later in the week, but it was only offered on 2 month contract, and I do not have 2 months, so I could not accept it. I am still waiting for grapes...
2/8- What started off as a nice meal of Camembert, baguette, grapes, sundried tomatoes, olives, and some of my discount wine turned into another crazy party night. Not much else to do here in Tanunda...
2/9- Emma texted and called me early while I was still in bed. She was coming through Tanunda after having her dogs's hair trimmed and wanted to see if I wanted to catch up. I pulled myself together, showered, and asked if we could meet for lunch. She picked me up and we had sandwiches at a nice cafe outside with her dogs, then we spent some time hanging out in front of my hostel in the shade catching up. It was nice to see her!
2/11- I was sitting, minding my own business, making everyone at the dinner table jealous with my homemade nachos I made for dinner, when I hear Hayley calling my name from reception. "Did you know you're on the board?!" she said. "what?!?" I jumped up, leaving my plate and racing to reception to find my name written on the list for work tomorrow. Grape picking! I was so excited!
I didn't do much today, walked to town twice- once to get some essentials (read spatula, as there are NONE in the kitchen, and I made my breakfast with a spoon) and once later to check out the library and visitors center. People are generally nice here, but sleep a lot, I think since they are bored, and smoke a lot, maybe because of the same reason. The kitchen is so small, so I think I am going to start eating a real breakfast when I get up at 8:30 (no one else who isn't working isn't seen until at least 9:45), then have a snack instead of a real sized lunch at lunch time, then eat dinner at like 5 pm to beat the crowd. I am going to try to grill as much as possible, since I get claustrophobic in the kitchen, and it is so nice outside, and I love grilling. I have missed grilling. The scenery around here is also a major bonus. I cannot believe how far you can see the hills from our hostel, and we are literally smack in the middle of a vineyard, so the fields are very pretty. I'm not really sure what I am going to do here until I find work. I am working hard on trying to bribe someone to take me to volleyball Thursdays, especially since I am not going to be working. I guess I will work on my tan, like I was doing in Adelaide, but now in grass instead of sand. We have had unusually cool temperatures lately (like 60's and 70's during the day, 40's and 50's at night), which is affecting the sugar in the grapes, and thus delaying the harvest. I never like to wish 100's on myself, but it seems like it would help my work situation if it would hurry up and warm up again!
2/1
We had a warm, sunny day, then a cold, rainy day, and today started cold, but will hopefully be nice. I have just been hanging out here at the hostel. I walked the town one evening with one of my roommates Jess, then drank the most expensive "cheap" beer I will probably ever have- it was $7.80 a pint, which isn't even a real sized pint here, with bud light quality beer. Disgraceful. So I usually can't justify buying alcohol here, unless it's nice wine, which is like 100 meters from my hostel, but I can't justify buying that until I actually begin work. Highlights of the day have been daily trips to Foodland, to drain between $9-20 dollars from my account for food, even though I have food (I haven't done this daily, but I went for milk and apples and a drink yesterday and got some chocolate too- $9!). I have also gotten season 2 of Fringe from my roommate Hayley and have been quickly watching a whole season. I will probably finish today. Internet is expensive, so I have been writing my blogs on notepad on the computer, then getting online long enough to post. Jess spoke to one of the hostel workers here yesterday and he said he suspects that vintage for at least one of the vineyards should start Monday. We work on a rotating basis, so not everyone will work everyday. If it starts Monday, I will be surprised if I work Monday, as I am probably near the bottom of the list. It just depends on how many positions they have at the vineyard. But, as you can probably tell, I am very anxious to work. I really wanted to catch the bus to Galwer last night, play volleyball, then ride home with Joel and Sam, then get a ride back later this weekend. I resisted, seeing as I had not set this plan up with anyone, but I will be just sitting around probably.
Friday night was a crazy party night. There was singing and drinking and hula hooping. One of the highlights was all the Europeans singing "American Pie." They also played Gold Digger and a couple other rap songs, and I thought it was funny to hear rap songs in English accents.
2/3- Sunday we went to the beach as a hostel. We were originally scheduled to leave at 11:30, but when I got up, I saw that the partiers had pushed the departure time back to 12:30. We ended up not gettng out of here until about 1pm, then having to stop for petrol as well. Anyway, we didn't get to the beach until about 2:30. It was a crazy-windy day, and we sat in the sand and watched the boys play soccer. As usual, we were split in French and UK people, a literal line in the sand. I think it's mostly the language barrier, but it's kind of weird how the groups are so divided. After sitting around a while, my group decided they needed McDonalds. We drove to the nearest one and they were so excited, haha. I think a McDonalds in Tanunda would make a fortune off the backpackers. Some of the people said their favorite part of the beach trip was the trip to McDonalds. I laughed and said there was definitely one closer, we didn't have to go all the way to the beach for a McDonalds trip. There was a little communication problem later on. My group thought we had to have the vans back to th hostel by 7 pm or be fined $50, so around 5:30, we were ready to head back to make sure we didn't get fined. The french people were not ready to come, so they didn't. Jess and I sat in our van and waited for 20 minutes until they decided to come. Then the car we were supposed to be following left us and we had to find our way back on our own. We did a pretty good Job remembering landmarks to get back, and when we asked the French people in our car if they remembered, they would say "It's right." "It's left" "It's straight," so Jess and I figured it out ourselves.
2/5- Tuesday Marie is came to have a wine tasting day with me. We went to 3 wineries and also Maggie Beer's Farm Store, which specializes in pataes and had lots of samples and a beautiful pond out back with turtles and ducks. We also found a case of discounted wine for $24. I could not pass it up, so I got it and when I brought it back to the hostel and told my suitemate Hayley what it cost, she jumped up to get one, and spread the word around the hostel. They were sold out by later in the afternoon. I think I should have gotten commission.
11 girls got jobs yesterday, so the hostel is quiet this morning, and estrogen drained.
2/6- I was offered a potato job later in the week, but it was only offered on 2 month contract, and I do not have 2 months, so I could not accept it. I am still waiting for grapes...
2/8- What started off as a nice meal of Camembert, baguette, grapes, sundried tomatoes, olives, and some of my discount wine turned into another crazy party night. Not much else to do here in Tanunda...
2/9- Emma texted and called me early while I was still in bed. She was coming through Tanunda after having her dogs's hair trimmed and wanted to see if I wanted to catch up. I pulled myself together, showered, and asked if we could meet for lunch. She picked me up and we had sandwiches at a nice cafe outside with her dogs, then we spent some time hanging out in front of my hostel in the shade catching up. It was nice to see her!
2/11- I was sitting, minding my own business, making everyone at the dinner table jealous with my homemade nachos I made for dinner, when I hear Hayley calling my name from reception. "Did you know you're on the board?!" she said. "what?!?" I jumped up, leaving my plate and racing to reception to find my name written on the list for work tomorrow. Grape picking! I was so excited!
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