Maraekakaho

After harvest finished up I decided to take a quick trip down to Wellington, where I went to the Alice in Wonderland bar.  It was pretty cool, with the bar really low and the bartenders seeming small due to a lowered floor behind the bar.  They had cool cocktail names like “down the rabbit hole,” and “drink me,” and served some in tea pots with little tea cups so you could have a cocktail tea party.  It was fun and really well done.  

After Wellington I went wine tasting in Martinborough for a day.  Martinborough is tiny, with tiny little wineries, but is possibly better known than Hawke’s Bay internationally.  It was fun to explore, but there wasn't much going on... Then I came back to Hawke’s Bay, back out to Maraekakaho where I decided to stay a while longer with the same couple I lived with during vintage, since they needed some help around the property, and offered to put me up and feed me in exchange for a few hours of work each day.  This sounded like a great deal to me and it has turned out amazingly.  Work has included weeding, digging holes for trees, planting trees and vegetables, moving enormous sheds (took 4 people, a forklift, logs to use as rollers like they used for the pyramids, and 4 hours), cleaning a grill (mostly so that we could have burgers for dinner upon my request), cleaning the garage and the house, feeding the big pigs, the baby pigs and the baby cows (so cute!), baking banana bread and carrot cakes, other cooking for lunch/dinner, and various other things around the house and property.  I visited Corner 50 one day to pick up my vintage t-shirt and was offered a few more weeks of work for them since one of their permanent staff had just left, so I’m back at the winery!  For another 3 days now before heading to Tonga for a month!  It is cold and wintery here now so a tropical island is sounding better by the minute.  I can’t wait!  A few pictures from around the farm / of the cats on my bed: