My fine dine lifeline

After we settled down in the house and made it our home, it was time for us to find a job. Madeline wanted some experience behind the bar and I just wanted to make coffees! Eventually Maddie found herself a job at ‘The Ranch’, our only but decent pub in town! And I praised myself lucky because I started working in ‘Kepler Restaurant’, a fine dine and pretty fancy restaurant in town. If I have to believe Trip Advisor it’s even the best restaurant in town! My first week I was quit nervous. Of course working in hospitality wasn’t new for me, but in this kind of fancy atmosphere I had to change a lot. It’s the kind of restaurant where old grumpy couples with money come, or young couples to celebrate their anniversary, or just travelers who treat themselves for their birthday. It’s the kind of restaurant where as a waitress you go to a new table with a bottle of lemon water, pour it in their glasses while asking how their day was and afterwards ask if you may advise them about the special dishes of tonight. It’s the kind of restaurant where you ask if the guest wants to have a taste of their chosen wine and where you pour wine in with one hand on your back. It’s the kind of restaurant I’d never ever consider myself working because it is just not me in any kind of way. But I consider myself lucky. I’m learning a lot about making coffees, cocktails, costumer service and the standards of a good restaurant! I also learned that most of the Asians coming to our restaurant are really dirty eaters, never drink alcohol, always scream for the bill when not finished eating and while you’re on the other side of the restaurant. I learned that no matter in what restaurant you work, the chef will always be a stressed out asshole. And I also learned that, no matter how nice some costumers can be, there will always be that one American couple that comes in at 5.30 and asks you 100 of the most dumb, pointless and well thought off questions you can imagine to then finally be ready to order at 6.10. But luckily all my colleges experience that one couple from time to time and eventually it’s always good fun together. In a couple of days we’ll have a team night in the Ranch and I’m really looking forward to that! I also made a beautiful new friendship with Carlotta my colleague, a German girl who is also on a Gap year. She comes to my house now and then to drink a tea together.

If I look back at what I just wrote, I can say that I’m actually having a real life here in New Zealand. I have a boyfriend, house, car and a job. All I’m missing is a dog! But that position is already filled up with the two little kittens from next door who love to sprint in our house and hide underneath the sofa! It is nice to settle down in a little town for a bit, but it also gives you a strange feeling. It makes me think more about home and makes me feel like I might be doing something wrong. I came here to travel and discover and that’s not what I’m doing right now. It seems wrong. But Eventually it’s just another part of this journey. I had to settle down and find a job to finance myself for next year. And it gives me the opportunity to learn how to handle paying rent, cooking healthy, working and also making time to be creative and do some sports. It’s a time to prepare myself for next year because that’s exactly how it’s going to be with Uni. Actually it’s pretty funny... We all live and work in Te Anau, the five off us, and it looks like we’re just babysitting the house in shifts. The boys are doing morning jobs and the girls evening ones. But we make a strong team! Team Te Anau!