A to Zealand

I have a lot of people ask me what a typical day in my life is like right now. It varies depending on whether or not I’m working. I usually work 4-5 times per week. If I do go to work, I get up at 6:45 AM to eat breakfast and get ready. I start walking to the station building for the bus in town at about 7:15 AM. It’s only about a 10 minute walk from my house. It can be really cold and sometimes icy. Two of my roommates work at Coronet Peak with me. We have definitely had a few slides and falls down the hill which always proves to be hilarious even at an early hour. We hop on the bus with all the other Coronet Peak staff and head up the mountain. It’s about a 20-30 minute ride depending on the weather conditions. At one point, the buses were picking us up at 6:45 AM because it took so long to get up the mountain and we would be late opening if we left at a normal time. I sometimes get a nap in or just listen to music. I get to work and have coffee with co-workers until the 8:30 AM start. Things are pretty chaotic in the administration office, so I stay really busy the whole day between Web site updates, PA announcements, following emergency procedures for missing people, and so many other tasks. I can either go to lunch or take a ski break. After work, I either come home and hang-out with my roommates, go out with friends, or night ski on Friday and Saturday nights. I usually try and give myself a midnight cut-off so I feel ok for work the next day.

If I am not working, I’m playing! Usually on my days off, we will all go skiing/boarding. My lift pass gives me access to either Coronet Peak or The Remarkables, so we switch it up. Coronet is more family-oriented and with more guests. It’s anywhere from 3,000-4,500 per day during the winter holidays. Lindsey Vonn, the U.S. Olympic skier is actually training at our facility right now!! The Remarkables has more park areas as far as rails and jumps. I almost pulled my leg out of socket going over a jump the other day so I haven’t built the courage back up to try again. It’s really cool to watch others though!

If we don’t go skiing, I’ll usually try and just relax, do some errands and laundry. If I’ve got some energy, we try and be “touristy”. Most of my friends are only here for the season and don’t want to spend too much money since they don’t have jobs. We splurge every once in a while. Last week, we went on a cruise around Lake Wakatipu. It’s the third largest lake in New Zealand and crystal clear. I really would like to be here in the summer so I can swim in it! If we aren’t being tourists, we generally just hang-out together, go get a treat (J), or watch movies. There is still a lot of adrenaline activities I want to take advantage of so stay tuned!

My life is pretty simple, but I’m really happy right now. I hate thinking about what I will do after the season is over since all my friends will go back home, but I just have to reassure myself that there is a plan for me and I will find another wonderful city! Who knows, I might even stay in Queenstown for a bit longer! I’m just going to go with the flow.

Hugs and kisses! Miss you all. Love to hear from each and every one of you! Don't forget to check out the tab with all my pictures!