(Barely) Working Title: How to retire in your twenties
On last week's episode, Jane abruptly announced "We’re going for a drive!" and bundled me (and my hangover) into the car. I had no idea where we were going or what the rush was...
After an hour of driving, I (quite reasonably, I think) asked if we were nearly there. Jane let out a hearty chuckle before informing me that we had a mere 3 hours and 19 minutes to go.
Lewis George
81 chapters
16 Apr 2020
Birthday Part 2 - Going En Piste
June 10, 2019
|
Ohakune, Ruapehu
On last week's episode, Jane abruptly announced "We’re going for a drive!" and bundled me (and my hangover) into the car. I had no idea where we were going or what the rush was...
After an hour of driving, I (quite reasonably, I think) asked if we were nearly there. Jane let out a hearty chuckle before informing me that we had a mere 3 hours and 19 minutes to go.
The next few hours were spent with me frustratedly guessing at potential destinations. We've taken an incredibly indirect and confusing route on our travels so far and this was never more evident than just after I'd fallen asleep in the van on the way to wherever we were headed. I realised where we were going a mere five minutes before we arrived.
Long story short - the birthday surprise was two days of skiing! Thanks to everyone who made it possible. We were staying at our favourite campsite so far, Station Lodge in Ohakune, and would be frequenting the famous slopes of Whakapapa (pronounced Phockapapa). Neither of us have ever been skiing before and Jane's previous and continuous appraisal of the idea ("It's cold. Why the hell would I want to do that?!") left me with the assumption that this was
something that would pass us by.
The first day was a intensive beginners skiing course with four hours of lessons during which they teach you how to “make a pizza” with your skis and to go against every fibre of instinct by not leaning back when you want to stop - trust me, don’t lean back. I was a bit shaky at first, and maybe crashed into a couple of barriers and did a little off-piste skiing... Once we were used to it, it was amazing and entirely exhausting! The following day we were left to our own devices and spent a good amount of the time trying very hard to ski backwards and jump a few centimetres off the ground, which we achieved (it’s harder than it looks!) We wrapped it all up with a hearty post-ski dinner at the Powderkeg (Thanks Grandma!) and a few IPAs before before falling happily to sleep in the van.
1.
The first trip: Miranda to Thames
2.
Land of the Long, White Cloud
3.
Backyard Exploring
4.
Hit the Road, Jack
5.
Under the Weather
6.
The Road of Death?
7.
An Eel called "Eel"
8.
Descent into the Black Abyss...
9.
Everybody's Going Surfing...
10.
Living in a van: is this the real life?
11.
Out with the Old and in with the New (Plymouth)
12.
Walk this Way
13.
The Great Taranaki
14.
The "Forgotten" Highway
15.
Chronicle + Art = Article
16.
Derby Day
17.
Mission Accomplished: Come on you Nix!
18.
The post-Phoenix hangover
19.
The Tongariro Alpine Crossing
20.
Whanganui 2 - This Time it’s Personal
21.
Tui-many puns and Hastings
22.
The Giant Among Us & Bell Rock
23.
Acoustics, Art & A Bloody Cold Sea
24.
Napier Calling
25.
Bridget Jones' Diary - Cheese, Chocolate, Wine
26.
Land and Sea
27.
Mahia-hee, Mahia-hu...
28.
The Gisborne Identity
29.
East Cape Escape
30.
The Long and Winding Road
31.
More or Less Pork.
32.
The Land of the Rising Sun
33.
Hikurangi: Reaching New Heights
34.
Stingray, Stingray!
35.
Bay of Plenty (of Surprises)
36.
Future Reflections
37.
Birthday Part 1 - Going Off Pissed
38.
Birthday Part 2 - Going En Piste
39.
Mid-Winter Christmas
40.
I Get Knocked Down (But I Get Up Again)
41.
Job Hunting: I Need a Dollar, Dollar
42.
Busy Earnin'
43.
Hoppy Daze
44.
Making a House a Home
45.
What to expect when you’re expecting
46.
Bright Lights, Big City
47.
Feeling Each and Every Mile
48.
What to export when you're exporting
49.
Waipapa Marae: An Unexpected Welcome
50.
Tane of the Sky Father
51.
The Boy Most Likely To
52.
Go Rooster!
53.
Friday 13th
54.
Mild Orange, Heavy Chest
55.
Champions of the World
56.
Wild, Wild West (Auckland)
57.
Team Zlatan Heineken
58.
Great Expectations
59.
Un petit rendezvous
60.
Duck Island (sans canards)
61.
It’s Coming Home?
62.
Culture, init?
63.
Sue’s Turtle Garden
64.
New Caledonia - It’s a Rollercoaster (metaphorically)
65.
It’s gone abroad...
66.
Future Me Hates Me
67.
“You can’t beat Wellington on a sunny day”
68.
Te Papa Tongarewa: New Zealand’s Treasure Chest
69.
Island in the Sun
70.
Wine on Waiheke
71.
I'm Dreaming of a Really Sunny and Warm as Hell Christmas
72.
A Visitor!
73.
New Year, New Zealand
74.
Worm-tomo
75.
A Vicious Cycle
76.
Tongario 2.0: This time it's actually visible
77.
Wow Nature, you furry
78.
Whakarewarewa: Living Māori Vilage
79.
Ain't No Mountain...
80.
Hot Rodders & Hotter Weather
81.
North Shore, Not Sure
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