After a long time, I am adding a new article in which you will learn how our stay in New Zealand continues… .. After we finished our second volunteering, we found accommodation in the same neighborhood in Brown Kiwi Backpackers Hostel. This is where we knew that our financial reserves were shrinking rapidly and we had to find a job. We were a little nervous, after all, it was approaching the end of August and it was during the winter, but coincidentally, I found out that I could be a maid in our hostel and partly a Night manager. It was not a full-time job, but it was enough for us, where we could start… at least something that “paid us accommodation”.
For an idea of the Ponsonby neighborhood:
It reminds me of today’s Karlín in Prague. You will find a lot of shops, restaurants, cafes, vintage shops, a park, the center is only 30 minutes by walking, etc., just in terms of prices, we are located in Prague’s Old Town.
Fortunately, Martin also got a job. He also works at the hostel (downtown Auckland) as general maintenance. At the end of August, we set ourselves the goal of how long we will want to work before deciding to discover the beauty of New Zealand. A total of about 20 weeks… Now, we have more than half done.
And what can we tell you after a few weeks? Read on….
Housekeeper, receptionist and night manager
I’ll start with me first. After about 4 weeks I was left alone for cleaning and night management, as my “colleagues” decided to leave Auckland after 5 and 6 months and start traveling. The main manager asked me how I saw my situation, so I said I can do it, but if someone will offer me some help for one or two days a week, I will be glad. At the same time, he asked me if I could even help out at the reception sometimes so I thought it would be a bit of a challenge, but why not…. I can always decide to quit.
Since we are in a small hostel and there is a family atmosphere, after a few days I basically became a Housewife of the hostel. The guests see me at 7 am during breakfast, during the day when I clean rooms, and at 11 pm when I tell drunk guests that the garden is closing and must go to their rooms or to a club in the city. Sometimes I feel that some people perceive me as a mother…. I had the pleasure of teaching younger travelers (about 20) how to use a microwave, a washing machine, a gas stove (I am not really kidding)… and on the contrary, they realized that if they do not wash their dishes and leave a mess in the kitchen, I write a message to them that I am not their mum and this is not MAMA HOTEL and service is not included!
Since I spend most of my time at the hostel and I am basically still in one place, I started looking for some activity to clear my head and relax. So I started to bake typical Czech desserts! Even in my dreams, I wouldn’t think it will be higher gastronomy for others. I have never heard so much praise in my life as here… I especially appreciate it when the French people say it … because they enjoy a very good meal, but as they have admitted …. they are too lazy to do it alone at home. I am most amused when I decided to bake plum jam buns and others asked me what school I was learning and how it is possible to fill and twist the dough so that the filling does not leak…
On the contrary, a gingerbread (covered with chocolate with nuts) reminded the Germans a time before a Christmas in Germany. Not to mention the fact that every week I bake homemade bread. So, to sum up, it makes me wonder if I should open a bakery or a café. The vast majority of guests agreed that they would come back to Auckland because of this: D
In addition, I recently fulfilled one of my other dreams and successfully completed a barista course because I love the atmosphere of the cafe. And I’m glad I could go to school in Auckland. Now I know, that New Zealanders are uncompromising in terms of coffee quality. After the barista course, I behave the same way and if I get really bad coffee, I immediately leave…
If I go back to a topic about the job in the hostel, it is really a great experience for me, mainly because the main manager is German and it is not necessary to say that german people are very strict at work. Everything must be on time, 1 bed 5 minutes, private room with all things – a maximum of 15 minutes, etc. But because I am not like an 18years old unresponsible girl, I had a little serious conversation with the manager.
To understand this, I have always heard that I am slow, the corners are not perfectly clean, etc. My daily routine includes cleaning 7 bathrooms, 10 rooms on average, 4 kitchens, vacuuming the entire hostel and being able to drive all guests out of the main kitchen, to clean the floor and immediately dry with a towel (it is the most crowded place and there is always someone cooking there). Everything is done in 3 hours… sometimes 3.5… it also depends on how reliable the guests are and how they clean up their mess. Well, he just told me he could do it faster and that it is not fair to pay me half an hour more.
Seriously????
So I just said that I am not perfect like him and he can tell me that he wants another housekeeper, I have no problem finding another job. The season has already begun and many people do not want to stay in the city. They prefer to work on farms or orchards. And I decided to share my situation with the owner. Fortunately, she agreed with me, and in fact, she was very sad about the situation I was in because she appreciated the fact that I work here alone every day. And as we both agreed, it’s a hostel, not a 5 * hotel.
After my conversation with her, the owner had a meeting with the main manager and I was invited for a coffee and a cake the next day. We talked and solved the situation to everyone’s satisfaction 🙂 Now, the situation is calmer even though the season is in full swing and the hostel is busier. We were able to find such a compromise that when I told the manager in a confident way that I wanted to fulfill another of my dreams and start attending a barista course, he had no objections. Honestly, the main manager is a little nervous, because he rightly knows that I didn’t come to New Zealand to do a career as a housekeeper forever.
So what about the English?
One of the other questions they ask from home is what my English looks like. Well, I am still worried, but it happened to me that a few guests asked me if I am local, and when I replied that I am really not, they pointed out that I had really good English and that they wanted to speak just like me. I do not understand it very much, but maybe in the last days, I am starting to see the difference.
I have no fear of picking up the phone and talking, in the shop and in the cafe, I say more words with the staff than hello and how are you. Likewise, when guests from English speaking countries arrive at the hostel, I have no problem with 2 hours of conversation with them on different topics. But in conclusion, I would like to point out that there is still something for improvement. It also depends a lot, what kind of accent people use… One guy from Liverpool? It was impossible to understand him. On the contrary, people from Canada or the USA were much better for listening.
General Maintenance –> General Maintenance Manager
We can talk about Martin’s skills for hours. And I must admit that thanks to this we have been able to stay in Asia for so long. The golden hands are really in demand here in New Zealand (just like in our home), but on the other hand, people are paying a lot of good money. For an idea …. you are an electrician and you have a registration, there is no problem to find a salary of 70 NZD / hour (about 1050 CZK per hour) – so: my family full of electricians…. who wants to come and find a new job??? 🙂
But as elsewhere, the problem with low staff is here too. Even handy backpackers are not enough. When we talked to the other guests (with Germans and French mostly) and asked the male population what kind of job they would like to get, the obvious answer was: well, certainly something quiet in the office. I can’t imagine working with my hands at all. The same funny answer was from the younger ones: I would like to make videos or be an influencer. My question: And some classic and real work if it won´t work out? Answer: It seems impossible to be a handyman and have a real job. For any problem, I can call a service, right? So this is what the future generation looks like.
Therefore, it is no wonder that Martin became a maintenance manager after a few days and is in charge of everything. And since he’s an electrician, they’re extra points for him. In fact, it is generally economically beneficial for New Zealand, so it is no wonder that after a short time they informed him about the possibility of obtaining a “Work Visa”.
A word at the end?
Looking back a few weeks back and remembering the uncertainty of whether we will find a job and tighten our stay in New Zealand financially, I am glad that we did not give up and I can say with a clear conscience that we both rise up again. Now we remember the note we heard before traveling abroad: And do you think that there will be some work waiting for you with open arms ??? Wake up and don’t be dreamers!
NOOOOO ….. really nobody here with open arms waits for anyone. It is up to you how you approach a situation and whether you clench your teeth, you will initially survive with a minimum until you gradually get back to the same (or even better) situation. Successful people know about it because they too had to sacrifice something, overcome a lot of obstacles so that they could eventually show the top of the iceberg – SUCCESS!
