1. Kiwi Bird calling
GUERNSEY PRESSSaturday 7 November 2015
THE WEEK 7
She’s had to endure more than her fair share of rugby banter, but
Jessamy Baudains has taken to life in New Zealand like... well, a Kiwi Bird.
She’s even had her first earthquake drill...
On Pirongia Mountain with
(left to right) trainee pilots
Daniel Bentham, Matt Hand
and fiancé David Baldwin.
Jessamy
with new
friend
Sebby
(above) and
exlporing
(left and far
left).
O
NE minute
you’re sitting on
a plane eating
complimentary
nuts, the next you’re
translating Maori
words and abseiling down a
steep mountain using a rather
suspect rusty chain (and no
harness). Time flies when
you’re thrown in at the deep
end, doesn’t it?
New Zealand has been my
home for almost two months
now and it’s been a haze of
exploration, new faces, hiking
up mountains, finding my feet
at work and tasting as many
New World wines as I can get
my mitts on. When in Rome.
My accent is quite the
conversation starter. At the
moment, it often instigates
a bout of sporting banter for
those Kiwis engrossed in the
World Cup – ‘Ya Brits just don’t
know what ya’r doing on the
rugby pitch do ya?’
‘No, it appears we don’t,’ I
say, ‘But fear not. I am from
Guernsey.’ Such a great get-out
clause for the more-often-than-
not occasions when England
falls short of the mark, eh?
Whenever someone from NZ
makes me a cup of tea, they
wait with bated breath for the
nod of approval. I like this. We
Brits don’t have the mighty All
Blacks but we do have English
Breakfast tea and I’ll take that
– with a spoonful of sugar if I
may.
I have found a temporary
replacement for my two cats,
GiGi and Blossom. We’ve
named him Sebby. He turned
up at our door one day and
adopted us, it seems – not the
other way around, as is the way
with felines. He’s a gorgeous
brown, black and white tabby
who demands strokes, frequent
naps and snacks at all hours of
the day and night. You’d think
this was 1950 and I was his
‘chained to the sink’ wife. But
he is so handsome we let him
get away with it.
I
’m working for the
Waikato Regional Council
at the moment in the
communications department,
and while it doesn’t have the
same rush and buzz of the
Guernsey Press newsroom,
I’m really enjoying the new
experience. I’m currently
producing 12 videos so it’s full
on, but I am working with a
whole range of people, from
biodiversity experts and coastal
scientists to engineers and civil
defence staff. I had to throw
myself straight in.
I found the job through a
recruitment agency called
Asset, and for anyone thinking
of coming out to New Zealand
on a working holiday, I would
definitely recommend going
down this route. It will save
you traipsing around cities
handing out CVs and probably
mean you find you something
that is better paid and more ‘up
your street’.
A few weeks ago my fiancé
David and I went up to
Auckland for our five-year
anniversary to see Maroon 5.
The last big concert I went to,
I was 12 – Justin Timberlake
gliding his way across the Earls
Court arena stage – so as you
can imagine, I was as excited
as a kid on Christmas morning.
When in Auckland, a trip up
the Sky Tower (kind of like
their answer to The Shard) is a
must. We went to the 53rd floor
to have a drink in the Sugar
Club.
Sipping my cosmopolitan,
looking out over the twinkling
city skyline, things weren’t
looking too shabby, my friend.
In other news, I had my first
earthquake drill the other day.
Ducking under my desk, with
the siren blaring, it definitely
didn’t feel like your average
Tuesday. After the earthquake
in Christchurch in 2011, these
kinds of drills are becoming
more commonplace and given
that Guernsey has experienced
a few recently, maybe it
wouldn’t be such a bad idea to
try on ‘the rock’?
S
peaking of life there, while
I loved the occasional
meander to the fairy ring
and out to Lihou, I’m really
getting into hiking here – like,
serious hiking. Stereotypical
expat in NZ? Probably. Maybe
it’s something in the water, but
if I’m not working (or drinking
newly discovered wines), I’m
planning our next excursion.
Move aside Bear Grylls.
We recently climbed up the
1,500 steps at Hakarimata
and my God, we nearly died.
Dave’s muscles recovered fairly
quickly, but I was left waddling
like a penguin for the next
week. I think my body needs
time to catch up to my new-
found passion. Still, the view
from the top was incredible.
The horizon went on for miles
and the green hills seemed to
roll on into eternity.
Another recent excursion was
Pirongia mountain with a
group of Dave’s pilot friends.
We knew it would be a
challenge and we were game,
but we were not expecting
quite such a test. Think Duke
of Edinburgh pain times 100.
You know those chains I
mentioned? Yeah… that’s
where these come in.
What started off as a
slightly muddy track quickly
transformed into the wild
version of ‘Tough Mudder’.
I felt like a contestant on
Takeshi’s Castle. We were
traversing steep rocky passes,
fighting our way through thick
bush trails and climbing steep
rock faces.
The rusty chains were there
to help us along but there was
definitely no set path.
Actually, it was completely
terrifying, but again, the view
from the top was beautiful and
as the philosopher John Muir
famously said: ‘Break clear
away once in a while and climb
a mountain or spend a week
in the woods. Wash your spirit
clean’. We came back caked
in mud, but our spirits were
definitely a little fresher for our
test in the wild.
Because after all, there’s plenty
of time to relax when you’re
old, relaxing on your porch and
gazing at the stars.
For now, carpe diem. Until next
time...
Love,
The Kiwi Bird
Chain
gang ‘Do not go where
the path may lead,
go instead where
there is no path
and leave a trail’
Ralph Waldo Emerson