mrsjono

On some Saturdays we would drive up to Palmerston North (or colloquially known as Palmy), the next sizeable town nearest to us after Wellington. It’s not a particularly scenic drive up north but there is something that will definitely catch your attention along the way – the little white fans standing on top of the hills. I have always wanted to take a look from up there but how to get up there?


Access from Woodville or Ashhurst, follow the brown wind farm signs on to Saddle Road


The Manawatu Gorge creates a funnel effect – strong winds from the Tasman Sea is forced through the narrow valley and the consistently high wind speeds makes the area between the Tararua and Ruahine Ranges ideal for harnessing wind power.


Transporting and installing 55 turbines up on a hill looks like a massive project


Took me awhile to get the full 70m tall turbine and all 3 blades into my frame



A worthy stopover when passing through Palmerston North


Listening to the turbines churning away on a calm day


As the sun was setting, we quickly made our way down Saddle Road and realised we had “bypassed” the Manawatu Gorge. Once we hit Woodville, it was a difficult drive back home as we couldn’t see anything in front of us due to the fog!

Coming home after an extended period of time overseas is always an interesting experience when transiting back to home culture. After 14 months away from home, the first thing that struck me was how used I have been to the "Hi how are you?" greeting in New Zealand. When I realised the lady sitting beside me during the flight home is also from Singapore, the "hi how are you" reflex I have developed over time quickly disappeared. I realised how shy Singaporeans are. It took a smile from me, offering of candy from her and a "Are you going home?" from me to break the ice. For the next couple of hours I found out she is a customer of my previous company. Never stop saying hi as a simple hello could lead to a million things.




I was woken up by the sound of birds and decided to get up even though it was only 6am. Started clearing my letters and rubbish I've accumulated over the years. Went out to get breakfast at 8.30am. Took a good look around the neighbourhood. Playground has changed, some void deck walls are painted with new designs, McDonalds got refurbished and papa's garden has expanded. Today was the first time in my life I really looked carefully at what was selling in the wet market. I used to avoid passing through it because my toes would get wet. I was surprised to find so many interesting veges and stalls. Watching the hustle and bustle of the morning market felt incredible and uniquely Singaporean. I wandered around the coffee shops not sure what I would like to eat. Cheap and spoilt for choice!



One of the coffee shops that I often visit - most stalls are still around, selling the familiar food I grew up with


I eventually decided to get something from the kueh stall I always frequent and totally forgot chwee kueh comes in fours lol


My first visit to Jem - this new mall has brought more dining and shopping options closer to home


I always go back to Victor's Kitchen for yum cha


Some of the food that I miss - yong tau foo, mee sua, lor mee and chawamushi


Last Koi - big cup please

Mt Holdsworth is just a stone's throw from where we were staying and we decided to check it out on our anniversary day. We were just gonna go up to the first hut on the multi day Mt Holdsworth-Jumbo Circuit and come back down on the same day. It is a 4 hours climb up to Powell Hut on the Gentle Annie Track which joins up with the circuit after the Mountain House Shelter. Maybe we weren't high enough as it looked like the views were "obstructed" by the hills.

The happiest 5k on the planet has finally come to New Zealand! I was interested to be part of the event without running and getting too messy so I joined as a volunteer. Before the start of the actual race, runners are invited to collect their race pack in Wellington. My first shift was to hand them out and brief participants on what to expect on the actual day at Trentham Memorial Park.

Warming up with zumba~


One of the main sponsors of the race


As the participants started streaming in at the finish line, we got busy with distributing drinks, paint packets (corn starch), cheering and congratulating them for completing the 5km run.


The lady at the end is an example of how to be a good volunteer haha


Good job!


High five!


Paint attack on flat mate


Roll away the banners after the race

Seems like the blue paint throwers did the best job as majority of the runners were covered in blue.


Cleanest volunteers lol

This annual event in Wairarapa sounds like a fun volunteer opportunity even though I had no idea what they want volunteers to do. Caleb gave me a ride to 20 Essex St for my morning briefing as he was also going to report on the event for the papers that day. After meeting up with the crew I was assigned to, we set off together in the pilot's vehicle to Pioneer Sportsgrounds to prepare for the mass ascension.


I look forward to this because it's so cold in the morning


The basket was unloaded first. Sue and I tied the sponsor boards onto the basket. It was then laid gently on the ground to prepare for inflation.


I was tasked to stand by the big fan and switch it off when instructed to do so. When sufficient hot air has been blown into the balloon, I switched off the fan and the balloon is lifted upright. Dennis the pilot continued to blast hot air upwards into the envelope and the rest of the crew had to lean on the basket to prevent it from drifting away.


Great weather for take off


Off they go!


Majority of the balloons started to lift off the ground except for the big ones. Sue and I were the chase crew and she managed to locate the balloon along East Taratahi Road.


Packing away balloon


There was a demo in the afternoon for the public to get a hands on experience


"Squeeze the air out and hold it tight under your armpit!"


The kids formed a line and helped to pack the balloon away.


Day 2 of the Balloon Fiesta kicked off at Carrington Park in Carterton today. We have an additional member to the crew - John from Carterton. The other balloons already had their burners up and we quickly got down to work, unloaded all the equipment from the trailer and put the poles up onto the burner.


I was the fan tender again. I don't like it because my hands get numb and cold from the strong vibration of the fan. As we were pretty close to the other balloons, we had to wait awhile for the rest of the balloons to drift away before taking off. Hamilton was the first one to go and it floated off in a completely different direction as everyone else haha!


I was surprised and really excited when the pilot asked me to jump on this flight. I never thought I would get on a hot air balloon again after Cairns. It feels awesome to be part of the team and event; to be able to fly in a balloon you helped to set up and inflate. It's a completely different experience as compared to being on a commercial flight.


Getting ready to lift off


As we got lighter, our basket started to lift off the ground. I started to feel scared as we gained altitude as I'm afraid of heights.


The view was so much better than what I saw in Cairns. The sky was clear, the sun was up and we were flying alongside many other colourful balloons with the Taruarua Ranges in the backdrop.


Space Shuttle on the left is the world's tallest hot air balloon still inflating


WOOHOOOOOOOOOO


A few balloons have started to land. Some of those which had landed decided to take off again maybe because their chase crew had difficulty getting to the paddock they had landed on.


Flying over Carterton


Big paddocks clear of animals, water, fences and power lines are good landing sites. Dennis decided to let the bottom of our basket brush past the top of the trees to slow us down and we glided gently onto the grass upright! Wonderful landing!


While waiting for the chase crew to reach us, we watched and laughed at Remax do a pendulum landing (basket swinging from side to side)


While squeezing the air out of the balloon with our hands, I spotted a hole in the envelope! Dennis fixed it with a sticky tape.


Free breakfast at Wild Oats with the crew after a successful flight. This was better than yesterday's breakfast because I get to drink a cuppa coffee!


A few days later we were woken up by short blasting sounds and went outside the house to find a balloon had landed in our neighbourhood!