Mouth of the Grey

Wow, now that I think back on the last six weeks, the only daylight I’ve seen (aside from my days off) is the walk from my room to the kitchen. In the shadow of the mountains, I catch my only glimpse of the sun, frosty mountain peaks and the lush green forest that extends for so many miles around. Day after day I’ve walked the same path up the hill, through that swinging door, paint worn by countless hands pushing in the same spot. Leaving the kitchen well into the dark, I forget about how remote a place I live in. Rain pours for days on end. Though most of the Japanese here despise the incessant rain, I can’t help but be pleasantly reminded of home. The sound, the smell, the soaked pant cuffs, it all takes my mind thousands of miles across the ocean, right back to Oregon. That walk is easily the most relaxing part of the day.

After a month .5 of cooking, sleeping and cooking, finally the opportunity to get out of the mountains presents itself. The early morning drive west to Reefton was familiar, but from there we headed southwest to the coast where the mouth of the Grey River spilled into the Tasman Sea. The aptly named town of Greymouth was our destination. Katsuya, two of the girls from housekeeping and I split ways once we had parked in the centre of town. Katsuya and I walked the length of the main strip, stepping into interesting shops and exploring a place rather different from our place of residence. I can’t tell you how wonderful it feels to see the vast world of human interaction, people who aren’t Japanese (even though I’m in New Zealand!!) or being able to walk for more than a few minutes without stepping into wilderness. For the next few hours the two of us explored the town, did some shopping, and I got a haircut. We checked out the local skatepark, but I didn’t bring my board with me. Maybe next time…

The sun was setting and Katsuya and I wanted to head to a spot 45 klicks up the coast. A geological formation known as the pancake rocks rise out of the sea. We raced the setting sun to Punakaiki in order to get some decent shots of the rocks and the setting sun. Just as the sun was sinking into the water, we parked the Tercel as close as we could get. Before the engine was off I was sprinting down the path to the shore. All I wanted was a shot of the setting sun and the rocks. Just my luck… Clouds blow in and cover the sun, completely ruining any chances of getting a good picture of the sunset. Oh well, I managed to take some mediocre shots of the rocks and the crashing waves. I’d love to go again to get some crisp shots of the waves. Steadily darkening lighting conditions meant any shots of the waves bright enough to see them meant a shutter speed too slow to capture the details.

I took the wheel for the drive home. My first multi-hour quest in the left lane went rather well. It felt like I was in a perpetual state of overtaking, but driving from what felt like the passenger seat began to feel natural after an hour or so. The tiny Tercel hatchback was a decent little car.

Since I’ve been back in the mountains it has been 3 consecutive 10+ hour days in the kitchen. Easter weekend is the busiest time of the year, so we have been booked solid and have been crazy busy in the kitchen. I’ve been managing the kitchen operations, and working both European and Japanese sides of the menu. I guess I’ve been pulling through cause Chef Pete praised me on the last few nights of work and gave me his culinary school textbook. It was really a nice gesture and it makes me look forward to many years of cookery!

 Katsuya

 Pre-Haircut

 Greymouth

 Oh, what a nice palm tree...

 

 Pancake Rocks

 Ah! Short hair again!

What a goon...