Cruise Ambassador for Picton

We have several cruise ships come into Picton every year, and I was asked to be one of the official greeters to welcome the passengers as they come off the ship, hand out maps of Picton, and give directions to various locations - toilets (most popular), post office, Catholic church, internet sites, boat tours, etc.  It's been great fun "working" in the hospitality industry!  And, it's right up my ally telling people where to go. 
Actually, meeting people from all over the world is interesting, and only about 80% notice the incongruity of an American welcoming them to New Zealand.

The gentleman who organizes the ambassadors is the owner of the aquarium which I have mentioned earlier.  He's quite an interesting person, a retired lawyer, and very enthusiastic about improving tourism in the area.  Just as I land a job, we have to leave!

The wine harvest has just begun in Marlborough for the white varietals.  It's about two weeks late this fall due to the cool drizzly weather this summer.  There are a few bottles left from last years vintage now that we are leaving.  There's also a few salmon still swimming in the sound, although Bill and I have done our best to deplete the supplies. 

Today is my US birthday, and I also celebrated my NZ birthday yesterday with new pearl earrings and a nice lunch out.  This afternoon, Bill and I are sailing on the Steadfast (http://www.steadfastsail.com/) a 60 foot reproduction (1915) of a pilot cutter from France.  Since the weather is picture perfect, it should be a great sail in the sound.  I'll post some pictures tomorrow.  Thank you for all the birthday wishes. 

We met a NZ couple on a recent boat trip across to QCT who are educational consultants in Auckland.  They were very interested in our backgrounds in education in the US and took an email address.  So, there you are, two possible jobs in one week. 

There are also a few plums left in the local farmers' market.  Wish I could bring this basket back for all of you. 

We'll be on the Air NZ flight this Friday night (your Thursday) out of Auckland to LA and back to GSP on Saturday evening.  Plan to come see us and view all the rest of the pictures.  I'll be posting a couple of more blogs, so don't go away.