What a strange year.
COVID 19 has affected everyone. Government has restricted civil liberty for the common good in unprecedented ways. Staying home all day is not something anyone is used to, but many of us have learned to enjoy.
Luckily for us, when the music stopped we were in New Zealand. NZ promptly slammed shut its borders, closed all shops except for supermarkets and prohibited everyone from straying far from home. And not many people arrive here untracked/ illegally by sea. (Although some German yachties did emerge on the shore post sailing holiday and post lockdown and were promptly arrested and deported, and their vessel impounded.) We therefore only had to endure a couple of months of lockdown. We have been free, since mid- May, to go where we want, with whom we want, when we want (as long as it is within NZ). Freedoms we have previously taken for granted. Now at Christmas, with parts of the rest of the world getting hit with 2nd or 3rd waves of the COVID virus, people dying and/or getting sick, we consider ourselves lucky and privileged. But the economic consequences are being felt here as international tourism is a massive contributor to NZ’s GDP and export earnings.
This year has been sad for many other reasons too. Simon Pearson (Sarah’s’ older brother) died suddenly in Thailand on 1 August (after 1 week in hospital); two of our friends in Arrowtown and a friend from Jo’s Warwick MBA days died from cancer. Jo’s Mum, Barbara, had a stroke during the first UK lockdown in April. Being admitted to hospital and remaining there without visitors must have been a terrible experience. Thankfully she was released after only 2 weeks and her speech has recovered somewhat but not fully, and as a result Barbara is very frustrated. We are delighted we can chat to Jo’s parents by Facetime every week.
Memories of 2020 are marked by lockdown (pre, during and post). Our calendars are a scrawl of events crossed through and a pile of credit notes sit in the drawer.
Before lockdown in mid March, we cycled the Alps to Ocean route between Mt Cook and Oamaru on the East coast; played in the NZ masters golf in Taupo and Masters golf in Dunedin. We moved house one week before lockdown selling up in Queenstown (including our Air BnB business) and moving to Millbrook (20 km down the road). We miss the view of Lake Wakatipu, but we are happy we made the move.
We used the lockdown time to unpack, chuck out rubbish, plan renovations, dig up all our red tussocks and explore our new surrounds. We found out that we can get up a mountain and still be within 5km of home. We cycled to Gibbston Valley (full of vineyards and a scenic gorge) on the tracks and came back along the main road and saw no cars. We got our road bikes out too as it was safe enough to take to the roads. We chatted to everyone, and they chatted to us - when we were in the garden working every day. We enjoyed meeting our new neighbours at a socially distanced street party (BYO everything). Jo started cooking every recipe from ‘Lose Weight for Good” by Tom Kerridge with the aim of completing it by 31 Dec (almost done – and now down to the less popular recipes, like cabbage tart, sweet potato and black bean burritos) and shared some of the results with neighbours and friends. It was an interesting exercise as apart from no weight loss being noticed some of the meals were outstanding and they would never have been attempted had we selectively picked at the recipes. We are wondering whether to do this with our other recipe books – or else a new year’s resolution could be only to cook something that has not been cooked before.
Jo also took up bridge and has taken some fabulous photos. Click on the link below to view a selection.
https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipOROhG1ztz7WG45gq7ZOFOIqJjapAVyqOGgC8yfVqAEHXRq72TAdAV9n9DAnvok1w?key=YThLYmFwd2NEVWhHQUpmSE44eEJMV2laSkN6Y3ln
Sarah took up singing with Opera North and piano playing and has been attending on-line art lectures. Jo has insisted on the use of headphones when the piano practice starts.
On-line shopping and the post became far more important – in fact, coincidentally Sarah has just received a book that Michael sent from the UK on 8 August and 6 biro refills have just arrived (from Hong Kong) in a large box measuring 28cm x 28 x 8. They would have fitted in an envelope.
We have to admit that we actually enjoyed the lockdown period as the area was so peaceful and calm, and we were forced to do things we do not normally do. We realise however that it was and continues to be, tough for many.
Post lockdown has been a blur of activity.
First priority was to build the wine cellar in the garage. We also designed and built a schist shack (workshop) extension on the house for Sarah’s woodwork and candle making equipment (and various other toys), boarded a loft, moved the sink in the kitchen, started afresh on the garden, treated the floors, upgraded the windows, replaced the carpets and “feature” painted some walls – to make the house less white.
A garden party was planned for someone’s 60th (at the end of October) but this proved too ambitious as the house and garden looked like a bomb site at that time so the party was postponed to January 2021. Coming of age was nevertheless celebrated in style with friends, good food and wine, and cards, letters and e-mails from all corners of the globe.
Even the cultural calendar has been better than usual – with a visit to a little hall in Arrowtown by Simon O’Neill who should have been in Berlin singing Tristan on the night we heard him, and a mind blowing array of online offerings from opera houses, concert halls and theatres around the world.
Sarah has won most improved golfer of the year at Arrowtown; Jo has been drugged up on painkillers and anti inflamms with a tennis elbow and disc problem but still hit her first sub par round a few weeks ago. We both won comps in The Bay of Islands in October and at Millbrook - so the winnings tally is looking very healthy. Not enough unfortunately for either of us to renounce amateur status.
Sarah has been forced to take up bridge, and is quite enjoying it – especially if weeding duty is thereby avoided.
We have done lots of cycling and walking - cycled the Clutha Gold Trail, Gutbuster and Remutaka trails. Walked the Tora Walk, Humpridge, Dart River, Caples and Greenstone, Queen Charlotte Tracks, Catlins, Welcome Track on the west coast (which leads to natural hot pools).
The possum catch on Queenstown Hill continues to go well.
Our Christmas week is more of the same:
Golf, bridge, singing, piano practice, cycling, gardening, drinks and dinner with friends. Weather permitting we plan to do a big walk on Christmas Day and return home in the evening to a slow cooked dinner.
Who knows what 2021 will bring. No one forecast the annus horribilis that 2020 turned out to be. We dare not even whisper where we hope to visit next year – after the postponement of Glyndebourne, the Brisbane Ring, Puccini festival in Tuscany, Rossini festival in Le Marche, Morocco walking tour, golf in Spain and Portugal, visits to friends and family overseas etc etc.
Let’s hope the vaccine proves to be the cure that we are all hoping it will be, and that we will all have learned something from the pandemic.
Wishing you a very happy Christmas and good health and happiness for 2021.
Love
Jo and Sarah
xx
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