Lockdown in Wellington

Thought you were done with our stunning photos and super long descriptions? Well, surprise: We’re back...probably… maybe…

For those of you who are not up to date, we have been “living” in Wellington for the past 2.5 months. Some of you might be wondering why we are still here, Let us explain: Leah cannot get into Switzerland (where we will be living) without a Visa. Her workplace has not been able to obtain one for her as Switzerland is not currently issuing them. It seems this will change within the next couple of weeks. Leah also cannot get into Germany. Mathias cannot get into the US (and even if he could, it’s sadly not the best choice for us given the state of things). We miss our families and friends dearly, and are so thankful that video chatting exists!

The first five weeks of our time in Wellington was spent in Level 4 lockdown. Level 4 Lockdown in New Zealand meant that we only left the house to go to the grocery store or go for a walk (thank goodness we could walk). So basically, we had upgraded our living space from a tent to a small studio apartment, but we no longer had the endless, beautiful open space surrounding our “home”. Thankfully, we were always guaranteed a warm, dry, cozy place to sleep. In addition, our Airbnb hosts were awesome and took good care of us (Pizza and wine nights, sitting around a fire on the patio, movie and game nights, fresh fruit and veggies from their garden, a trip to see a seal colony at red rocks … the list goes on...) The location was also top notch: in one direction, a quick walk to hiking trails and in the other direction, a quick walk to downtown. We spent (and continue to spend) our time watching Netflix, reading, listening to podcasts and audiobooks, learning German (Leah), doing online courses and applying/interviewing for jobs (Mathias), snuggling, sleeping, doing yoga (Leah), going for walks and eating yummy food. Oh, and loving our time with Xena (the warrior princess aka family dog).

After 5 weeks, New Zealand went into Level 3. This was such an exciting time for us: We could order take-away and delivery. Wooo Wooo!!  

We are now in Level 2 (most businesses are open, but some restrictions still apply). There is currently only one active case of Covid-19 in New Zealand. We have been able to meet up with our friend Ben (whom we met on the TA) and have a drink, which was nice to interact with another human in 3D. When the country went into Level 2, trails were reopened and people were given the permission to move freely/safely throughout the country. We had come to peace with ending in Te Anau/’Bluff-sih towards the end of October, but when we (aka ‘Leah’) realized that there might be a chance to actually make it to Bluff, the desire was reignited.

Now, the reasons for the “probably… maybe…” mentioned above: it’s currently winter in NZ (which means it’s freakin’ cold and there are only about 8 hours of daylight), we are completely out of shape, and Mathias might be getting sick. We are still going to go for it... If we don’t make it, at least we will know that we tried our best. Safety first. If the weather is not safe, we don’t go. If our health is not good, we stop. But we are going to hope for the best. What will be, will be.