Interesting question right?? But so much possibility when you think about actually finishing full-time employment and having this notional concept about “free time”. My plan (oops sorry Ms S) our plan, is to fill it up with things that fit with our lifestyle, things that we have always wanted to do, and fits with our ethics and values, that we have learnt along the way throughout our lives.
One of the many things we do have in mind is to travel. However, as I write this post our borders are still closed and will more than likely remain so to some degree for some time. Some of the places we were always keen on and are still keen to visit or revisit are Italy, France, Alaska, Galapagos, and Canada. We have done a fair bit of traveling and we actually do travel well together (who would have thought). Italy has been one of our favourites from previous adventures and very keen to go back and do areas off the normal tourist route. Again I suppose it is that utopian view of simple and quiet living.
The other trip we like doing is our two yearly trips to Rarotonga, which is fabulous as the Cooks are only a 3.5-hour plane ride away. We are so very hopeful of a Trans-Pacific bubble that our Governments have been discussing as we have bought and paid for flights and accommodation for a September holiday this year.
We have been to the Cooks many times over the years with some friends; booked a house, car, some scooters, and off we go. We typically pack some frozen food for the holiday; bacon, steak, Vogel’s bread, pate, cheese, and some party nibbles. The flights arrive late at around 11pm, but we do recognise the importance as it is the first day of the holiday and the need to celebrate accordingly😉🍾🥂 (got to get these things right !!!) It is a great place just to relax with reading, snorkelling, some adventure activity, meals at restaurants and don’t forget the warm weather. Another bonus is that the Cooks do use New Zealand money, which makes it so much easier. This year (if we do actually go) it is just the two of us, as our friends have since bought a bach in the sounds that they now regularly head off to.
An item on our bucket list was always to do one of the great NZ walks. So last year we booked the Milford Track which is out from Queenstown. We went in February this year and we did it through Ultimate Hikes, which was absolutely fantastic http://ultimatehikes.co.nz We did quite a bit of prep for it; long walks and slowly building up the amount we were carrying (although was only up to a max. of 8kg). Ultimate Hikes have amazing lodges set up along the track so, at the end of the day you have hot showers, washing facilities, made-up bed, three course dinners and of course a bar complete with a lovely chardonnay (NB the reason as hopefully you can see, only need to prep for 8kg; don’t have to carry food, wine, sleeping gear, tent, even toilet paper, shampoo, and conditioner).
The guides were amazing, friendly, funny and very knowledgable about our flora and fauna. It also did help we had amazing weather and most days were walking in only shorts and a t-shirt. Lots of overseas folk on the trip, and it was great meeting new people with different views of topical events happening around the world. It was very humbling that people had specifically come to NZ to do this magical walk. You can probably tell from my ramblings that I would definitely recommend this trip to do.
Lake Wakatipu 
Milford Track
We are keen to do more walking/trekking and would be fabulous if we could be fit enough to do part of the Te Aro walkway. This is the track that goes the length of the country. Part of the walkway uses the track that we take the dogs on by Massey University and we see quite a few trekkers through the summer months. The TA (as it is more commonly known) has two parts; the North and South Islands (not a new concept). The whole walk takes 5 months and you need about $10,000 each for costs along the way, i.e. accommodation and food, plus the odd craft beer or wine, you know just saying.
Another big part of our lifestyle is our house and property. It is a hectare of land and has some stands of native bush mainly kanuka. For the last four years, we have planted out about 300 plants each year to try and expand the native bush area. Unfortunately, some of the plants do get swallowed up by the tall grass and never to be seen again. They do say that you have to factor in a 10-20% loss but is still, quite a bit of effort and funds for some to go to waste. Oh well, we are still making progress.
Right, for this entry have added in a checklist to actually progress all the areas for our retirement at 60. Is a bit late as is the 15 June already but have to actually make a start 😀
June 2020 checklist
- Complete spare bedroom declutter
- 4 items actually up on Trademe
- Items not sold to either the Op Shop or Transfer station
- Veggie plants still alive – regular check slugs haven’t nailed them
- Native plants arrived and planted in the ground (novel approach)
- Walking 3-4 times per week
Next – More on the money stuff