When life gives you lemons, you make Lemonade!

 After being here in Akaroa for such a long time i really started to appreciate the country life, the beauty and silence surrounding me me as of lately has become part of who i am, yet still i'm not ready to only have this, i need the commodities of a big city to balance the stillness of the valley, and one of the things i miss the most by being here is not having a gym to work out, i've been eating so much bread and carbohydrates, which would be fine if i was working out on regular bases, but since i wasn't doing much i've just packed up on a few kgs.

The other day after dinner i was playing with Alice, Celia's (my boss) daughter, when she propose for us to move the fun to the kids playground in her school, and so we went , it took me about five minutes after playing with her to realize that i could use the same place for a few work outs.. and vous a la , this is my new Gym!

Between going for a run, riding my bike and figuring new work outs every day, i'm exercising again, feeling the joy of endorphin and adrenaline rushing through my veins, without the use of chemical stuff hehe!!!

Kia kaha

PS: kia kaha means stay strong in Maori language!

A session of pain and remembrance!

Kia ora,

   Pretty much since the next day after the quake i've been living down in Akaroa, with not much reason to stay in town plus the offer from my boss to keep working for her at the Duvauchelle store & bistro, having a bed at the flat on the back and a bed on my best friend's, Kay Maitland, house, it was only the best option, and even though i'm a city boy the country life is growing on me, at first it sort of f=drives you nuts, not having much to do, but once u let go, the commodities of the big city u start appreciating the beautiful surrounding nature or the sound of silence.

   Had the last weekend off, and i went to Kay`s for some time away from the store, between cooking Brazilian rice and beans, riding her motorbike, walking through the vineyard having a chat and a beer, watching movies and discussing arts with her son Roman i had a great time perfect for taking my mind out of things, plus on Sunday night i called her friend Simon to scheduelle for my MAORI tattoo that he would design himself!

Today i woke up, psyched for the prospect of getting my ink done, carried on with my duties up till 12:30 and left to town heading for the Simon's studio. Got there around one and having previously discussed the concepts i wanted done for my tattoo i sat down and he started drawing free handed on my arm, it took him about 40 minutes to come up with it, and then the pain started hehe!

   All together the design and the tattoo took around 4:30 hours, and it was the longest session of tattooing that I've been through, but hey it was worth it, it looks wicked and now i have a part of New Zealand culture going back home with me. Simon is an amazing artist and for the fact that he is Maori, properly told me stuff about the culture and even did some Maori gestures i feel a bit more immerse in this amazing country's history.

KIA KAHA!

New plan! Heading home!

    It's been a little over a week since the big quake in Christchurch, and it took me a while to actually get my mind in order to organize new plans, for this city won't be the same for while, it will take sometime to get the pieces back up, restructure what's been destroyed, and unfortunately even longer for getting this city back on the map for touristic destinations.

   The hospitality business had already suffered a blow with the quake in September, and 28% of the market was forced to shut, now i reckon that the lucky ones that remain open will have a  real hard time to keep their profit in order to stay open!

   All i can do is wish them well, and pray for the souls that were lost, as for what am i going to do, i could just go to another part of the country, but very honestly one of the reasons i stayed in Christchurch is because of the sense of normality for once, living with a suitcase ready and always on the go is hard, and i know i'm one that can do it, but everybody has a limit, and i fell like I've reached mine, plus i'm 26 now which is good cuz with all of this travelling done can now focus on my goals for a career, and i really think i should put more time into my ART.

   It is never to late to restart, and as long as you've got a general idea of your plans for life, it's not that hard to make out the priorities of your present in order to achieve results in the future.

   So with no further longings I've decided to head home, i'm much satisfied with my choice, knowing full well that i could stay and do some other things, but as i say on my motto, if you are going to regret, regret the things you've done and not the ones u haven't tried, of course with a little common sense!

cheers to all guys!

Cenas de uma zona de terremotos!

Devido aos ultimos eventos ocorridos em aqui em Christchurch, eu decidi fazer um reporte sobre a situação.

No dia 22 às 12:51 pm aproximadamente 5 meses após o grande terremoto de 7.1 na escala Richter, nós aqui em Christchurch fomos afetados uma vez mais por outro grande, o terremoto de 6.3 acontecido no dia 22 talvez não tenha sido tão alto na escala como o anterior, porém pelo fato da profundidade ter sido de apenas 5 km os efeitos foram devastadores.

Eu estava na minha casa quando os tremores começaram e ao abrir a porta da cozinha para sair de casa, eu podia ver o solo movendo em ondas, garrafas e outros objetos voavam da mesa, armários e geladeira, felizmente em minha casa os danos não foram maiores que algumas garrafas, pratos e potes que estilhaçaram no chão, infelizmente eu não posso dizer o mesmo de outras partes de Christchurch.

Ao sair de casa, a caminho do restaurante onde eu trabalho, eu vi a extensão dos danos causados pelos tremores, uma das principais ruas chamada Papanui, tinha varios pontos de liquefação, rachaduras e muitas casas e lojas destruídas.

Assim que cheguei no restaurante eu pude ver meus amigos e colegas de trabalho e todos estavam bem, porém as perdas dentro do restaurante eram muitas, e levariam semanas pra re-estruturar e voltar aos negócios, um pouco depois da minha chegada ao local sentimos mais uma vez um after-shock (terremotos de menor intensidade pós os de grande intensidade), a policia foi forçada a fechar o quarteirão e nos mandou ir para uma área aberta que seria de menor perigo, sem saber se houveram danos estruturais no predio nos não podemos nem mesmo determinar o que podemos fazer.

A visão geral deste desastre é a de uma cidade que passou por uma guerra, prédios caindo aos pedaços, sirenes e gritos são os sons que se escuta, as expressões de choque nos rostos das pessoas, nuvens de fumaça e poeira, helicópteros voando pra todos os lados, reportes de pessoas desaparicidas e mortas, desespero para todos os lados, a sensação e de se estar em um filme pós-apocaliptico! 

Agora 48 horas após existe um grande número de pessoas que se foram para outras partes do país porém ao mesmo tempo existem muitos por aqui que querem ajudar de alguma maneira, algo de muito bom na natureza das pessoas desse país é certamente esse senso de solidariedade, muitas pessoas abriram as portas de suas casas para outras pessoas que perderam seus lugares, outras cozinham e forneçem aguá, enquanto um grupo de estudantes iniciado em uma comunidade do site Facebook se mobiliza com instrumentos para ajudar a limpar as ruas de toda areia e água espalhada pela cidade.

With much sadness i report all of this to you, and with a sense of relieve i can say that i'm safe and sound!      .