I only ended up sticking it out for one month and hated nearly every single minute of it.
Regional work and in my case pruning, is boring. Fact.
I, like most people I imagine, hate boring, monotonous tasks.
To add to the fact that it is boring, I am also an over-thinker, boring job + over-thinking = worst job ever.
8 hours of working a day doing the same repetitive motion of cutting vines is also a killer physically. I ended up in agony, to the point where I couldn't use my right arm properly because I had pulled the muscles or tendons so much and it took a good two weeks after I left for it to heal fully. You also end up with horrendous cramps in your hands (my friend who stuck it out for 3 months, wakes up with her hands frozen in a claw from using the electric secateurs).
I'm also not a very strong girl, so I definitely think that didn't help, because it meant that my body was already at a disadvantage and also that I couldn't zip through the pruning as quickly as the farmer wanted me too, which also meant that I didn't make very much money at all. I was on a $1 per vine and would make between $65-$85 dollars a day, my friend who I was working with was a lot better than me and was pruning about $100 a day. After keep was taken from my pay, I wasn't left with a lot. But I guess you have to weigh up if you are in it for the monetary reward as well as the second year visa, depending on what your motivation is, may mean you can or cannot stick it out.
Originally I went to the farm with the plan to do my 3 months in one lot, as opposed to the 88 days spread out. Would I still do this now? I think to be honest I would attempt to do it in two lots of 44 days, I feel that that would be much more bearable mentally and physically, for me anyway.
The below is a very brief guide of what would I recommend if you were looking to do your regional work:
1. Do it in a busy farm / backpackers place - a good few friends of mine went to Mildura and actually had a really good time and made some great mates. So I would recommend heading there from what I've heard.
2. Avoid vineyards - they are probably one of the hardest jobs to do.
3. Avoid Western Australia (half joking / half serious - I'm slightly scared by my experience)
4. Be prepared for the most boring 3 months of your life. Ever.
5. Don't leave it until the end of your time in Australia to complete because if you can't get work or don't like the farm, you are at a serious disadvantage.
6. Be prepared for farmers to be sexist - there are obviously some great bosses out there but also some w*nkers. And if they aren't the nicest, don't put up with crap - yes they can replace you quicker than you can sneeze but that shouldn't be a reason for them to take the mickey i.e. in pay (a lot of places do) or in treatment - if you wouldn't put up with it in a 'normal' place of work, why put up with it here?
7. Only do it if you know you really want the 2 year visa.
Would I change whether or not I did my month of regional work knowing what I know now? No, I would still do it, because it was an enlightening experience, a tough one but still a worthwhile experience in a lot of respects and that's what I came here for. But if I could have told the farmer where he could of stuck his secateurs - that would have made me very happy indeed.
1. Do it in a busy farm / backpackers place - a good few friends of mine went to Mildura and actually had a really good time and made some great mates. So I would recommend heading there from what I've heard.
2. Avoid vineyards - they are probably one of the hardest jobs to do.
3. Avoid Western Australia (half joking / half serious - I'm slightly scared by my experience)
4. Be prepared for the most boring 3 months of your life. Ever.
5. Don't leave it until the end of your time in Australia to complete because if you can't get work or don't like the farm, you are at a serious disadvantage.
6. Be prepared for farmers to be sexist - there are obviously some great bosses out there but also some w*nkers. And if they aren't the nicest, don't put up with crap - yes they can replace you quicker than you can sneeze but that shouldn't be a reason for them to take the mickey i.e. in pay (a lot of places do) or in treatment - if you wouldn't put up with it in a 'normal' place of work, why put up with it here?
7. Only do it if you know you really want the 2 year visa.
Would I change whether or not I did my month of regional work knowing what I know now? No, I would still do it, because it was an enlightening experience, a tough one but still a worthwhile experience in a lot of respects and that's what I came here for. But if I could have told the farmer where he could of stuck his secateurs - that would have made me very happy indeed.
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| Beautiful skies - one saving grace |
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| War wounds |
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| Bane of my life |
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| In action |
