Guest stories: Svantje Wascher – actress, Germany.
- Jane Tolerton
- Oct 19
- 2 min read
I was booked on the TranzAlpine train from Christchurch to Greymouth, but it was cancelled because of flooding. They offered me the next day, but I had booked a hotel for two nights and a tour with Jackie of West Coast Scenic Taste, so I decided to go on the InterCity bus.
When I arrived, the Grey River was four metres higher than usual. The current was so fast, the water was brown and there was a lot of wood in it.
Jackie texted me that evening: ‘Did you make it to Greymouth.’ She said that she did not know whether the flooding would allow the tour the next day, but if I did not hear from her by 8am, it would go ahead.
I came out of the hotel at 8.30am and there was a woman saying my name. She said, ‘I’m Jackie.’
I asked, ‘Am I the first one you are picking up?’
She said, ‘You are the only one.’
I said, ‘Are you sure you want to do it?’
She said, ‘I love it!’
She had her own shop in Greymouth, but she was bored. She delivered the mail for a while. During and after Covid she worked very long hours because so many people ordered packages.
Four years ago, she decided to set up West Coast Scenic Taste. She knows the area well and she knows everybody. She has a very comfortable van that can take six passengers – and her husband has one too, so they can take a total of 12. West Coast Scenic Taste Tour | Small-Group Day Tours from Greymouth
It rained a little, but the sun came out at Punakaiki, the ‘pancake’ rocks. That is where we were at 10 o’clock when my phone rang. It was my parents, who are looking after my flat in Berlin. They came to New Zealand in 2000 and again in 2001 – and Punakaiki was their favourite place. I got goosebumps!
The new movie on the Pike River mining disaster opened on the West Coast, but I missed it. But we managed to get tickets to the Wellington premiere last night. I had my photo taken with the star, Melanie Lynskey, who is a New Zealander who lives in Los Angeles.
Svantje has given Booklovers a copy of her father’s book of short stories: Die falsche Strasse, by Uwe Wascher, with a beautiful cover by her mother, artist Ulli Wascher-Gutzer. His latest book is Schwarzopalgruen.
