Today I had one major disappointment which was quickly followed by a unique traveling experience that once again demonstrates for me a benefit of being a solo traveler - things happen to you that just don’t occur if you are with someone else. I was planning on doing a hike to Sandfly Bar on the coast which is an hour bus drive from Dunedin. However, the “Walking Bus” which the Lonely Planet book on NZ mentioned doesn’t operate any longer. So there I stood at the Visitor’s Center looking “dazed and confused” as the Information Specialist conferred this news to me. I pulled myself together and joined the street fair market that was going on around the “Octagon. I grabbed a bit to eat at a Korean food stand.
Then an “Angel” in disguise as a middle-aged New Zealand woman sat next to me on the steps. She was eating ice cream. Her name was Claire. After I shared with her my sorry state of affairs, in hopes that she could tell me about a closer hike, she surprisingly offered to drive me around Dunedin and show me the sites of her hometown. I was shocked but I didn’t hesitate to say a resounding YES.
What a stroke of luck for the both of us because I think she enjoyed it almost as much as I did. I learned so much about the area, NZ politics, her family, and the local college.
Claire then drove me to the “Steepest Street in the World” - Baldwin St. She told me how once a year the Cadbury Chocolate company which has a factory in town has a contest to raise money for local charities. They take a hundred thousands of Jaffa’s red candy balls filled with chocolate, stamp each one of them with a number and then roll them down this street. The holder of the number on the first candy down the street wins. What a mess that must be but oh so much fun. A little like our “rubber ducky” race on the Nubanusit River in Peterborough.
Then we saw this adorable Mailman walking his route.
We drove through the campus of the University of Otago and it looks like students all over the world love their old sofas. So it’s not just a UNH custom.
One of our last stops was at the summit of Signal Hill to see what Claire believes is the best view of Dunedin. I couldn’t agree more.
We said our good-byes after exchanging email addresses. She had told me earlier that she sings in a Gospel Chorus. I had been wondering how I was going to repay her for her wonderful kindness. She wouldn’t let me take her for lunch or even a cup of tea. It dawned on me that I could purchase a copy of the CD that her chorus group has made as a way of showing my extreme gratitude. I don’t think that was an even exchange because besides experiencing a tour unlike any others, I will now have a CD of Gospel Music song by the lyrical voices of New Zealanders. I am one lucky woman.
This wonderful day was preceded by me once again spending part of my morning on the internet. But this time the location was special, not a cyber cafe but at the “Seafarers Society Club” in Port Chalmers. Port Chalmers is a sleepy, sweet town with not much going on. Some shops and cafes and this “club”
They offered free internet usage for crew members but cruise ship passengers were asked to give a donation. It reminded me of the USO places that I had seen in France many years ago to provide a home away from home for the men and women serving their country. A big room with a warm easy feeling; shelves of books, computers, a TV, a ping pong table and a pool table. A lovely Kiwi woman was chatting it up with me and the sailors. She had just become a grandmother and was beyond herself with joy. She made me a “tinned” (instant) cup of coffee and offered me a biscuit (cookie). Everything works out for the best because if I hadn’t spent time there I may have then gotten transportation for the hike. One missed opportunity for another one, I can see those endangered Yellow-eyed Penguins any ole time.
At the dock, we were sent off by two lovely female bag-pipers. “Dunedin” is Celtic for Edinburgh.
No comments:
Post a Comment