Coromandel

Saturday:

Saturday we spent the day relaxing around Kuaotunu. We went for coffee and scones in the morning, a walk along the beach to follow, and a relaxing afternoon around the bach watching TV and reading in the afternoon. Saturday evening we went to Luke’s Kitchen, the local pizza joint/only restaurant in Kuaotunu for dinner. I had been to Luke’s Kitchen a few times before, last summer when I was living in Coromandel Town, and it is quite good and very well known around the Coromandel. It was really nice being only a 2-minute walk from the restaurant. And so nice to finally have a day where we had nothing to do and no where to go.

Sunday:

Sunday was a bit of an opposite from Saturday, very full on. We decided this was our day to go and see and do everything in Coromandel Town that my parents had heard so much about from my adventures there the summer before. After another breakfast of coffee and scones from the café next to Luke’s Kitchen, we headed over the ranges to Coromandel Town. We arrived over on the other side of the hill about 10:30am and went first to Long Bay, the first beach I ever went to in NZ. I ran into an old friend there, Shelley, and caught up with her. I knew that going to Coromandel Town I would likely run into lots of people that I knew, but I didn’t tell anyone I was coming and we made a short trip of it so I didn’t really have to time to hang out with anyone. I felt a bit awkward about the whole thing, but I know I can never recreate last summer and didn’t want to put too much effort into doing that only to get disappointed. I was on the fence about going back at all after I returned a month or so ago and realized it would never be the same.

Anyways, after Long Bay and a quick chat with Shelley, we headed up to the café to stop in and take a look before going up to the Driving Creek Railway for our train tour. Alex and Mehow were both working at the café and it was great to see them. The other paid staff members from last summer, Katie and Sandy, have both moved on to other things by now. The new WWOOFers weren’t nearly as nice and friendly as we were last year, or at least I’d like to think this. It also didn’t appear that they got on as well as we did. We were always just having so much fun at the café, laughing and joking with each other. We only stopped for a few minutes before our train ride but went back afterwards for a nice lunch.

My father loved the train ride. At first glance it doesn’t seem all that cool, but once you’re up there it really is quite amazing. The potter, Barry Brickle, built the entire railway himself with recycled tracks from coalmines.  You ride the train up a track 3 kms long, rising from 60 meters above sea level to 160 meters above sea level. You pass over many bridges, through multiple tunnels, winding through relatively young native bush, planted less than 100 years ago. The land the railway is on was long ago mature native bush full of old Kauri trees. A few hundred years ago it was cleared for farmland, but once the trees were gone all the top soil washed ago. A family did try to farm is for many decades but finally gave up in the 1930s and the land was then later converted back to native bush maybe 50 (can’t remember exactly) years ago by Mr. Brickel when he bought the land. Mr. Brickel has planted 10’s of thousands of trees on the land including Kauris. It will now take 1000s of years for these newly planted Kauri to mature and spread seedlings outside of his land. They are very slow growing and live thousands of years each. (Remember the oldest living Kauri tree we visited at the beginning of our trip? 2500 years old!). Besides replanting the forest, the Railway is also a Pottery studio for potters from around the world who come to do internships there. The pottery is very nice!

After the ride on the train we chose a few pieces of pottery, both my parents bought a mug and I got a little dish – that I may or may not ever see again. If I don’t ever make it back to America I won’t ever get to see that again.

After the whole train was over we went and had a bite to eat at my old work, The Driving Creek Café, followed by a trip through town to see my other previous workplace, Top Pub/The Coromandel Hotel. This completed our time in Coromandel Town.

Next, we headed out the 309 road to check out the sights out there. We stopped to see Stuart and his wild pigs. This was really quite fun as there were brand new pigs there this time – only a few days old. We all held a pig that was only 4 days old at the time. So small, so cute, just amazing! I’m not sure my parents were all that keen on holding the babies but I made them – when else are they going to get the chance to hold a wild pig? It was great to see Stuart again and I think he enjoyed seeing me as well. Maybe he’ll name a pig after me as well and then I’ll have 2 animals to have to come back and visit here in NZ, my cow and my pig! We quickly visited the waterfall and the Siamese Kauri on the 309 next before heading back to our bach. Long day, we were gone like 7 hours!

Sunday evening we had something for dinner, can’t remember what – leftovers I think and then went off to the Stargazers for a night of stargazing, obviously. We saw lots of cool things including the International Space Station, Magellan’s Clouds (which can only be seen in the Southern Hemisphere), the 7 sisters (which can be seen in both hemispheres), and many other things I don’t remember right now. As you may remember I did this same stargazing tour last summer, but I would have to say it was much better this time as the group was smaller and the whole experience was much more intimate. More time to ask questions, a few interesting tangents we got off on, all in all a great experience once again! The stargazing tour ended late, almost midnight, and the home and to bed.

Monday:

Monday we relaxed around the bach during the day with coffee again at the café for breakfast. In the afternoon we went over to Whangapoa beach and then hiked over to New Chums, one of the most beautiful beaches in New Zealand, by far! We had a nice afternoon just relaxing there, watching the water and the waves. For dinner we went into town and had fish & chips – nothing too impressive, but the seagulls waiting for our leftovers were amazing! At one point my father droped one chip on the ground under the table and they all freaked out. They didn’t get it, as we picked it up and put it back on the table so we could enjoy out meal without them bothering us. Once we were finished we threw out leftovers to the birds and they ate it all in less than 1 second, literally. I’ve never see anything like it. They all swarmed instantaneously, each got on chip or a small piece of food, and consumed the entire meal in one mass bite.

After dinner it was back to the bach for a night of bad TV and reading Bill Bryson books aloud to one another.

Tuesday:

Tuesday was our last day away from Auckland, or really the day we drove back to Auckland, and I was immensely depressed! It was just terrible having to leave a place as beautiful as the Coromandel/the entirety of NZ, to return to a big city like Auckland. I was very upset about the whole thing. I was also very upset about my parents going home, not having a real plan for the rest of my life – I mean I don’t even have another job lined up (I’m going to take care of this very quickly) – not being sure if I even want to leave NZ with summer coming, just being generally stressed out. Then when we got to Auckland all the nice hotels were fully booked, I was hungry, tired, and lunch was no good which just made the whole situation worse! Anyways, Tuesday and Wednesday we just spent time taking care ofmostly practical things. A few nice meals out – back to the Jordanian place, Petra Shawarma, for dinner, breakfast Wednesday at Cereal Killer, and lunch at Olaf’s Bakery in Mt. Eden. Outside of that it was dentist appointments, key copying, notiaries and other boring things like that for me and my parents. And a lot of bad TV and relaxing in our motel room.

It wasn’t really any fun for my coming back to Auckland, I had already said goodbye to my entire life here and then here I was being forced back into it for a few days only to have to say goodbye again. For this reason, I haven’t really reached out to anyone as I don’t want to see a bunch of people again only to have to say goodbye again. I have mentally moved on from Auckland and don’t want to go back. Like with the Coromandel, it won’t be the same again so no point in trying to force it to be.

Wednesday:

After a day of errands and bad TV I took my parents to the airport about 7:30 pm for their evening flight back to America. This was not a fun experience. Now that they’re gone it feels almost like they were never here, but after spending 3.5 weeks with them 24 hours a day it was really, really sad to see them go.

The whole experience of having my parents here was just so strange. When they arrived on the 1^st I almost felt like they were strangers. I do talk to them very regularly on Skype, usually anywhere from 1-4 times/week, but having not actually seen them in so long it felt almost like I didn’t know them. I swear my mother shrunk a few inches (although she denies it), my father I getting more grey hair, but outside this, I just felt like I didn’t really know them. When you’re not with someone, creating shared experiences and memories, it was like I didn’t have anything in common with them. I got over this quickly, in maybe 2 days, but to go from feeling this way to being extremely sad that they were leaving was so strange, and in only 3.5 weeks. By the time they left it felt like they’d always been here, like I’d never left home at all/never left them.

I think I’m also quite sad because I realize that with all this time I’m spending away from home I know that I am missing out on time I can spend with them. I mean I know it’s this way with everyone I’m not seeing every day but I feel this mostly with my parents. When I lived back in Minneapolis, even when I didn’t live at home, I saw my parents multiple times each week. Now seeing them only once a year is just so weird. Especially since they are getting older. I know they aren’t “old,” but as with anyone freak accidents can happen to anyone and I would just feel so terrible if they died while I was away. Not from being sick or anything, as they are quite healthy, but what about a car accident or something else like that. I would just feel so much like I hadn’t spent enough time at home. I try to remember that they’re happy for me to be here, and I can’t live my whole life in MN spending time with my parents, I have to make my own life for myself, but I would still feel just terribly if I was away and I never saw them again.

I am definitely not alone in this fear. Many of the other people I have met while I’ve been traveling feel this same way. It’s had being away from home knowing you are missing out on precious time you won’t ever get back. But I guess we all probably appreciate/will appreciate the time we have with people from home more when we get it. And I just can’t bring myself to go home so the whole point is null and void anyways.

Okay, on to something else now…. Dropped them off at the airport and then I went back to the motel and starting finally planning my trip to Samoa which was only 3 days away and hadn’t really been planned at all up until that point. I also started looking for jobs I can apply for overseas as I need some sort of something to look forward to, I can’t just keep going on every day without a job – both financially and for my own mental sanity!

Just uploading this post now (Monday morning) at a internet cafe in Apia. (Wrote the post Friday on the plane over from Auckland). Not sure I finished the post but I only have a limited time on the internet now so I'm uploading it anyways.

Best!