Kathryn, Stephanie and Ruth suffer a sudden post-conference depression.
After a loooong conference day (after a creative night, after a fun dinner, etc.), in the Waipuna Bar:
I was smiling with a mouth
like the white cliffs of Dover
Ian brought another wine glass and laughed "Don't fall over";
Well, I promised I wouldn't, it's a promise I'd keep.
So I didn't fall over, but I did fall asleep.
It was about time to start my long journey around New Zealand. I'd go sailing with Margery the next day, and then I'd be off.
Portuguese Nobel prize winner José Saramago distinguishes between tourists and travellers. Tourists rush to see all the sights thay are expected to have seen. Travellers play it by ear, focusing on experience and learning rather than mere sighseeing. I like to see myself as a traveller.
So - when Stephanie
and Ian invited me to stay for a few days, how could I resist? It took me almost
a mile down the road from the hotel. I was on my way south! At this pace, I
wouldn't spend more than a year or two to reach Wellington. But armchair travels
are underrated.
I spent a day watching rugby on the TV with Stephanie and Ian.
And walked among the sharks and stingrays in the Auckland harbour.
Then it was time to travel south, to chase rainbows and thermal eruptions in Rotorua.
