Day 17: Staying Connected

In my past travels I always loved the exhilarating feeling of leaving my hometown, leaving behind my family and friends who all know me well, knowing that I am going to a world unknown where I am a complete stranger to everyone. There is really nothing quite like waking up by yourself (or rather in a dorm room with at least 4 other people) in an unfamiliar place with nothing to do but explore and find adventure. It is so invigorating and unnerving all at the same time. I think that is all part of the draw to traveling alone. I am driven by the desire to wander and experience unfamiliar and uncharted territory. I just absolutely love it. While travelling here a Scottish friend wisely quoted George Harrison, "If you don't know where you're going, any road'll take you there". The best adventures usually happen when you do not make plans, set out in a random direction and be open to what/who crosses your path. This all being said, I still have moments where I ask myself why on earth am I leaving the comfort of my homeland and everything it has to offer. These moments obviously do not last very long though because then I think about how there is so much adventure to be found in the unknown and I develop an inability to resist such fun. 

Having done quite a bit of traveling I now know people in so many places around the world and I love it. It is wonderful to think about all the countries I could travel to and have someone there to meet me. Traveling and knowing that I have friend abroad who I am comfortable with while still being able satisfying my extreme wanderlust and desire for new experiences, culture and adventures is perfect. These friends are connections to my past life and experiences, providing me with just enough familiarity to be comfortable. And the connection with people I meet when I travel is different. I have not put much thought into why this is. I imagine it has something to do with the fact that I am interacting with complete strangers, attempting to find some sort of link or similarity that is going to to connect us somehow in a short period of time. If there is no immediate connection it is quite easy to move on but if there is a connection, you want to hold on to that and see where it goes and where it takes you. 

There are always adventures to be had when you meet a kind soul that harmonizes with your own.  

Now you will have to bear with me here, I am not a very good story teller, especially when the story is not my own, so there are likely details incorrect and/or wrong in here but you will at least get the important parts. Years ago my grandparents told me a story about a man, who we shall call "the man who crash landed" from New Zealand crash landing his plane in my great grandparents field because he had run out of fuel. I cannot remember where he was coming from or where he was going but my great grandparents put him up in their house for a few days or so and ended up maintaining contact with him over the years. A horrible rendition of the story but you get the gist. Recently I was told this story again by the son of "the man who crashed landed", while visiting his farm in Waipu. Due to my grandparents diligence at keeping in contact, I was able to spend three amazing days with this family on their beautiful dairy farm. This visit is truly one of the highlights of my time in this country so far. The welcome I received, along with the friends I brought along, was with the most wide open arms you can imagine. Upon arrival I felt like we had been long time family friends and it was beautiful.

 It was very interesting to experience farming in another country. To see the different landscape and farmland. Especially experiencing a dairy farm, which is obviously quite different from a grain farm. Herding the cattle multiple times a day, gathering them all up to be milked, morning and night, and then having to remember all the markings that show which cows get milked twice a day, which only once a day, and so on. It was hard to feel the tough work of this job with the incredible land surrounding you. However, I am sure after the awe of it all wears off, it all becomes normal and the grind sets in. I would still rather be a dairy farmer in NZ than in Canada. Just saying....After this whole experience, it is a sure thing to say that farmers here are just as hard workers as they are back home.

We traveled to the Waipu Caves, by way of the farm jalopy, on a very rainy day. The caves turned out to be just one cave but this one cave provided us with a gorgeous view of glow worms. They look like stars. So beautiful.  

After two evenings of jovial conversation, many stories told, and just generally an incredible time on the farm and in Waipu, we had to bid farewell to this amazing family. We were on the road again off to Auckland and more adventures. But of course we had to stop at Waipu Cove and go for a swim in the beautiful ocean. And so to the beach we went...