Sabrina and I arrived home late last Sunday night from our weekend trip and I was more than happy to hear that I have the next day off. It was a long drive but totally worth it. Napier is a fun city and I really liked the feeling of the place. Can't go wrong with a beach and the ocean. If I ever get the chance I'll definitely get a house by the sea, I mean who wouldn't? We spent the Saturday strolling around the city streets and looking for sights.
And here's one thing we've both noticed about kiwi's. They can be pretty simple people when it comes to certain things. Or if I'd put it in a nicer way, I think that they simply know how to appreciate the small things. Napier's sights were a pretty good example of this. Sabi and I got a map from the city's i-site and there were four "Hidden Gems" marked on the map. We decided to check them out so we drove around the harbour searching one of them, called a "Custom's House". Eyes looking for a big impressive building, but we kept on driving past the mark on the map. We finally decided to park the car and that's when we saw this tiny old house. As we walked around it, we realised. This was it! The Customs House. A tiny, old building. It didn't caught my eye in any way and it was so well kept that I couldn't tell if it was built decades ago or last year. Was there something inside the house that made it special, "a gem"? Don't know, couldn't enter. How about the surroundings? A harbour, industrial area. And an iron pot in front of the house. Greeeeat. And all the rest of these "Hidden Gems" were pretty much in the same category. But I guess that's just how tourisms works, no matter how big or small, old or new, make it a sight and there will always be people looking for it.
Napier, the Art Deco Capital
Beach on Sunday afternoon
Another example of kiwi simplicity took place later that day. We found out that an Indian Festival, a "Diwali" was being held by the waterfront and I was getting exited. "A festival of light!", said the bright-coloured posters all around the city. Expectations were high as we found ourselves a place in front of the stage. And what it ended up being, was a handful of people, few food-staples and clumsy dance-acts. "Thunderrrrous applause!" "We arrre rrrrocking Hawke's Bay, camoon everrrrybody! Let's shout Happy Diwali!", screamed the tiny guy to his microphone with his thick Indian accent. He didn't let the dead, quiet audience slow him down a bit, he just kept on shouting and making bad jokes. But it was so awful and awkward that it was already pretty awesome. I really think that this terrible host made the show for me. And ironically it was the last and the worst dance act that finally got the audience up and dancing. Four chubby brothers climbed on to the stage in colourful outfits, jumping and shaking all in their own rhythm. Massive turbans were bouncing on their heads and the crowd just went crazy! The brothers were asked to perform again and they did the exact same dance, probably the only one they knew.
But don't get me wrong here, there's nothing wrong about finding joy from the small things in life. Heck, you'll probably end up living a much happier life like that. But it's just been funny to notice here in NZ how easily they label things, making them sound a bit bigger and better. "Festivals" that are more like Sunday Markets. "Holiday Parks" which look like plain camping sites. Every teeny tiny track and trail has been marked as a walkaway or a hiking trail. And this is also something that is good to keep in mind when backpacking. Sabrina travelled around NZ last summer and she warned me not to stop on every sign saying "A Waterfall" or a "Glowworm cave" cause these things are absolutely everywhere. And sometimes a "waterfall" ended up being not more than a little stream pouring between rocks. Luckily I got her notes about great places to go and activities to do, in the end money and time is going to be limited.
On our way back home
In the same time I hope that I'd have a bit more of this this quality in me, that I too could find joy and happiness from the simplest things. Like kids do. Sometimes you just have high expectations about things, especially when travelling and living in a foreign country. You kinda wish that you'd get new and exiting experiences every day, that you'd always have something new to tell to the people back home. In those moments I have to remind myself about the small things in life, the things that never fail to make me smile. Like how the grass smells after the rain. A well-done cup of coffee. Starting a new book. When drawing and you finally get that one line the way you want it to go. How a strong hug feels. Life doesn't always have to be fireworks. The important part is how you decide to live it. About the attitude. I bet the Indian host knows what I'm talking about.
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