Day 26 - RIGUGEGL*

09/12/16

Today's report is coming a bit later because yesterday we didn't have time, so today, you know what I mean? Anyway, I set off at the airport with a beer and try to reconstruct yesterday (Friday)...

We wake up around 08:00, Marco goes for his morning session (toilet break) first. Since there is water, we take a shower - Marco takes a cold one and Yves buys warm water for $1. Finally, the beard has to go - otherwise the Americans won't let us in :-)

After that, we visit two beaches (Ocean and Ngarunui), where we have our brunch at the second one. Unfortunately, two landscapers arrive at the same time and trim the trees and bushes with chainsaws and mulchers, so the idyllic tranquility is gone. The view is still great and we take some flag photos.

We continue towards Hamilton - yes, we are on a reconciliation trip from yesterday. On the way, we make a stop and search for a few geocaches (have fun googling).

Arriving in Hamilton, we look for a free parking space and take a small city walk. At 'The Bank' we have an after-lunch. Marco goes for fish and chips and Yves tries to be healthy and orders vegetarian ravioli. Both taste good and are cheap. Afterwards, we visit the Waikato Museum. There we see great Maori art and learn something about the participation of the New Zealanders in World War I - we saw memorial plaques for the fallen of World War I throughout the trip. This helps to put everything into perspective.

PS: Hamilton is alive:-)

It is already late afternoon when we head towards Auckland and look for overnight accommodation. In Te Kauwhata, we look for a campsite that sounds good on our app. The campsite looks great, it has electricity, water, and a toilet. Only this sign is not so great:

We inquire with a person - the only one - who is setting up, when the festival will start. He kindly informs us that the first people will arrive at 06:00 in the morning and the festival will start at 09:00. He also tells us that we can camp a bit further down on another field and we won't be disturbed there. He asks us to inform the other campers as well. So we do and move to the said field. There we let a little piece of home come alive and enjoy a raclette. The New Zealand cheese is surprisingly good.

In the later evening, someone from the council, let's call him Harald, comes by after all. He tells us that from 06:00, the stallholders, festival-goers, and participants will arrive and this field will be fully used as a parking lot. Therefore, we should leave the area by 06:00. As compensation, he gives us a small bag of treats. A bit confused by the conflicting information, we set the alarm for 06:00 and wait to see what happens...

*Raclette is good and puts you in a good mood

Photo of the day: Monsterwomo parking on the replacement campsite