No, the Digbys don't live in Linwood. They live in Tawa, an outer suburb of Wellington. Shannon & Rob Digby along with little Olivia and Isaac are my latest CouchSurfing hosts. They're my fifth hosts in the Wellington area, and I've ended up in the area a dozen times or maybe more. The Digby home is never empty and always a blast! With several other CSers from France, Germany, the USA, and Israel the kitchen is busy, busy, busy! With the likes of crepes, shuk-shuka, potato salami stir-fry, apple carrot salad, courgette bread, and pavlova, the kitchen buzzes with a melting pot of cooking styles resulting in a global culinary feast! Here I am trying my hand at making crepes.
And here are some of us with a big feast.
Why am I discussing Linwood when the Digbys don't live there? Linwood isn't a town at all, but a classic NZ board game. You move around from a centre tile and build a map. There are four elements: forest, fire, water, and wind. When you obtain an element card it enables you to move further. For example: with a fire card, you can navigate through a system of tunnels. With a wind card you roll two dice, and so forth.
What a fun game! In a close match I nearly won, but one of the French CSers beat me in a close game. I'm up for another match!
The Digbys are an awesome family. I'll admit that I've stayed with very few families whilst CSing; it's been mostly single people or couples. Shannon and Rob enjoy hosting many CSers at once. She told me it's easier than only hosting one because they feel like they have to be the perfect hosts in that situation; they're unable to be since they have small children. The advantage of there being several CSers is that meals are shared, language barriers are overcome, and more experienced travellers and CSers have the ability to help those with less experience.
Shannon & Rob, I'll miss you. I look forward to a game of Linwood wherever I host you.
