Nicks Big Adventure

I believe I left off with an update that I might go canoeing. Well, I did not go, the weather was going to be bad and I did not fancy being in the rain on a flooded river for 8 days with people I barely knew. Nothing against them I just get to choose how happy or miserable I am. In fact that is true for all of us. We make the choices that shape our lives. OK, back to the story. Since I did not take the Wanganui River trip I drove the 1.5 hours to Wanganui anyway. It's an old paddle boat and harbor town. When we got in, the river looked a lot like the Brazos, slow and muddy. I separated from the two hikers I had befriended and wandered around town poking my head into shops and seeing what the town had to offer. The campground I found was near the beach but in a rough neighborhood. It was another black sand beach and littered with drift wood. On a side note always carry your shoes when you are on a black sand beach. If you think the sun bakes the white sands of Florida you ain't seen nothing. You can get 2nd degree burns very quickly. Back in Wanganui I decided to explore the places I had scouted the day before. I first crossed the river from downtown to climb the stairs of a hill that lead to an old elevator. It cost $2 and I needed the exercise so I jogged up. Once reached the top and thought I was going to die I topped it off with a spiral staircase in a tower and got some good pics. Back down and across I went to the museum and Art gallery. I had never felt so energized by an art gallery in my life. The first installment was a work that combined greek vase and mural art with maori legend. It was very awesome. The next was a display of molded glass that used farce and color to entertain. The next was works from a kiwi cartoonist that also entertained. Finally I really dug on the Large format photos of storage rooms of major museums. They have so much that does not go on display its crazy. The next day I split from my friends and headed to Roto-vegas (Rotorua). (An update on them: They quit in Wellington and will buy a car to travel like normal people.) They call it rotovegas because of the seedy residents and all of the gaming halls in town. This is a return trip for me so I was prepared for the stench of rotten eggs. I found the course after some work and played a few holes. The tourney started a few days later and it was great. There is a small community of Disc golfers in NZ. Few as they may be they are hard core. I would say half have some form of private course around their house. Bob is the DG man in NZ, he is the distributer of innova discs and the head of all things NZ disc golf. He is also very nice, we spoke for an hour or so about trying to grow the sport here. He is trying hard and getting some good results. Since it is a small community it is like a friend rally every tournament. It was nice to be included into their fold of fun. I played well below par but I shaved 9 strokes off of my round from first to third rounds. Every night we would chill and have beers and joke about our play that day. IN the end I came in last place. I met up with an american that was hitching around NZ and the world. We talked for a while and he asked me what my plans were. I as always had no plans so he had a proposition. If I gave him a ride 45 min south he would buy my ticket to Kiwi Burn. I am sure nobody who is reading this has ever been to Burning Man. This is a regional Burning Man. Matt had a shift to work on the first day so he needed to get there soon. I LOVE festivals!!! I have also never been to Burning Man but it has always been on my mind. The size and crazy survival scenario were off putting to me. I thought that this would be a great chance to meet some cool people and do something fun. Boy was I right. We got there and I fell right into step with all of the folks there. We built stuff and moved things. I got to help prepare the place for the other people who would attend. In return I made great connections and friendships with both americans and Kiwis. There was even a lake to swim in when it got too hot or I needed a bath. Yes, there were naked people everywhere, and no I did not participate. The week flew by, the burning of the man was a huge party with lots of screaming and hooting. The next night was the temple burn and that was the opposite. The structure was so cool you need to see the pics on FB. The burn of that was different as everyone was silent. People had written wishes hopes and dreams on the temple which was made of bamboo and drift wood that was collected all over the island. I took some time and watched it off to the side by myself. It was great and I got a little emotional. I don't want to sound like a weirdo but it was really cool and powerful. And that was sunday. So in 2 days I will catch you up on my last week. Paddock, Taupo, and my road trip to here in the coromandel. I am doing great and there is a lot to look forward to in the near future. Good health and wealth to every one and please be happy. Peace, Love and Pura Vida,   Nicholas