ALL the Senses

Today was a day I planned to not plan. To fly where the breeze took me, unencumbered by schedules or expectations. The kind of day where you wake up when your body is ready; where you start it slowly, with a cup of coffee in bed. I eased into the day, watching a New Zealand cooking show, where I learned to make marmalade.

It was a day where I relaxed in to all the senses; running my fingers over the softness of a sweater, knit from the finest spun New Zealand mohair. Watching frantic gulls, vying for a handout, dancing around an outstretched hand. Listening to a street performer strumming her guitar, softly singing Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. Bending down to smell a sweet rose, one of many that brightened the path toward the water. Savoring a gelato, lakeside, with my feet buried in the small, smooth stones that line the shore.

I didn’t walk today. I ambled. With my hands clasped loosely behind me, like an old woman walks, with nothing but time on her hands. I looked, I listened, I took pictures of everything from some interesting pinecones to a beautifully elaborate cake in a display case. I ate my way through town, starting with melt-in-your-mouth eggs benedict from the legendary Vudu Café, and later enjoying a Fergburger on the beach. Fergburger claims to serve the finest burgers in the world; a claim that is tested by the long line of patrons extending from the counter and down the sidewalk. It was a damn good burger, and worth the wait. The last few days, I burned calories. Today, I restocked.

At breakfast, I shared a table with a local mom and her daughter, who told me about nearby Arrowtown, an old gold-mining town, established during the gold rush in 1862. I decided to take the bus and explore. On a tree-lined street, preserved miner’s cottages are marked with historical markers. The historical “gaol” (jail) has been restored and reinforced after the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, which resulted in more stringent building codes. Cute shops line the main street, including a fabric store where I bought a few treasures.

I am spending my last night in New Zealand, heading to Melbourne, Australia tomorrow. I’ll have a bit of time to wander tomorrow before I catch my late flight to the land down under. I can’t wait to see a kangaroo … so for now, g’day, mates … and cheers!