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Oct 21
Sat

In Houhora Heaven

Since 9 o' clock in the morning the good fairy of the camping ground has been trying to get someone responsible from Britz on the phone. We want them to give us a new car as soon as possible and it should be a better model than we had so far as compensation for all the trouble we've been having. After hold in the wait loop she finally gets a promise that they will call back at 9.45 am. This doesn't happen until 10.30 am. This means she has to wait for the call in the office the whole time. She's dropped her work and is joking around with me. Eventually we give up, somehow they'll reach us or we'll try again later. I ask her how we can repay her but she wants none of that. She refuses money for the phone calls and she doesn't even want a bottle of wine for her patience and helpfulness: «Who knows what it's good for, maybe someday I'll see a mermaid.»

Northland – Houhora Heads Campsite Houhora Heads · more Northland pictures more pictures

We'd like to eat some fresh fish, but shops selling it are hard to find. Kiwis catch their own fish. Because we are stuck here, I ask a fisherman who is our neighbour on this site, if I can buy some fish from his catch of the day. But no, he won't sell the fish, Pete wants to offer it to me. We have a chat. The cabin is permenantly his, he's from Auckland and always glad not to be there but here for the fishing. In 1964 he had a job in Hamburg. He has already heard the story of our car and we agree it's a bloody nuisance.

Meanwhile, the wonderful woman has achieved a great deal: today someone will arrive around 8 pm with a new campervan. It's already noon and the drive from Auckland is supposed to take 6 hours.

Lazily, we hang around the campground the whole day. Pete offers us a giant fish, a kahawai. It's even filleted already. He tells me to roll it in flour before frying it, gives me flour as well, and tells me I can use his pans and gas stove and that I'm welcome to watch TV in his cabin if I like to! The tip with the flour is great and the fish really delicious. It's so crispy and there's so much! The campground is so big that you can go for a walk there. In the evening we stroll around in the beautiful garden of the Subritzki Homestead (1862) where small parrots are flying around between giant old palm trees. The whole day we've been surrounded by a wonderful bird chorus.

Later in the evening the good fairy rushes past on her lawn-mower to tell us that there was another incoming call: Britz haven't managed it today, but tomorrow at about 7 am the vehicle should be replaced with a better one. She's sharing our joy over the better car. We thank her again, touched by the friendliness we've experienced here. We pack our things and go to bed early, curious about the new car.

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