Day 14, Level 2.5: Horses, Pigment, Cruising and Nazare

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A bit of this and a bit of that during the morning. And then I went to Matakana. 

En route I saw a bunch of horses and riders on the estuary - it looked so good and such fun that I pulled over and went to take a closer look. 


There were four horseback riders (one not in the photo), a young silver grey pony with no rider, and two delightful teeny horse/donkey beings. When I got there they were out on the estuary - as per photo. And then they came ashore, right where I had parked. Suddenly I had teeny horse/donkey beings romping towards me like dogs!  

Teeny horse/donkey cuteness! 

At first I was just a teeny bit scared - what do horse/donkey beings get up to for the unsuspecting!?!? No worries, I was immediately enamoured and I left with some reluctance. Oh to hop on a horse and canter along the sandflats of Omaha Estuary. Yes I would!

Continued to Matakana, had a chat with a horse-racing enthusiast, got some supplies - and then ... went to Pigment. Yes, that art store. I succumbed and bought a fabulous Lamy ink pen. I have various art and ink pens, purchased through the years - but I haven't bought a pen for about, hmm, ten years, at least. They're a tool of the trade and, like all things, they evolve. This pen is new technology and I'm looking forward to trying it out!

Only those who love and use ink pens will understand!

Back to Omaha and en route I decided to stop and photograph a funny old building I've spied forever. It's never easy to pull over and look at it, and also never easy to view from the road when you're driving past. Today was my chance. I just like the colours as the forlornlessness (is that even a word!) as the place fleets past. It's the NZ equivalent of the sort of place that I would stop and photograph in Europe. There are lots of old barns and farm buildings that are photo-worthy and this one is just a little bit unique. Derelict and neglected, it kind of says something as it stands there on the side of the road. Who owns you?



So once I'd got that longed-for photo session done and dusted, on I went to Omaha. 

Impromptu invite - Annie, come for drink/dinner. Yes!

She lives round the corner. Longtime in the travel game. Cruise queen. Reinventing herself in real estate as travel implodes. Always with an idea or ten. We have an earlier connection via travel. And lots in common within and beyond travel. It's fair to say ideas flowed tonight as we chatted and drank and ate and drank. And talked travel and cruising. And loads more besides.
We also read much between each other's lines as conversation progressed to places we never thought we'd ever be going! A lovely evening. Enlightening, deep, authentic and soulful. Love it. 

Teriyaki chicken meal - plus caramlised eggplant (my favourite) and accoutrements.
I think Annie is eating an endamame bean in the photo!


SHARE-NOTE OF THE DAY:
Nazare ...

Home of the most huge waves in the world! Surf museum. Wonderful fort and lighthouse. Tourist beach to one side, serious surf waves to the other. 

See this footage of Brazilian daredevil surfer Maya Gabeira who rode a 73.5ft (22.4m) giant wave at Nazare in Feb to take the Guinness Book of Records.  She overshadowed the top male surfers in the process! Incredible. 

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTuqJE03aH4 

We went to Nazare last August 2019 - the waves weren't pumping on the surf side - but the "pleasant beach" side was busy. 

Sam and Anna, and some friends, went last week, Sept 2020. They hired a campervan and went from Lisbon to Porto, spent time in the Douro (and loved that best).

Here is their photo of Nazare. 

Nazarr September 2020 - taken by Sam

And here is my photo taken of same place from same spot, a year earlier 
Nazare August 2019 - taken by Sally

Hey - it doesn't look a lot different to me!!! The beach shelters are set up in a different configuration - but people-wise - it looks pretty similar. (2020 on left, 2019 on right). 

Everyone is out and about enjoying Nazare. And Sam and Anna and their mates got back to London in the nick of time before Portugal got put back on the quarantine corridor for UK. 




Sam and Anna in the Douro - which they loved

Oh how I wish we could get over to the UK and Europe to catch up with them. Thank goodness we did it last year!








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