Miss Foxy

She stands about five feet tall and hasn’t aged well. Her face has a compressed contour that sags with deep lines drawn gaunt. Her upper teeth are missing and what’s left of her bottom teeth are hard to look at. When she talks they are on full display. She sports a sun dress on a thin frame and walks with bare feet splayed out. The red and white flower patterned dress does little to compliment the fact that she appears to be 20 years older than she is. Her voice is low and interrupted on occasion by a deep old smokers cough. I don’t think she’s ever used sunscreen. I ask her where she’s from and she replies, “Canada”, with a thick English accent. I wasn’t much interested in talking to her but for a moment I thought she might be following me as I first met her at the backpackers in Auckland when she was having a fit looking for coffee in the common kitchen. She much appreciated the small packet of instant I found in the free food box. I’ll call her Miss Foxy.

Well, I left Auckland on Tuesday and took a ferry to Coramandel Town. On Wednesday, as everyday, my right ear was giving me fits and I decided to throw caution to the wind. I got a lamb and mint burger at a takeaway food joint and wandered into a pub with a good jukebox playing country music. Ironically most of the music was by Texas artist. I was browsing the internet and sipping a beer when Miss Foxy appeared out of nowhere with a glass of wine in her hand. She had taken the Wednesday ferry. She gave me a half smile and we had a short chat. I’m not sure what Miss Foxy’s full story is but I get the impression she’s been all over the place. I did notice in Auckland a German woman talking with her for quite some time. I noticed her saying Vanuatu is a really interesting. Miss Foxy could be very easily be mistaken for a vagrant but she was staying at the only hotel in Coramandel with a swimming pool. I meet all kind of characters traveling and many, given the time to talk, can tell quite a story but I have a hard time holding a conversation with someone who has really bad teeth. I get the Impression Miss Foxy has traveled the world and then some.

I spent 2 nights camping at a rural backpackers just outside of Coramandel proper. On Tuesday I did a nice walk and hike right out of town. On Wednesday, before running into Miss Foxy, I visited the home of a recently deceased eccentric potter who built a small narrow gauge railway up a mountain to get clay. Well, He kind of got OCD with that project and kept laying rail up the mountain for 30 years or so. It’s quite impressive with switchbacks, trestle’s and bridges running through sub-tropical forest. The highlight is the end of the line when you reach “Eyeful Tower”. It’s a bit of tourist trap now but one I recommend.

After a couple of nights at Coramandel Town I hopped a bus for a short hour long ride to Whitianga. From there I took a short ferry to a road leading to the beach town of Hahei where I hitched a couple of short rides.

In Hahei I had the choice of a “Backpackers” hostel or a campground. I chose the hostel as it was just a couple of more dollars than the overpriced campground. With 6 beds to a room you never really know how it’s going to go with roommates but the place is really nice. So, I booked one night and told the owner I’d have a look around and let him know if I wanted to stay longer. The beach is nice, the area is nice and all of the girls at the hostel are really cute, however, I’m certainly old enough to be their father. The only age appropriate women on premises is a nice French lady working at the hostel who is traveling the country for 8 to 12 months. New Zealand is a great place to just roam with no worries. It’s known to be very safe with low crime so a lot of European women travel the country solo without a problem.

After a couple of hours of walking around Hahei I informed the manager that I wanted to stay 2 more nights but I missed my chance. They booked up while I was out. I suppose I’ll stay in the campground tomorrow as there’s a hike I want to do in the morning.

As far as my ear goes it’s doing pretty bad and has definitely put a damper on things. The night before last I had vertigo. Last night, after eating poorly and drinking a couple of beers, I had no vertigo. Mostly my hearing is going to crap on my right while the left ear is a saving grace. I’m not allowing it to bother me too much. I hope that it magically gets better like it has in the past. There's not much I can do about it regardless of where I'm at. I figure can either be bothered by it at home or in New Zealand. Cest La Vie......