Across Continents

Ken's Blog

Motorcycle maintenance

July 6th, 2011

Zen

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "Herrods". Expensive shop in London

Clever. Pretext of a Seventies road trip to explore issues society wrestling with. Technology. Quite a bit more. Simple literary device. Introducing topics through conversations with others. Travelling companions. Admittedly the diversions into Ancient Greece seemed to be, well, errr, just that. Diversions.

Ian, with whom, together with Amy and their children, I’d be staying in Wellington, had lent me the book. Thought I might be intrigued by it. Which I was. The author’s logical, analytical style striking an especially strong chord. Parallels between motorcycle maintenance and my own endeavours as a bicycle mechanic an incidental bonus.

A travel book that wasn’t. Or at least, was a lot more. Different. Which gave me a bit of an idea. Just an inkling.

[Author’s note: Probably not the best synopsis in the first paragraph. Mainly because he ran out of time to read the entire book before having to return it to its owner. But he does, to his surprise as much as anyone else’s, actually have a ’B’ in ’O’ level English Literature. Just don’t mention English Language…’C’ since you ask]

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Onward

July 6th, 2011

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "fear". What you pay when you get on a bus

6.45 am. Remarkably jovial. Baseball cap. Bomber jacket. Navy blue. Chill morning. Shorts. Rummaging around for his shades. Our driver. Early bus to Punakaiki. Still dark. Now checking off names. Where was I staying? At the hostel. Which one, he asked? YHA I replied. She’d come and pick me up, he explained. Couple of miles outside the village. Apologetic he couldn’t drop me off at the door.

Nelbus

Friendly reminder to a young man at the front of the bus to keep his food stowed away. We’d be stopping for tea about nine fifteen. And there’d be pies. And then "Onward" announced our driver. His name Steve.

Fellow passengers, mostly young travellers. Backpackers. A few Japanese. Save for our man at the wheel, I’d have been the eldest. Portly chap in his fifties. Bounded about whenever we stopped. Shepherding his young flock from luggage trailer to the small bus. Too few of us for a full sized coach.

And a Canadian woman. Sure I’d seen her the previous evening in the hostel. On the face of it late forties, but the eyes said differently. She’d smiled at me when I’d arrived at the bus station. Early.

[Author’s note: Steve makes several very welcome appearances as the story unfolds. For which, following feedback to his employer InterCity buses, he’s been awarded a particularly well deserved Certificate of Merit!]

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: , , ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Thought for a friend

July 5th, 2011

Candle

Nelson cathedral. Inspired by Ute I’d ridden with back in Germany. Together with her husband Manfred. She’d lit a candle in Regensburg cathedral. For safe travels. I’d followed suit. But today wasn’t quite the same. Lighting one for a friend. Hers a different journey. Spirited fight against an aggressive cancer.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: , ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Bearing up

July 5th, 2011

bikeshop

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "steers". Climb these to go up a floor

Bit of a glib statement. Heard it a few times. Just pick up spare cartridge bearings from a local manufacturer. Yep. Frequently pass them on the road. Maybe not. Until now. Or at least a stockist. I’d wandered into a local bike shop. On the off-chance. Wanting to replace the spare set I’d already used for the front hub. Too many different types for them to stock. But there was a place I could try down by the docks.

Bearingshop (2)

Bit of a challenge. Trekking down to Nelson’s port. Eventually finding the shop. Helpful chap. But just one of the type I wanted. And I needed a pair. He could get more overnight, but I was off early next morning. So he suggested a second stockist. Just around the corner.

Bearingshop (1)

And viola. Set of cartridge bearings. Secretly pleased I appeared to know what I was talking about. I’d asked for generic R8s. Imperial sizing. For an American front hub I’d explained. No bemused looks.

Bearing

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

No jacket required

July 5th, 2011

Jacketcomb

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "Won a Pig". Canadian city

I wouldn’t have minded as much if I’d bought a cheap jacket. But I hadn’t. Supposedly reputable manufacturer. And I’d cared for it. Used only the recommended cleaning products. But to no avail. Sleeves de-laminating. Hood retainer unsticking itself. And now the main zip had broken. Rendering the whole thing quite useless. Alas, out of warranty. And even if it weren’t, I simply couldn’t afford to be without a waterproof.

So I’d been obliged to find a replacement. Quickly. Fortunately Nelson having a number of outdoor shops. Managing to find a heavily discounted Goretex jacket. Man enough to do the job. Not my choice of colour for riding on the road. Blue. But the saving irresistible. Enough to afford a bright fluorescent over jacket to compensate.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: , , ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Playing for Poland

July 4th, 2011

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "pigs". Used to hang washing out on the line

Smorgsborg. Generous spread. Germans. Loud. But good spirited. Enthusiastic. Nelson Youth Hostel. Monopoly. Wehrmacht edition I thought. Playing for Poland.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: , ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Nelson City

July 4th, 2011

Cathspire

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "Frugget". Small warship

Nelson, I’d discovered, was a city. Not a big one mind. But it did have a cathedral. Nor was it the smallest of cities. Certainly bigger than St Davids in Wales. But a city nevertheless. A few notable visitors over the years. His Royal Highness The Duke of York. October 2005. Coincidentally Chairman of The Outward Bound Trust’s Trustees.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Giving

July 4th, 2011

Liam

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "ruck otter". Type of cheese

Friendly bunch in Nelson. Actually, that pretty much seems to go for much of South Island. I’d met Liam at a pedestrian crossing. Waiting for the lights. I’d not sought to engage in conversation. It’d just happened.

He’d spent time in London. Golders Green. Working now in the social sector. Philosophical chat. The importance of giving something to others. I’d agreed. Wholeheartedly. Gave him his freedom to escape after twenty minutes or so.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags:
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Lunchtime story

July 3rd, 2011

Today’s Kiwese word or phrase: "a nelly sus". Logical scrutiny

It had to be up there with the one about mobile phones. Causing explosions in petrol stations. Invariably prohibited. But has anyone ever seen it happen? Ever. I doubt it. The bus driver had explained that eating onboard wasn’t allowed. Quite apart from the mess, there’d been an incident. He wasn’t sure exactly when. Someone had opened a bag of peanuts. Aroma spread by the air conditioning. Driver collapsing at the wheel. Nut allergy. Our man was certain of this. Picton bus station. Ten minutes to departure. Ate my lunch on the pavement.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: , ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

Heading south to Franz Josef

July 3rd, 2011

Glacierpan

Today’s Kiwese word: puck chez. What you take with a camera

I’d been in New Zealand for at least ten minutes before I’d decided I’d need to come back. So it’d made sense to focus on doing one thing well. Rather than attempting to cram lots in. And see little. So I’d decided to head for the Franz Josef Glacier on the western side of South Island. Spend a few days there. Exploring. Weather permitting. But the forecast was good. Cold but dry for the most part.

I’d chosen the Glacier for no other reason that a couple of billion cubic metres of solid ice sounded like a bit of preparation of Alaska. And, after all, I’d never been to NZ before. So, whatever I did, it’d be a new experience. Couldn’t loose.

obpostlogo

Share

Tags: ,
Posted in New Zealand | No Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »
Terms & Conditions of Use | Copyright © 2009-2024 Ken Roberts