Wanganui and the final leg

After Taranaki, I made it to Wanganui to meet up with some activists that Hillary and Chris got me in touch with. Geoff and Luc are two kiwi anarchists who decided to buy a plot of land with a sheep shed on it, and begin a community art/political space. I arrived in town early and walked around. Again, amazing museums and galleries. The Sargeant Gallery had an incredible series of photographic exhibits, one which was a dramatization (done in the 70's) of a man recruited into a guerrilla resistance movement against an invasion of New Zealand. This piece was a comment on the Vietnam war, a war that New Zealand was pulled into at the time...and that the population still feels the effects of. It was a powerful piece and really interesting storybook medium. It made me think about using still photographs to tell fictional/political stories...very cool stuff.

The Wanganui history museum, again, had a fantastic Maori exhibition and history of the area. Wanganui is on a river and adjacent to a national park, so it's pretty isolated in terms of the rest of the North Island.

Geoff and Luc picked me up at the Red Eye cafe, a cool arts/diy coffeehouse that is kind of the artscenter of the town. We hopped in their car and they drove me into the country. They moved here about 2 years ago from Wellington after getting burned out from city life and wanting to take a pro-active approach to their activism.

On the way we stopped and picked up an old couch that the local apolsterer was going to throw out. The owners of the shop were real characters, Harley bikers, who seemed to appreciate what Geoff and Luc are trying to do. They threw in a beautiful old mirror with the couch and two chairs. We had to return the trailer we used to pick up the couch to Geoff and Luc's neighbors. When we did, about 12 kids were running around a beautiful river front, while their parents drank beer. They were lovely folks. Pete and Theresa were a lovely couple who are also very supportive of Geoff and Luc. Theresa is Maori and the mother of three girls. Pete is a tatooed engineer who has a springy and energetic personality. We sat with them into the night, talking and laughing. Pete brought out some fish that he caught and put it on the barbecue and later that night we ate. Dropping off the trailer was a 7 hour adventure, but it was so lovely to go with the flow and "meet the neighbors". Other folks were there who lived across the road, farmers...but not at all redneck. Just funny, intelligent working people. That's not to say there aren't red neck people on their road. I caught a little of the gossip, and from what I could discern, a Kiwi redneck was basically just a simple and somewhat unfriendly to outsiders kind of person. Nothing like the frieghtening violent gun-toting hick you get in the US.

Eventually we made it back to the house and there was an unknown car outside. "Who is that? I don't know that car!"Luc said. I began to get worried, because in the evenings discussions, it was mentioned that Geoff and Luc had been burgeled over a year ago. It turned out however, that it was friends of theirs up from Wellington. A lesbian couple, Miriam and Kiti with their pal Vanessa were going to WOMAD in New Plymouth, a big hippy concert basically. The next morning I awoke and had some interesting conversations with Kiti particularly. She is Maori, studying to be a lawyer, and really knowledgeable about the Maori situation in this country. She was describing one tribe on the east coast who has succesfully fought off the English and is still basically living a traditional life. It has been whittled down to about 10 people, but when the government recently tried to approach them about another treaty, they were greeted with an intense haka (war dance) greeting and basically told them to go to hell. Kiti had an indescribably big spirit, very strong and I could tell she was going to be doing some really powerful work in her life around Maori/Pakeha politics. Before the girls left, they sang a traditional Maori song for us (which I got on camera for the doc) and sped away in their station wagon. The rest of the day I hung out with Geoff and Luc and interviewd them for the documentary.

The house they live in is basically an old sheep shearing shed, built in the late 19th century. Covering the walls are political posters, art and spray painted names like "leith" and Maori names. These were the sheep shearing gangs that worked in the shed over about 100 years. Where the kitchen is, you can still see the sheep shoots where they were brought in, and the floor is still perferated for the sheep droppings. "It took us 3 days to hoze out the place, there was shit everywhere...it was disgusting" Geoff said. They put carpet down, but the place is still pretty cold. It's a long term plan to get the place insulated and liveable in the winter.

Geoff and Luc bought the land (10 acres) for fairly cheap, and the plan is to put the estate into a trust so that it will be public land, available for living and doing similar community work. I found this to be a real eye opener. A really interesting approach. Basically to buy land for cheap, then make it public again. Of course, before the whites got here, this land was Maori, tied to the geneology of the families and tribes. It seemed to me that this was somewhat of an interesting cycle that activists should take note of. Land ownership is power, and without buying into the system, I wonder if there is a way to collectively purchase land and make it collectively accessible while protecting it from exploitation. Basically, if you wanted to come and park a caravan and live there right now, you could...they're that open. They said they haven't encountered anyone really who has manipulated the situation or anything. Everyone has been incredibly positive and supportive and they haven't had to ask anyone to leave or piss off. Luc is studying natural medicine and Geoff works with people with disabilities to pay the bills at the moment, but the idea is to eventually just live off the land, eat vegetables from their garden and get completely self sufficient. It was great meeting such wonderful peole. They were so warm and open. I only hope I can return the favor one day.

I made my way back to Wellington and stayed at Beethoven house again, where all the old faces from a week and a half ago still were. It was funny coming up the steps to a group of people hanging out on the benches saying "Hey!!You're back!

The last few days have been spent mostly thinking about the transition back to life in the US and if it should be long term or short term. It's all kind of overwhelming at the moment. I read CNN today with a headline that "Egypt sold arms to Iraq in the 80's". I can't believe that is even making the news.....duh...the biggest arms seller to Iraq in the 80's was the US!! But I guess the spindoctors need to prepare the public for another middle east invasion...more worthless facts and half truths. It is such a confusing place. Honestly, I don't know how people keep their sanity there....it's all so insane.

Two more days in this beautiful country. I've been thinking a lot about the trip...what it has all meant and what I've left with. It has been extraordinary, and I can now honestly say that I am fully addicted to travel. IT IS one of my great passions. I've also enjoyed documenting it on video and on this blog and it has meant so much to me that my dear friends have put up with my ramblings for all these months. Here are some points I'd like to leave "The Trip" with.

1. Travel is good. It is also a political act. If more Americans travelled to countries that the US had bombed in the past, they would demand fundamental change, stop buying stupid shit that gets them into debt and feeds the neo-liberal economics that drives it all. There is no way any sane person could go to Cambodia, Laos or Vietnam and honestly say "Yeah...America did a good job...we really belonged over there". You CAN travel cheaply. You CAN also work and travel which I plan on doing on the next trip.

2. Surviving hostels is challenging. Earplugs are important, so is a window to get rid of the smell. If you don't have either, it's better to sleep in the park by yourself.

3. Rice goes a long way. It's cheap, nutritious and feeds most of Asia. People in countries like Cambodia rely on it....they need it.... Rice is far more useful to that country than other countries have been...countries that bomb them, leave them to suffer from years of genocide...then FUND the perpetrators of the atrocities...give them a seat on the United Nations...and help them stay in power for over a decade. YEP! The US funded the Khmer Rouge, claimed them as "the legitimate government" after Vietnam invaded and kicked Pol Pot out. So if you ever get into an argument with an ignorant American (there's lots of them..even travelling) about the US being the purveyor of freedom, just bring up that one point. The US, in order to fund the "enemy of Vietnam" helped promote one of the worst genocides in human history...and then simply walked away to commit more atrocities. Cambodia still suffers from it. Khmer Rouge leaders still walk around the country like nothing happened, and the world forgets. It is unforgiveable.

4. There is beauty in the world. It is true, with all the ugliness, the violence, the materialism, the poverty, the environmental destruction, there are still beautiful people, beautiful places and cultures worth preserving. Morning Alms in the town of Luang Prabang, the nuns and Tam the dog at Wat Rampong, Mr. Soot and cooking morning glory in Chaing Mai, Sunset at Angkor Wat,the birds of Stewart and Ullva Island, the clown fish in Great Barrier Reef, the Flying Foxes of Port Douglas, Chris and Hillary and eating apple pie with slovice at Cesta, Geoff and Luc and drinking with the neighbors at Marama-Iti, oatmeal and sprinkle breakfast with Alan at Beethoven house, getting stranded on the Mekong river, swimming with the fish off the isle of Lesvos, the architecture in Prague, meeting the activists at Faslane Peace camp, walking the lion bridge of Budapest, slipping on fox glacier, kayaking the Banks Peninsula and the hector dolphins, and all those beautiful moments I would have never experienced without the support of my friends and family back home. Hurry and see them before they're gone..I'll help you if you need support! Make it a priority. It is indeed a race against time...if not the planet's, then our own. Life is short but travel is that strawberry and champagne that makes it all worthwhile. Eat it and wash it down quick!!!!!

Raglan and Taranaki

I'd been wanting to go to Raglan since I got to New Zealand. I started surfing last May here in New Zealand, but haven't really done it since Newcastle. I wanted to get back into the ocean and check out the legendary town which is in that famous surfing flick "The Endless Summer". I arrived in Hamilton and walked what seemed miles with my 40 pound back pack to a hostel that caters pretty much to American students. I won't say any more than that about the place as I shut the door and just ignored the obnoxious 19 year old New Yorkers.

On my way to the hostel I noticed a statue of Riff Raff from "Rocky Horror Picture Show" on the main street. Richard O Brian, the super camp fag who invented the cult classic was from Hamilton and invented the show there while watching B movies at the local Empire movie house. The statue was a tribute to the now torn down movie theater, but it was a pleasure to see a life size bronze of one of the campiest queens in show business decked out in fabulous B movie space alien duds that even Ed Wood would have envied.

I made it to Raglan, an easy going seaside town with a relaxed atmosphere, lots of cool cafes and ...of course...the longest left hand break in the world!!!!I checked into the Raglan Backpackers where a lovely couple Jeremy and Linda lovingly took care of the place. They also rented boards and wetsuits for super cheap. Most of the people who stayed there were surfers...friendly folks who were touring the world searching for the perfect wave. I set out to the beginners beach and rented a board and suit. It was beautiful...and I had a fantastic time. For the next four days I was there I went to an international pro surfers competition there in Manu Bay and watched some of the best, and youngest surfers (12-18 years old) dance, twirl and jump along the ocean one some startingly large waves (12 feet some of them). I also went kayaking and explored the beautiful rock formations of Raglan Bay while surfing every day. As there was no public transport, I hitched a ride. Hitching is a remarkably safe and an accepted practice and Kiwis never let you stay on the road with your thumb in the air for more than 3 minutes before picking you up. I met some wonderful people along the way.... a science teacher, a farmer and a massage therapist...all who surfed of course. In Raglan...there really isn't much else. Some of the best surfers in the world live and surf in Raglan and watching them is very inspiring. I was starting to feel like a real beach bum, and realising I had about 10 days left, decided to head down to Taranaki where there was...you guessed it...MORE SURFING!!!!

I landed in New Plymouth, another nice (but much bigger) seaside town and stayed at another hostel run by another friendly Kiwi couple Cere and Bill. I took a one on one surfing class from Daisy Day, the local surfing guru and former professional photographer who teaches out of the Beach Street surf shop. She gave me lots of tips and helped me get up on the board much easier. On my way back from the class I decided to stop where there was a lovely park with loads of ducks. I sat there and an old guy approached me...another friendly Kiwi. He sat down and we began chatting. He revealed to me he had lost his little dog a couple of weeks before and was really still in mourning. His health had suffered and he had suffered from scurvy since the little dog passed on. He was a very sweet old man who had grown up on a farm in the area. Talking to him made me appreciate this country even more, that there is a gentleness and trust here that is very heart warming. He told me he speaks to everyone and indeed, everyone that past by him said "Hi Bob". Bob Bowers was his name and I encouraged him, when he was ready of course, to maybe think about adopting a little stray dog that may need a good home. In due time I suppose.

I went to the local museum here in New Plymouth. IT WAS REMARKABLE. Every town in New Zealand seems to have these amazing cultural museum. The exhibits even included "The Taranaki Experience" Which was a film in a theater with glowing/lit chairs. The film was on two screens, and super dramatic and LOUD. It went into the history of the Maori in the area, the great battles that were fought here against the English. The film ended on a retrospective of the local petroleum plant, and I wondered if some of the money from the company went into "the experience". I'm sure it did. That said, the museum had a fantastic Maori exhibition section and natural history section. I'm always amazed when I walk into New Zealands public museums and galleries. You'd never see anything like it in the states...not in a small town like this. There is also a toy library, where folks can check out toys for their kids and return them. It's a fantastic idea which could greatly reduce the waste that goes into all those crappy plastic toys that kids get tired of in a few weeks.

That night I was thumbing through my Rough Guide and came across an "Eco-Hostel" in my book.

www.ecoinn.co.nz

I decided to hitch a ride to the place, about 15 Km out of town. I caught a ride with Thomas, a typical Swiss guy (slightly uptight but friendly nevertheless) and he dropped me off at the base of Mt. Taranaki. The weather was crap and when we got there the Tourist Information told everyone that there was a search going on for some missing hikers from the night before. The swiss guy decided to take a look but I decided to just continue hitching to Kent road where the hostel was. All the backpackers drove by me while I was standing in the pouring rain (I don't blame them...I look like an ax murderer afterall) but a police car picked me up and gave me a lift. Believe it or not, this is the first (and hopefully last time) I have ridden in a police vehicle. It turned out the police were carrying the rescue team that had been up on the mountain all night looking for the people. "There's still one guy up there.... an 80 year old man...if he survived he'll be the luckiest man of this century". I sat in the back seat with one of the volunteers...a scrappy looking English guy who mumbled when he spoke. They had been up in the freezing cold all night looking for people. He said this happens all the time, that people go up to the mountain without realizing the conditions, and within minutes, the weather changes and they are stuck. He said some people had heard the man yelling for help while they were coming down from the mountain. I wondered why those climbers didn't go to find and help him. He said that on average one person per hear dies on the mountain, and this man was probably going to be that statistic.

They dropped me off at the Eco Inn, a beautiful 10 acre farm at the foot of Mt. Taranaki. I was greeted by a huge old dog and Michael Lawley, a Leeds born Britt, who is an engineer and a super interesting guy. He and his wife Linda built the house, two hostels and work shed out of recycled wood (from a faulty gym floor) and hooked up everything to solar, wind and water generating renewable energy. The entire place is GORGEOUS, with a lake occupied with Pukeko and swimming ducks, a tree house complete with slide and flying fox swing, permaculture green houses, cows, and a very friendly goat.

I interviewed Michael about his work with my video camera. He also owns a company called Eco Innovations where he basically manufactures wind and water turbines from old broken washing machines. He has the washing machine manufactures send him old parts at a super cheap price and then tinkers away, making the precious turbines and selling them locally and abroad at reasonable rates, mostly to farmers and eco folks trying to save some bucks and get off the grid. He's also working with a company in China in trying to get cheaper wind turbines manufactured as that is the biggest obstacle at the moment. He's testing one turbine that is 80% there but still has loads of bugs because the Chinese manufacturers are cutting too many corners to save money. I didn't really go any deeper with him about the labor/globalization issues involved with the use of "cheap" labor in Asian countries. But I understood his reasoning in wanting to get these products mass produced as cheaply as possible so that they would become the norm rather than the exception and could in the long run even provide renewable energy to poor countries like Cambodia and Laos (also big providers of cheap labor to corporations). Right now, the biggest obstacle is labor costs in manufacturing these products as they are very very labor intensive.

Linda took me to the greenhouses where she offered me access to whatever vegetables I wanted (a great perk when staying at the hostel). They are food self sufficient year round and pretty much just go to the grocery store for wine and odd products. By far, the most important point she made, was staying out of debt. She said that is how most folks get into trouble with this kind of set up. But if you can keep the costs low, you can live on pretty much nothing. It's the initial costs of course that are the biggest hump. Linda let the chickens into the green house to clear all the weeds etc. "It cuts down on a lot of work and with this much land, you're always looking for creative ways to cut your work load". Michael also built a solar hot tub, which I didn't get to try but have heard it is quite impressive. At night, he lit the fire for us. The Fire also heated up the hot water, so the other folks who stayed got to take a super warm bath. It was a great place, and well worth meeting folks who were totally doing it...living off the grid quite gracefully and comfortably I might add.

When I returned to New Plymouth the following day, I checked in again to the Sunflower Lodge and Cere told me that the 80 year old man was found dead on Taranaki and there was a girl in my room who was one of the 7 who got stuck. Cere was upset with the girl because she told her she heard his cry for help but didn't help him. As we were talking, the girl walked in. She was Canadian, and looked a bit shaken. It had been a day since it happened and getting stuck on a deadly mountain could shake anyone up. We got to talking, and she told me what happened. I could tell she felt guilty. But according to her, when she heard his cries, she herself was lost, and didn't know what direction the shouts were coming from.She was with another person though, and I wondered why one person didn't go for help while another stayed put and continued shouting at the man. She also couldn't determine what distance he was from her and couldn't tell if he could even hear them. That said, it came down really to just one decision, keep going down the hill. I've thought about this all afternoon. What would I have done in her shoes. She is a perfectly nice person who was obviously scared for her life but I can't help but wonder, if she went back up that mountain and tried to find him, if he may be alive. Perhaps both of them may have died seeing as she only had a short sleeve shirt on and no supplies whatsoever. I'm sure she's thinking about the same thing, and will be for a very very long time. After talking to her though, I felt bad for her...to feel that kind of guilt in a situation that really was due to blind ignorance. It was a difficult circumstance and any decision would have been a tough one. One thing is for sure, I've learned that if you go walking on any kind of mountain...or into the wilderness... take the right clothing and emergency gear with you. If that man had it, he would have seen his 80th birthday which was today.