There is something about being away from the mainland that makes all the stress just melt away as soon as you get off the ferry. Even though there is a permanent population of about 8,000 people in the 90 square kilometres of land, there are acres of native bush, and stunning sea views at every turn of the twisting sealed roads.
We caught the car ferry at 5.00 pm on Saturday night and arrived at dusk after a gentle crossing. After dinner we retired at about 9.30 - ready to crash out and sleep. But - we forgot about the rampant mosquito population. We should have closed the windows and switched on the plug-in mozzie repellant. So for the next three hours I was serially tormented by the high pitched whine and madly itching bites as the mozzies dive bombed me every time I slipped off to sleep.
I believe that there is a basic design fault in mosquitos. Firstly, they make so much noise that you hear them coming, secondly they make you itch like mad and want to kill them. If they just snuck in, vampire-like and sucked a bit of blood and then quietly departed, leaving no more than a tiny puncture wound, we'd all get along just fine. I'd get my sleep, they'd have dinner - no probs. Live and let suck. But no, I'm reduced to trying to sleep with a sheet pulled over my head, blindly swatting at my ears in the dark, and being woken every time I drift off into dreamland.
Anyway, Sunday dawned warm and sunny - we took the dogs for long walk at Oneroa, I napped outrageously, we had a great bbq dinner of freshly caught crayfish, rmarinated steak and home grown veges, and I slept like a log through till 8.00 am - with the sound of Tuis chiming in the Pohutukawa trees. (Windows tightly shut and plug-ins plugged in).
Today, it's a trip to the shops, more dog walking and another home-cooked dinner.
Self employment. Not bad.
Phil runs wine tours in Auckland and Waiheke
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