My last afternoon I decided to leave the library before closing and head for the coast. I remembered that on my first day in NZ 12 years ago, Liz and I had gone on a walk that turned out to be much further than we expected, and we ended up in the middle of a mangrove swamp. This time I knew (a little more) where I was going. Pointe England on the Tamaki estuary is the starting point for a walk that takes you through several nature reserves, gives you stupendous views over the estuary and then the islands (bohemian Waiheke and unspoilt Rangitoto), and finally deposits you by the beach (and attendent restaurants) at St Heliers Bay. At the start of the walk, all the housing was occupied by Maori and other Polynesians; in spite of all the concern for bi-culturalism in NZ there's still a sense of the original population being disadvantaged and marginal. Later on, as I emerged from the nature reserve onto a cliff-top street, there were only white faces and large, architect-designed, sea-view villas. Ironically, the Treaty of Waitangi (which was meant to preserve Maori rights) was signed by the local tribes in a bay just below the most expensive-looking houses.
It took about 2 1/2 hours to reach St Heliers. I felt I'd deserved a good meal (fish and chips washed down with Monteith's Original beer) and watched the light fade on the water. Boats out in the bay were waiting for the leaders of the Volvo Round the World Yacht Race to arrive. Eventually I looked for a bus home but, as Liz reminded me in a text (she is a collector of transport information around the world!) there would be no direct bus back to St John's and I had to walk.
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