The last time I tried a “fly by the seat of my pants” kind of holiday, it lasted all of a day before we were organised within an inch of our lives. This time the only thing that is certain is that I need to be in Wellington on Tuesday for the basketball and back in Auckland on Saturday to fly home. So how’s it all working out? well it’s been pretty interesting thus far:

I got off the plane, found myself a hire car, then sat in it for about half an hour trying to figure out where the hell I was going. Eventually I decided to just head towards Hobbit territory and hoped to get lucky. I suppose I did in that I didn’t have to sleep in my car, but now I know what the earplugs were for in the bedroom of the motel I found.

In hindsight, trying to get to Wellington in two days was a bit ambitious but the country is beautiful and I’m enjoying the serendipitous encounters with places and people along the way. I’ve made it as far as Napier which is known as the Art Deco Capital of the world and the hotel I’m staying at is a true reflection of that claim. I’ve also just found out that it is prone to earthquakes, but with the lack of sleep the previous night from all those bloody trucks thundering past, I’m sure it would require an earthquake to wake me.

• Storehouse – cafe extraordinaire in Taupo
• Art Deco Masonic Hotel – Napier