An American on the Other Side of the World
One of the luckiest folk in the world, here, reporting on her return from one of the most beautiful places in the world. Did you know the Maori only found New Zealand 800 years ago? People have been in Australia for 60,000 years, but New Zealand…? Even the indigenous people have been there just eight centuries. Have another amazing fact—while scientists argue about exactly how New Zealand became so isolated, they are quite certain that only two mammals are native—and they are each a species of bat. (The fur seals don’t count, despite being super cute, as they live in the ocean and haul up on land.) So. Super fascinating, check. Astonishingly beautiful, check. Home of some super cool stuff? Oh yeah. One thing this country is not? Always on. There was a 24-hour kebab place near our hotel in Brisbane. (Australia.) I didn’t see anything twenty-four hour in New Zealand. Even the Denny’s (Yes, Denny’s) that had a “24 Hours!” sign, had a small paper sign next to it that they were open 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. holidays excluded. Also, they sold booze at the Denny’s. In Christchurch, there was a pedestrian mall around the corner from our hotel, full of cafes, bars, restaurants, and souvenir shops. When I went in search of coffee one morning, the café I’d IDed from the internet that opened at 0730 wasn’t open at 0800. I walked on, desperate for coffee—and found several more cafés, all closed. I came back…and the one…