Road Trip 9 - Te Paerahi Beach, Hawke's Bay

In the morning, we refilled our water containers (Road Trip Tip #1: Always refill water when possible or paying) then headed off to Napier. We parked in a covered parking garage for the dogs and set out to explore the city. We wandered up and down the quiet morning streets pointing out the interesting architecture.

We eventually made our way to the beach parade and walked along, enjoying the ocean and gardens. We stopped in at the I-site and got another magnet to add to our collection, then continued ambling. 

One of the things I wanted to do in Napier was to purchase a bottle of local wine. Neither of us felt like doing a proper vineyard and cellar door tour, but we did want to sample some smaller Hawke's Bay wineries. Therefore, when I spotted the Napier Wine Center, I dragged Sonny across the street and we headed in. We spoke to the very friendly guy inside, and settled on a bottle. As we were checking out, he told us about an event occurring in town that evening - Skulltopia - the premise of which sounded intriguing. Basically a gallery and shop owner had sent 60 ceramic skulls to 60 local artists then told the to do whatever they wished. The gallery was holding an opening that evening, and all skulls would be sold on a first come, first served basis for very reasonable prices. The idea was that it was a sort of art for the people event. We weren't planning to be in Napier that late, so I figured we wouldn't be going. We asked after Cafes with wifi instead and set off to find somewhere for Sonny to work on his visa application.  

On the way to the cafe we planned to visit, I peeked in the window and saw, you guessed it, 60 skulls being set up for that evening. A gentleman spotted us peering through the window and came and opened the door and asked if we would like to take a look around. We consented, and tiptoed around trying to stay out if their way while we marvelled at what different artists had done with their skulls. There was one I really loved in particular, on which the artist had created an incredibly life-like tree with leaves and knarled roots bursting out through the eyes and the top of the skull. I spent a good amount of time staring at it, and it was here the gallery owner came over to talk to us for a bit. He explained the whole concept of the show and mentioned that interest had far exceeded his expectations. He mentioned that he was having a terrible time with people wanting pre-sales to buy certain skulls. He was adamantly refusing to do them however, and he expected a line at 5:30. I told him how cool I thought the whole thing was, and we talked about art and artists for awhile. I then expressed my regret that I couldn't be there for the opening as we had to ramble on and mentioned that I really loved the tree one. He looked at me funny for a second then said, "well, you know that ONE artist did make two due to a miscommunication. Do you want to see the other one?"

And that was how I found myself in Napier buying my birthday present (Sonny was originally planning on having me get it in Chicago). They wrapped it up the best they could and hide it inside a very large fabric tote. We were sent on our way with admonishments to not tell ANYONE! So now I own my very first piece of original art!

We eventually made it to the cafe, and had a nice brunch while Sonny used the wifi. Long story short, the visa application ended up taking several hours, multiple wifi sources, a post shop, and a printers. But after a frustrating afternoon, it was finally finished, and that evening Sonny would be able to schedule his interview. 

I had planned ahead and gotten a permit to freedom camp at Te Paerahi Beach, so we headed out there. It was a really nice spot, with flush toilets and right on a huge deserted beach. We played with the dogs then had a light supper (still full from brunch!) of cheese, sausage, and crackers with our fancy wine. It was a good end to a strange day.