As we venture down the West Coast of the South Island, there is a lot of driving to be done. It’s nice to have Carsten as a co-pilot because he can figure out the routing, book our next hostel, and find me a granola bar (called museli bars here) when I’m hungry. While he takes care of these logistical items, I drive, repeating in my head, “keep left, keep left,” so as not to drive on the wrong side of the road (but don’t tell Carsten).
Beyond talking about out trip, we also share some insightful conversations about life: what we’ve experienced, where we’ve been, and where we see ourselves in the years ahead. Carsten actually came to Canada from Germany on a working holiday visa about 7/8 years ago. While I don’t see myself moving to New Zealand indefinitely, Carsten’s experience is still at the fore of my mind.
At this point in the trip though, we’ve pretty much covered about every topic under the sun and we default to a comfortable silence on occasion (I’ve been told that is the true test of friendship).
We probably would listen to music more often but for the fact that the radio in my car is useless. Like many used Hondas in New Zealand, my car is a Japanese import and (I don’t fully understand the science here) apparently radio frequencies in Japan operate on a different level than in New Zealand which means that there may be only one or two radio stations (if we’re lucky) that ever work on the car radio. The other stations are all in Japanese. Just kidding, the rest are all static.
This situation is one that I have just come to accept, but Carsten’s frustration leads him to insist we listen to some of his podcasts (maybe the silence isn’t so comfortable?). Many of my friends have encouraged me to check out certain podcasts in the past, but human laziness has seemed to be an impossible barrier for me to overcome in this domain. This time, however, Carsten lists off some of his favourite podcasts, seemingly giving me a choice in the matter.
Despite my deep skepticism about some on his list (especially the one called “Criminal”), I confess that the storytelling was superb and I enjoyed listening to the podcasts. In fact, as soon as we got to our next hostel and connected to wifi, I started downloading some podcasts that I think will be interesting.
On our next drive, we listen to some of these podcasts. This time, I’m somewhat disappointed as some podcasts sound more interesting “on paper.” Either way, I am excited to have discovered this new form of communication (or is it entertainment?). I will now have some company on my drives once Carsten leaves.
Impermanent Establishments 