Windy Welly

The day is overcast, windy, and warm. I sit at the water's edge in Island Bay, Wellington, watching the waves swell and dip, swirling around the labyrinth of rocks. The salty wind tangles my hair and sends gulls reeling.

Medellee is due to arrive tomorrow. In the past month, we have been like ships passing in the night: I know she's out there, but I always miss her. Invariably, I get her machine when I call, and there are no messages waiting for me when I manage to get online. Even now that she's been here in New Zealand for nearly a week, she's still never called. Am I actually irritated at my best friend for the first time? Strange, the things that distance can do.

I still haven't packed. I've looked over the Lonely Planet for the South Island, though, and sketched out a rough itinerary for the next two weeks. We'll be traveling counter-clockwise, beginning in Picton and ending in Christchurch. Our ferry leaves tomorrow evening at 8:00, heading towards the looming Southern Alps at sunset. John has agreed to work until Wednesday, so we'll have to pick him up from the airport in Blenheim on Thursday morning, the day before Christmas Eve.

I think over my experience in Wellington, the windy city that has kept me captive these last six weeks. I will miss it. I have been bored, and I'm eager to continue my journey, but I have also made good friends here, had fun, and gained a measure of stability and routine. I will remember the barbecues at James and Jeannine's, with their stunning ocean views; I'll remember countless quiet coffees and walks to myself. Mostly though, I am overwhelmed with excitement at the prospect of experiencing the vast landscapes of the South, spending time with friends from home, and also, meeting my cousin Dee, who has invited us to stay with her in Marlborough in the New Year.

I wonder what adventures await me in the coming months. Orchard work, undoubtedly; grueling treks in the mountains; scuba diving, if I have my way; and hopefully, a two-week trip to Malaysia that we've been cooking up on the back burner for awhile now.

It's nearly Christmas, but it doesn't seem that way to me. To me, it's the beginning of a long, outdoorsy and adventurous summer-- I'll miss Christmas in the wintertime. I still have nine months in New Zealand, and I have grown accustomed to feeling homesick.

My time here has only just begun.

****

When I have coffee with Jeannine, I eat banana bread and talk about the usual: her life, my life. I can't help but let slip my frustration with Medellee and how I wish I could see her now, not tomorrow. I wish she would meet me halfway, write to me, call me, tell me what's up. Instead the conversation reaches a dead-end, and we decide to pick up a bottle of cider and go home.

I'm just finishing the cider and watching the sunset when John calls.

"No," says Jeannine,"actually, Alieda got together with some other foreign guys she met. She told me to tell you that she's decided to travel with them from now on." There's a pause, in which I laugh and she resumes. "No, that's someone else laughing." Pause. "Yeah, no. Of course she's here. We're drinking cider." Pause. "Hmmm," she says. "Sure, you can come over."

We continue to watch the sunset, and before we know it, we hear John walking down the stairs. To my surprise, though, he has a camera when he comes around the corner, and I swear, on second thought, that I hear the distinct tones of John Antonioli laughing. I clue in, instantly. "No way!" I scream, and round the corner to see Medellee, looking radiant and travel-tired. I jump into her arms and scold her loudly for deceiving me, telling her that I was mad as hell-- how dare she surprise me!-- had she been planning this the whole time?!-- and that I had thought that she didn't care, I was so lonely. She only laughs and holds on. I alternate between squeezing, hitting, spinning and yelling before I realize that Jeannine is opening wine, and that she may have been aware of this surprise. I am suddenly heart-full and overwhelmed. I honestly can't believe that Medellee is finally here.

We take our time, drinking wine, and eventually, walking down to the shops to pick up some Indian takeaways. We spend the evening drinking beer and talking, but our Johns go to sleep by midnight. Medellee and I stay up talking until 4:00 a.m. I lie awake listening to everyone sleeping, too excited to sleep. I have booked a ferry ticket for tomorrow, and we'll be on the south island by dark.