Kitesurfing in New Zealand: Raglan

We set off early. The girls move on to Coromandel, I take Cédric to Hamilton and let him out on the road to Rotorua. His heart was calling him there. My next destination is Raglan, the surfing and kitesurfing mecca of the North Island of New Zealand. I don’t arrive until the evening. Once again, we haven’t missed a single road on the way.

As so often before, the first hostel is beautiful, right on the beach. And they forbid me to use my laptop. Web design in New Zealand is much harder for me than on the last little island in Fiji. I’m on 180 again and I’m pissed off as I speed 8 kilometres along the coast. My anger is gone by the time I land.

The second hostel is even more beautiful than the first: Raglan Backpacker Hostel Solscape. Situated on a cliff above the surf beaches, it is extremely ecologically orientated. The boss is a hippie, the guests play guitar and sing. There are signs in the showers encouraging guests to save water: “Our water goes straight back to mother earth…”.

The most ingenious thing is the accommodation. The hippies have brought old train carriages up the mountain. There are large carriages with dorms. Cramped but iconic. Many small carriages house two and three-bed rooms. The kitchen is designed as a railway station. A stone Buddha stands in front of it.

The hippies do what hippies do: drink, smoke weed, philosophise, sing and enjoy life. Some of them have been travelling for more than two and a half years. I wonder whether I can really go home again after a year. Many thanks at this point to all the customers who make travelling possible for me!

I go to the beach with a German kitesurfer, but once again the wind is just strong enough to prevent the kite from falling out of the sky. A Lithuanian woman had bad luck with her last travelling partner. We have a coffee in the town. I’m told an interesting story. She did her degree in political history. Topic: 9/11. Her cousin died in the World Trade Centre. The USA still blocks her uncle’s website today.

The wind picks up in the afternoon and I try to let her fly a bit. But not even enough for flyweights. Up to camp and work for a few hours.

An email arrives from the Allgäu girls. They were beaten by a Maori. Nothing happens, but I’m still angry. They want some protection and arrive the next day. They catch me kitesurfing.

Raglan Bay is a good kitesurfing spot. At low tide, the water flows out while the wind blows in. My Vegas makes me happy, very good-natured and good depower. Unfortunately the wind is very weak, but the locals say it will be better tomorrow. As the girls want to learn to surf tomorrow, I’m looking forward to good wind.