In the car with a Maori gang member...

On the 12th of November Rodrigo was originally only supposed to be working from 10-1pm but he called in to help with renovations in the pizza bar he works and ended up working all day (12 hours or something stupid in total). I spent most of the day hanging out with Jon in town which was cool, I also made a significant start on my new book, '7 years in Tibet' which Sarah (One of Alex's housemates in Wanaka) kindly gave me. It's a great book so far! Jon cooked me a nice lunch in the staff quarters of the hostel and I played a few songs on guitar. In the evening Jon and me joined in a game of Trivial Pursuit. It was pretty ridiculous as it was the Kiwi 1993 version so a lot of questions were NZ specific and only about one year! It was ridiculously hard and I didn't get a single question right! There were a couple of brainboxes playing, one Canadian and one English who knew a fair few of the answers somehow!! General knowledge quizzes have never been my forte! After a while we decided to play pictionary which is when the fun started. I was doing surprisingly well for our team considering I can't draw until I had to draw 'air conditioning' which I had no idea how to do, so I just sat there like a lemon for the 60 second drawing time! It was always pretty even but my team managed to lose all 3 games largely because the other team kept getting ridiculously easy ones like 'apple' etc! It was great fun, it was also interesting because some of the words Dan (the English brainbox) and me knew but no one else did because they were British words. 'Gale' was such a word. There were some Australian/Kiwi words which none of us knew at all although unfortunately I've forgotten them! Once we were all pictionaried out Rodrigo turned up looking like a zombie having worked all day and came to apologise to me that he had to go to bed. I told him it was no problem, I'd just delay my departure tomorrow and we could go for a coffee after his shift finished at 1pm.

On the 13th of November I did just that. I woke up carried on reading '7 years in Tibet' and playing some guitar until 1pm when Rodrigo finished his work at the hostel. Then Jon, Rodrigo and me headed out into town for a coffee. We had a great conversation about our future travelling plans and such until it was about 3pm and I had to be heading off to Picton. I'd booked a ferry for the 14th at 10 am just incase I had problems hitch-hiking. Picton was about a 2 hour drive away so to be safe of getting there that night I had to be on the road around 4pm! We walked back to the hostel together, we parted via very manly man hugs and I was very sad to be leaving these two good friends! I grabbed my bags and guitar and hit the road.

I was standing at the road-side when the first car stopped, unfortunately he was going the wrong way and so I thanked him but couldn't accept the lift! Within another 10 minutes a slightly biy racer-ish car pulled over but the guy inside seemed exceptionally friendly so I had no problems with getting in. I chucked my stuff in the boot and off we went. His name was Scott and we had a great conversation. He talked completely openly about a meeting he'd just had where it was to be decided whether his dose of anti-depressants and other medication should be reduced. He seemed over the moon because the meeting had gone well and his dose had been significantly reduced. He talked how he'd suffered mental problems for a long time and how he felt medication just made it worse, it just made him really tired and unable to do anything. He was the last person I'd expect to have mental-health problems. He seemed like a friendly, confident and happy young man. He talked with glee about how he'd just got a girlfriend and when he found out I'd studied sport science he talked about his years as a personal trainer. Scott was a special guy and I was glad to have spent a couple of hours of my life talking with him. He was driving all the way to Picton to pick up his brother so I'd managed to get a perfect ride as well! When we arrived in Picton Scott dropped me off near the town centre, I wished him all the best for the future and we parted ways.

I found a hostel near the ferry terminal and got myself a bed there. Then I wandered out into town and took a look around, saw what there was to see, time was just a melody! Picton was a pretty stantdard small NZ town apart from a nice area next to the ferry terminal by the sea. It had a great grassy area, I suppose it was like a very small park right by the sea. I decided to head back to the hostel for the free apple crumble at 8pm and then come back out here. It was getting dark as I came back out, I took a seat in the park and just admired the view of the Marlborough sounds as the sun set. It was beautiful, later on I pout my Ipod on shuffle and the firs song to come on was 'Motorcycle Drive By' by Third Eye Blind so I danced around the park probably looking like a lunatic to any onlookers but I didn't care. The lights let out a nice glow as the song appropriately went, 'I've never been so alone, and I've never been so alive'.

Upon my return to the hostel I played some guitar and met Jamie who was surfing up NZ. I gave him Dave's number in Kaikoura and told him to give him a ring as it's a great place to surf. Jamie decided he'd head there tomorrow and do just that!

The next day (14th November) was to be a long-long day. The plan was to get the ferry across to Wellington, get a train to Featherston (which was past the motorway out of Wellington) and then hitch-hike all the way to Gisborne (which Dave had recommended me for the surf). This was practically impossible in one day so I set myself a flexible target of getting to Napier by nightfall.

The ferry was really smooth compared to last time and I enjoyed picturesque views of the Marlborough Sounds as we exited Picton. It was amazing. There was no hint of sea-sickness this time either! We arrived on-time at 1:30 ish in Wellington and before long I was at the train station. It was then I discovered the next train to Featherston wasn't until 6pm whioch was far too late! I decided to grab a train to upper-hutt which was still past the motorway but apparently trickier to hitch out of. I was up for the challenge! The train took ages as it made about a 10 stops before getting to upper-hutt! Once there I had to walk a further 20 minutes with all my gear to find the right road, and then a semi-decent hitching spot just after a traffic light. I waited there for a good while until a chap in a battered car with a surfboard in the back pulled over. His name was Kieran and he was heading about 30km up the road to Featherston where he confiremd it'd be much easier to get a lift! Kieran was a great guy and he asked me where I'd surfed so far and agreed that Gisborne was indeed a good place to do some more surfing. He took me over a road through a mountain range, the views were incredible and the road was apparently right on a fault line!

Once in Featherston Kieran dropped me off at the back end in a good hitching spot and within 5 minutes I'd got my next ride off an awesome Kiwi named Courtney. He was heading as far as Masterton having just done some painting for his Dad. We got talking and Courtney had spent 2 years working in Leeds in England and had loved it. I told Courtney about some of my hitch-hiking stories and then he offered me to stay at his and his friends' house for the night. Apparently they were planning on drinking beer and playing tennis. This sounded like a great plan and so of course I accepted! Courtney rang his friends to find out what the exact plan was only to find they had already gone to Wellington. He asked if I fancied going out with him and his friends in Wellington and I told them yes I would but unfortunately I haven't got any money really. I can barely afford accomodation and food right now I truthfully told him. I do in fact have an emergency back up of money that I saved up in another account but this is strictly for use in my recording studio in order to be able to make my CD and to keep me going while finding a job back in England and so I will avoid using it unless it's a case of starvation (or a Ben Harper ticket haha)!! I told him that he should not worry about me and head down to Wellington with his mates. He dropped me off in Masterton and bought me a pie and some ginger beer. Courtney was another example of an incredibly nice guy. He asked me my full name and told me he'd add me on facebook and I could tell him how my travels are going. He also kindly gave me his parents details and said that if I got stuck in Masterton I could give them a ring and stay there. This is the kind of hospitality that seems to be commonplace in NZ, it's amazing. Again I was sad to be leaving Courtney, I wished him a good night in Wellington and after I'd finished my pie I thanked him again and told him how good the pie was was via text message!

It was looking like I might get stuck in Masterton (I'd been stood outside it with my thumb up for about 1 and a half hours and the sun was beginning to set). Various cars had pulled over but they'd always been dropping someone off right next to me or something like that and weren't willing to give me a lift. Eventually however a red pick-up truck pulled up. The driver introduced himself as Oliver and told me to put my backpack and lunchbox on the back. I took my guitar onto the front seat with me and off we went. He was heading to Dannevirke for a blind date which sounded interesting! He told me about his trade (sheep-shearing) and about a horrific head on car crash he'd had 9 months ago from which he'd only just recovered fully. He told me about his journeys through Europe and I told him of my travels until before we knew it we were in Dannevirke. Oliver dropped me off just outside where he was meeting his blind-date and I walked off heading to the back-end of town for another hitch-hiking spot. I turned back to see Oliver introduce himself to a woman in the distance who must have been his blind-date. If I had any sense I'd have tried to find a backpackers in Dannevirke and continue my journey tomorrow as it was getting dark now. However I was pretty addicted to adventure and was itching for another hitch-hike so I wasn't going to give up until it was dark. It took me about 10 minutes to get to a decent spot out the back of town and pretty soon after I got picked up by a kind middle-aged lady named Rebecca. She'd just finished work and was heading to her house in Norsewood about 20 minutes up the road. The town has no accomodation whatsoever so I was throwing myself out into the middle of nowhere. Having arrived in Dannevirke Rebecca very kindly gave me her number and offered me to stay with their family if I got stuck. This was a nice lifeline to have. I waited by the road for about 40 minutes and eventually got picked up by a Maori guy named Lee. He was headed to meet his friends a bit further up the road in Waipukurau. He was again one of those people you feel immediately at ease with and he seemed very interested in my travel stories. As I was dropped off in Waipukurau it was pretty much dark but I couldn't find any cheap enough accomodation in the town so decided to hitch further. By now it was already 8pm and most hostels shut at this time so I was well aware that I might be spending the night sleeping outside with no sleeping bag or tent but I wasn't worried at all.

I decided to put my thumb up and this decision was to yield one of the most scary/interesting experiences I've had hitch-hiking! Within 20 minutes a Maori guy named Kev pulled over to pick me up. He'd driven past, seen me in the rearview mirror and turned round just to pick me up. He said he knew what it was like stuck out in the dark hitch-hiking having done it himself and he wanted to help me out. It turned out he was heading to Hastings, a town just 20 km south of Napier. He asked about my travels and I told him some stories for about 10 minutes, then I asked if he'd done any travelling. He said he'd gone round New Zealand but he wasn't allowed out the country. When I asked why he told me how he was a gang member and had had various gun and drug charges against hi. This, of course, made me feel slightly uneasy. However this guy seemed genuinely wanting to help me out so I was not scared enough to ask him to drop me off there and then (this would probably only have made it worse, he seemed to respect me showing trust in him). I was interested about this revelation and asked him more. It turned out he was part of the 'Mongrel Mob' who had been featured on 'Ross Kemp: Gangs' as one of the most dangerous gangs in the world (they are on wikipedia if you want to find out more). Kev was wearing a red and black jacket bearing the badge (a british bulldog with a german helmet on). How bizarre a situation this was! Kev told me his main role within the gang was arms dealing but he also did a bit of drug dealing. I asked what country most of the weapons were from and he replied. 'Hell if I told you that I'd probably have to kill you bro!' I laughed and told him I'd rather not know then! Then a cop car turned up ahead, 'Oh shit' whispered Kev. He pulled into the nearest petrol station and told me to 'pretend to buy something' because he had some stuff in the trunk that he 'probably shouldn't have'. Although I didn't ask specifically there was little doubt that what was in the boot were weapons and quite possibly drugs. At this point I was a little more scared as I felt I was going to be caught in the middle of a drugs/arms bust! I went in pretended to buy something and noticed another car of dodgy looking guys had pulled into the petrol station, no doubt to avoid the same cop car! Kev gave me the thumbs up to come back in. He could easily just have driven off with all my stuff while I'd been in the petrol station but he hadn't and so that confirmed to me that Kev was definitely trustworthy. We pulled out of the petrol station and drove past the cop car who didn't so much as look at us, phew!! It turned out he was after the guys who'd pulled into the petrol station behind us. Feeling relieved we headed towards Hastings. I asked Kev what happened in the 'gang wars' he spoke of and he replied;

'We just get knives, guns and shit and try and kill the rival gang members, if we can we try to catch them alive and torture them'.

This all sounded pretty hardcore, he later pointed out a prison belonging to the Mongrel Mob and told me how the gang had originated in Hastings. They're main rivals were the Black Power gang but Kev claimed he hated the Hell's Angels more. When I asked whether the gang thing was just between gangs he told me that yes it was mainly, that if someone showed them respect and trust like I'd done they'd have no problem with most of them. However he claimed their main aim was to be against society. I had many more questions i wanted to ask but we had now arrived in hastings. Kev dropped me off, I thanked him and he wished me a safe journey and drove off. I couldn't help laughing about what had just happened. I'd been in a car with a member of one of the 'world's most dangerous gangs' who was most likely carrying weapons and I was very nearly caught in the middle of a drug/weapons bust! Crazy!

As it was 9pm by now I didn't think I'd find a hostel that was still open and I didn't much like the thought of sleeping rough in the middle of hastings! I looked around and as if by magic within 20 minutes I found a hostel whose kind owner Jason was still about and he gave me a bed. It turned out the hostel was mainly full of travellers who'd been working in hastings for a while and so everyone knew I was the new kid and introduced themselves to me. It was one of the most friendly welcomes I've had so far. Some hostels are run almost entirely on the basis that the owner is good at finding them work and this was one such hostel. As soon as I entered I was offered some work but declined, telling Jason I planned to head to Gisborne tomorrow. I spent the night talking to a nice French guy called Francois who seemed very interested in my travelling and got me to circle all my favourite spots on his map. I told people about my ride with a Mongrel Mob and many of them seemed pretty shocked! Late in the evening I jammed with a few of the guests and then headed off to bed.

The next morning (15th Nov) I set off and Jason warned me that the next time I bump into a Mongrel Mob it might be more serious and so I should be more selective. This didn't make me feel great about todays hitch-hiking adventure and I even toyed with the idea of getting a bus. I decided not too though. I want to live my life trusting people. I find the thought of living it without trusting people impossible and so I continued to hitch-hike. Within 10 minutes i got a ride off an Indian called Jas who literally dropped me off in the middle of nowhere. I got my map out and had no idea where I was!! I got out my compass and headed north deciding I'd bump into some sort of roadsign telling me where I was eventually. After 15 minutes I got to a junction and now knew I was on the right road. Within 5 minutes a Christian family who'd just been to Church picked me up. They were exceptionally nice. They told me how God had healed Bill's sight (he was 92 year old man), how God had healed Dennis' (the driver) mother of cancer and many more such stories. They told me how when they'd seen me on the road they felt it was God who'd put me in their path and so they picked me up. They were some of the warmest people I have met so far. When asked about my beliefs I told them I believed in a God but do not follow any specific religion as such. They took me as far as Bay View where people apparently either headed to Taupo or Gisborne. I shook all their hands and thanked them, Bill (the 92 year old) remarked. 'You have cold hands, but a warm heart' which I thought was a beautiful thing to say. Dennis told me I'd have a safe ride to Gisborne, he knew it. It was then I knew my decision to carry on hitch-hiking was the right one.

I spotted a another Mongrel Mob (you can spot them a mile off as they all wear the same jackets) and decided I'd wait until he left the petrol station before hitching to avoid any trouble. After he'd gone I put the thumb up and soon a guy named Ray pulled over. Unfortunately he was heading to Taupo but offered to take me as far as the turn off which was great. As I walked to a decent spot on the road after being dropped off a car pulled up ahead of me. I hadn't even put my thumb up yet but it turned out the 2 girls had indeed pulled over to give me a lift. Sam and Joe were their names and they were farmer girls who were heading to Gisborne. I'd struck gold. I told them of my travels and they were pretty impressed that I'd hitch-hiked around completely on my own it seemed. They had to take a massive de-tour (1 hour or more) to a sheep-farm and back to pick up 2 more girls. We stopped briefly at the sheep farm and it looked as if it was going to be impossible to fit everyone and everything into the car but we fit somehow! The journey lasted around 4 hours when it would normally take around 3 hours. The sheep farm was down an epic dead-end road in the absolute middle of nowhere! Eventually though we arrived in Gisborne, the girls gave me their address as they wanted a copy of my CD when it was finished and I agreed to send them one. Once in Gisborne I headed to the flying nun backpackers where the woman showing me round was exceptionally rude. I made it my mission to make her smile and I succeeded, it must have been the first time she'd smiled in a while. I wasn't getting a good vibe off the hostel at all and so I decided I'd book myself into the YHA 10 minutes walk away for the following 2 nights. I did just that and headed to the beach where the waves were absolutely perfect for surfing, all hire places were closed though unfortunately!! I wandered around town and headed back to the Flying Nun. Then I heard a shout of 'Hey Clive!' who on earth could this be I wondered as I turned round to see Roland (my friend who I'd met in Ahipara about 1 and a half months ago)! He was staying in the same room as me and we caught up on what we had been doing before playing some ping-pong! It made me regret booking into the YHA slightly but I'd already paid and couldn't get a refund so I had no choice but to move on tomorrow. Roland had apparently seen my guitar in the room before seeing me and wondered whether it could be mine! It was great to see him again. I played pool against 2 canadians, a Welsh guy and a German and somehow won and then headed to bed!!

This morning (16th Nov) a nice Aussie called Mark introduced himself to me and told me how he, like me, was keen to see Pearl Jam supported by Ben Harper in Auckland. I gave him my number and told him to contact me if he was there as I'd be there guaranteed, trying to buy a ticket off a tout outside!! I packed up my stuff, checked out and headed across to the YHA! This hostel is much nicer and when the owner informed me I could hire a surfboard and wetsuit for a whole day for just $10 (this would normally cost at least $50) I knew that I'd made the right choice in moving to this hostel! Unfortunately the waves are 'just ankle splashing today man' (meaning they are too small to surf) but I'm going to go and check out the Beach now and see whether it is at all surf-able. If it is, needless to say, I'll be out there...

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