Hold Your Nose and Say "Pardon?"

Hello Non-Vacationers,

I’ve been having a lot (or “heaps” as they say here) of literal down time, as I follow the doctor’s orders to keep my leg elevated. Well, I suppose, theoretically I could continue to sightsee and do errands, if I possessed extraordinary agility and could hold my leg far above my head while hopping on one foot en pointe, but sadly, that is but a wistful dream... But I like to think every gaping wound has a silver lining, and in this case it’s a fine time to catch up on Pretty Vacation.

Where to start? Now that I’ve (somewhat) figured out how to upload photos (pick a smaller size and retry over and over), and can show you the sights, I’d love to figure out how to share the sounds I’m hearing- rain squalls hammering on the roof of the railroad car at night…the nagging continual “chk-chk” of reggae music from the festival over the hills/the coach house stereo/passing car radios/the spheres (New Zealand is absolutely mad about reggae)…the pulsing narcotic buzz of cicadas (“the sound of summer”), and, so difficult to describe- the sound of a New Zealand accent.

I’m still trying to nail down just what it is. Like U.S. and British accents, it has regional variations-perhaps this accounts for why I’ve never heard “Opoutere” pronounced the same way twice (though every time I’ve said it to a New Zealander they’ve guffawed and “corrected” me to their particular way). However, with time, I’ve been able to note several consistencies of pronunciation. “I”s can become “e”s and vice-verse: “Ever” becomes “ihvah”, with a soft “i” (as “with”). “Pen” sounds like “pin”, or more accurately “peen” “Weather” is “witheir”, or sometimes "withuh", and so on. You'll also note a kind of drawl in the previous examples (often punctuated by a questioning “Ay?” at the end of a sentence, though this trait seems to be shared by Australians and Canadians as well). There’s also a certain nasality: "Myarrrrcus! C’yumyeere!" (Marcus! Come here!" ) that eludes mimicry and transcription, as well as a lilting softness- occasionally and unpredictably combined. I sometimes hear “Pardon?” when I speak too quickly, and my own accent becomes unintelligible to a New Zealander, which comes out- how can I render this- “Pahrd'n?” O.K. Jonathan, that’s not quite it, but oh! how much more charming than the doltish American ascending “Whuuuut?”

At this time I’d like to inaugurate a blog-within-a-blog: The Hitchhiker Chronicles. In this friendly country, hitchhiking is still practiced and as I have no car, I do it several time a day. Today was unremarkable- Out: a Maori family of three with his n' hers fluorescent street construction worker vests slung over their car seats…very friendly and in good humor- they explained that they’d just sold their house in town that they’d bought twenty years ago- with Raglan’s trendiness and the rise in home prices- well, nuf said. Back: an unremarkable new age hippy couple who didn’t talk much. Utilitarian today, but their kindness got me to the doctor and back.

But from time to time, the rides are much more interesting, and telling too- and when they are, I’ll add to the Hitchhiker Chronicles.

Miss you all.