That’s why travel makes my life interesting and exciting.
Today I happened to encounter a dog just after I left Levin.
It was male, very active and young.
First I thought it was someone’s dog.
I told him to get back home but it kept following me for a long while, maybe 5km or so.
It ran around me as if I had been his pal.
I said, “I’m sorry I can’t take you anywhere because I’m traveling alone.”
I didn’t know if he understood me.
As I got out of the town, traffic became heavier.
In some part shoulders became narrow.
The dog was brave enough to run onto the highway.
“Get out of the highway!!”
I shouted out.
The dog narrowly escaped being run over by a huge truck.
“You’re making me nervous…Stay calm…”
He seemed hungry and looking around for something to eat.
He tried to eat a dead body of a bird on the shoulder.
But I told him to stop it.
A problem occurred.
We had to stop moving forward before a bridge.
There were no shoulders and just two lanes for cars.
I felt as if the bridge had told me not to come.
I told the dog to sit and stay with me for a while.
No easy way out.
In the meantime, a truck came up and stopped just in front of us.
A guy got out of the car, Mick was his name.
I said, “I need your help!”
I told him about the story of the dog and my trek.
He said, “Both of you cannot go across the bridge without car.
I’ll give you a ride. OK?”
I didn’t expect that I was also rescued.
“I want you to help this dog, anyway.”
He nodded with a smile and started to talk to someone on the phone.
He was talking about the character of the dog and asking how to find the owner of missing dogs.
After the phone call he said to me,
“No problem. The owner will find this dog. I’ll take care of him until then.”
What a relief!
I put my buggy and luggage on the truck.
We, the dog and I sat next to Mick the driver.
The dog seemed to feel relieved and stayed calm next to me.
I held his collar and said to him,
“Now you’re safe and sound. Hope you’ll meet your owner again soon!”
Just one kilometer we enjoyed driving .
After crossing the bridge, Mick stopped his truck on the shoulder.
I said goodbye to the dog. Even though we spent just 1 hour or so, I felt as he had been a longtime pal of mine.
I took down my buggy and luggage from the truck and reset everything.
I thanked Mick for a ride and asked him again to take good care of the dog.
Last time I saw the face of the dog from the car window, he seemed to have said to me THANK YOU! I HAD A GOOD TIME WITH YOU!
That’s the end of the story of a lost dog.
After that, running on State Highway 1 was kind of boring and sometimes dangerous with narrow shoulders and a bit heavy traffic.
About 4pm I visited Megumi a Japanese friend of mine.
He found me on the website of DAILY JAPANESE LIFE.
It is a site for Japanese people who live in New Zealand.
Three other ladies were there to welcome me.
We enjoyed chatting for an hour or so over tea, coffee and cakes.
They were young mothers. As their kids were all together, they were very lively and I had a really fun time.
Here’s a picture of us. Kids are just like my grandchildren.
Tonight I was supposed to meet my friends Howard and Jan whom I had met at a rest area near Taihape the other day.
As it happens, they also live in Paraparaumu, not far from Megumi’s place.
Aki, Megumi’s pal gave me a ride. How lucky I always am!!
Howard and Jan gave me a hearty welcome.
We met for the third time. First at a rest area near Taihape.
And two days after that, they found me on the highway and told me to visit their place giving me a note which showed their address and phone number.
Then that’s what I did.
Anyway, I feel better being with someone whom I can talk to.
Most of the day I am alone with no one beside me.
Today, the dog must have asked me for a help.
I didn’t notice at first.
Looking back, there might have been so many messages from the dog. The dog cannot talk. But I can feel something if I want to.
It’s the power of sensibility.
It doesn’t matter if it’s an animal or a human being.
Communication is usually done with languages but sometimes we need to use sensibility. That’s what I learned today.
Now I’m safe and sound with my friends…
*Today’s Distance: 47.01km
*Total Distance from Auckland: 685.04km
*See More Photos
*See Where I Am Now
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