I had set my alarm for 7:45 but awoke an hour before that to the sounds of blustery rain outside the window. When I was still in Portland, I saw rain in today’s forecast, which was disappointing for the dolphin-watching cruise I’d booked (Fullers Hole in the Rock), but I didn’t know a full-on storm would roll in.

The cruise is from 9:00a to 12:00p. Checkout from the hostel is at 10:00a, so I’d asked Jake the hostel owner when I booked the room if I could store my bags. He agreed to both that and a late check-in last night since my bus arrived after he closes the office at 8:00p. Super nice. I later learned that the Fullers office will also store bags.

I brought all my stuff down to the hostel office to leave the key for checkout and found Jake on the phone with Fullers. Another guest had left her phone behind (I would die), and they were coordinating a way to get it back to her since Fullers is owned by InterCity, the bus operator.

Since he had them on the line, he asked on my behalf if the cruise would proceed, and they were in the process of deciding. They called back a moment later and said it was indeed canceled, which was a bummer and a relief. It would have been miserable. They said I should contact the main InterCity office to request a refund since I’d purchased the cruise as part of my bus pass. This surprised me as I’d assumed that weather cancellation would be non-refundable. We’ll see.

With 5 hours until my bus departure and no further need to store my bags at the hostel, it was time to take the 10-minute walk with all my stuff to the tour office/bus depot. But it was shitty out and my back was a bit unhappy from the soft mattress (my only very minor complaint with my stay), so I asked Jake about the prospect of getting a cab. He said something that seemed to indicate they are few and far between and said he’d just take me. Put the office phone on hold and everything. On the morning of my second day in New Zealand, I was in love with the kindness of strangers here.

I dropped my bags and wandered the town, stopping here and there for breakfast and WiFi, photos, a chai latte and WiFi to post those photos, geocaching, and finally, a Thai lunch before boarding the bus back to Auckland.

The scenery between Auckland and Paihia reminded me a lot of Ireland, with rolling green hills and lots of sheep. (No castles, though.) I tried to take some video but none of it came out very well.

Yet another 10-minute walk from the bus station, I arrived at my Airbnb listing for the next two nights, a beautiful home filled with plants and windows and light. My loft bedroom has views of the Sky Tower from the main windows and the Auckland Harbour Bridge from a porthole window. Utterly charming.

The storm from Paihia was even worse in Auckland, with many homes here losing power. I was tired and not dressed for the places to eat nearby. Thanks to my hosts’ Airbnb guidebook, I found a grocery store nearby and opted for frozen pizza and a bottle of wine.

Perfect!