Zen was donned with her mast and sails on Monday. Our friends cheered as we motored down the river in Whangarei.
Tom and I would love to cut the docklines at Town Basin Marina and sail out for some hardcore NZ cruising before we leave this great country, but we are tied up until Friday waiting on some final refit detailing. We could be stuck in a much worse locale, right?
While here, we paid tribute to Tom's birthday. He was shuttled up to Pahia, a touristy waterfront town about an hour north of here, where he was surrounded by 8 of his cruising pals for lunch. Serendipity played a role and live music wove it's way into Tom's day. Our friend, Allan, played the drums with his local band. Tom settled into 3 hours of live music, with a play list that he would have chosen song for song. An overseas phone call with our kiddos singing the Bday Song came in at the perfect time. Eating some delicious Indian curries and breads, while our buddy, Bruce Balan, a children's book author, recited from Dr Seuss' "Happy Birthday to You" was the finale.
Now, sitting on our new comfy interior cushions (see pic - larger ones in Photo Gallery) we plan our week of sailing the NZ coast towards Auckland to meet Dockwise Yacht Transport. Closer and closer is Zen to reaching US waters and us to reuniting w/Cammi and Cole!