KERRE MCIVOR

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO TAKAPUNA

Soooo – another summer, another satellite navigation fail. I remember telling you about the dire consequences of my call to ignore the instructions of the sat nav on a previous summer holiday – not only ignoring the sat nav, but also ignoring the advice of my husband, who felt certain that he knew the way home. The consequences weren’t dire in that we drove over a cliff, but we did find ourselves lost in the wilds of the Far North until a kind couple took mercy on us and drove us to the turn-off to the highway we needed.

My husband, to be fair, didn’t actually say, “I told you so,” but there was a certain set to his face for a week or so. And when I was particularly adamant about a certain topic, there’d be a pause and he’d ask in an obviously patient tone, “Yes, but are you really sure?”

So although we made it out alive, there were repercussions for me in the weeks that followed.

This time, I was heading over to the North Shore to catch up with an old friend and flatmate who was back in New Zealand for a short break. He had rented a fabulous beachfront apartment, he said, and I must get myself over for a swim and a late lunch.

I thought I knew where Minnehaha Ave was. But as I drove down first one road leading to the beach, then another, I realised I didn’t have a clue and would have to rely on technology.

I looked up the app on my phone and it told me Minnehaha Ave was 29 minutes away, next to Minnehaha Reserve. Surely not, I thought. Silly phone. So I put the address in the sat nav in my car and sure enough, four addresses for Minnehaha – all 29 minutes away. What’s a girl to do?

The last time I thought I knew best, I failed miserably. What is the point of investing in smart phones and technology if you don’t use them?

And perhaps Craig had said Titirangi, not Takapuna – maybe I misheard. It’s amazing how doubt sets in so quickly.

So off I went – back over the Harbour Bridge and heading west. When the bossy girl on the sat nav instructed me to head onto Avondale Road, I began to have some serious doubts. I knew there were fabulous west coast beaches but no beachfront apartments that I could recall. That’s the beauty of the west coast.

Further and further I went into the verdant bush of Titirangi, getting more confused by the second and watching valuable swimming time being eaten up by endless driving. Finally, finally, I reached my destination. And there it was – a lovely home in a beautiful bush setting, but nothing at all like the apartment Craig had described.

It was then that I conceded defeat and called him – which is probably what I should have done 40 minutes earlier when I was parked at the Promenade in Takapuna. He gave me verbal directions and, once again, it was onto the motorway and over the harbour bridge.

Minnehaha Ave in Takapuna is, in fact, remarkably easy to find – provided you don’t listen to the technology. We had the loveliest catch up and two superb swims, and it was well worth criss-crossing Auckland, though it would probably have been quicker for me to fly to Los Angeles, where he lives, than to drive across town to see him!

So when do you listen to technology and when should you follow your instincts? I’m going to see him again before he heads back to the States, but this time, when I head out, I shall turn off the sat nav and rely on my memory. Which, however unreliable, is still more reliable than the jolly smart phone.