Page 18 - Mistified Update June 2020_Neat
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The moment was then shattered by his realization
that I was not one of his people, but another American
come to pillage and plunder his beloved homeland.
His attitude turned from friendly to distant with an
undercurrent of hostility, as he announced, that he and
his Aunty were not interested in selling to a foreigner.
His verbal assault sent my hidden ninja nature into
full gear and the war of words was on. I grabbed my
bag and stormed off back towards the rental place.
He and his Aunty had some heated words in their
native tongue and he came running after me, rambling,
“Aunty wants you to have her car. You must buy it.”
After some tussling with my bags I relented and
wound up driving away with this young stranger, Pita
Waters, a proud and highly opinionated Maori.
His Aunty insisted he make sure I got out of
Auckland city safely, to which I finally agreed. I had no
clue where I was and to complicate things they drive on
the wrong side of the road in the “world down under,”
so guidance seemed like a good idea.
The drive was harrowing, with me periodically on
the wrong side of the road and tolerating all of Pita’s
snide remarks about how I was going to kill both of us.
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