During the family holidays we also had a short stay in Moana on the West Coast. As there were some good children’s fares on offer, we went by train. As soon as we walked to the village from the train station one of the locals shouted: “Welcome to Moana!” With typical West Coast weather closing in, we went to the pub for lunch. We were surprised that they had really good-value kids meals and were happy to store our luggage during lunch. The staff were very attentive and the waitress took family photos for us at the large “Lake Brunner” sign.

We stayed at the Lake Brunner Motor Camp, where we were also welcomed. They have a small shop there—we found it somewhat strange that they pointed us to the far better selection of the store up the road, instead of trying to sell us whatever we needed. Maybe they were trying to share the winter tourist dollars around the village.

After a walk on the shores of Lake Brunner the next morning, the children did try out the school playground, which locals recommended. After the rain made a comeback, we had a long lunch at the pub again, making some use of the pool table. I did notice that the church is now also owned by the community as a non-denominational chapel and concert facility. To me this village seemed to reflect something of the old New Zealand, with community spirit and a willingness to help out. Not everything will be well there, but it is good that those rural areas of New Zealand are still easily accessible. I do hope that we can continue some of the good things in all the changes of this world.