It took longer than I expected to get to Napier. There were a few obstacles.

I expected Napier to be a sort of art deco Santa Barbara, but it’s probably more like Santa Cruz. Without the boardwalk. And with gravel beaches. And it’s really only a little art decoey. There are some art deco buildings, but a lot of it’s just lettering on signs and that sort of thing. Nice enough beach town, but overbilled by the guidebooks.

Right now I’m sitting on a downtown pedestrian street leeching wifi from one of the hotels (I think). It’s 6:30 in the morning and quite pleasant, but I have to hit the road. There are thermal wonders to see.