Next Stop on the Amazing Race? MATARANGI!!
Rod and I have retired to the beach for Christmas and the summer holidays. Gotta love New Zealand, when you can take a month off at Christmas and your clients think this is normal! Whenever we contemplate moving back to America, this lovely tradition holds us here…
Anyway, tired of cooking for ourselves at the bach (beach house), we decided to pretty up and go to the golf club for dinner. It is still a bit quiet at Matarangi beach as most people stay at home (Auckland or wherever) for Christmas Day and Boxing Day (day after Christmas), so thus there were only about 25 people in the restaurant. A quiet night.
As I tucked in to my calamari and Rod into his tomato/feta entrée (appetizer, that is), I glanced at the bar to see a most famous face! In much too loud of a whisper, I hit Rod on the hand which stunned him out of his wine-appreciation reverie and said, “Oh my goodness! Look over there! It’s What’s His Face!!! You know from the Amazing Race TV show! Phil!!! It’s PHIL!”
Rod, coolly glances over the bar and nonchalantly nods in agreement and sips his Chardonnay.
“What? Are you acting cool? Do you see celebrities everyday?” I irritably say. I need a partner in my astonishment.
“Well, I’m not going to act like a fool like some people!” he replies.
Phil Keoghan is a New Zealander (and holds the record for highest bungy jump, just so you know!). We did know he was a native, as Kiwis claim any celebrity who has any connection to NZ as ‘their own’ and take all opportunities to publicise such in the media over and over again.
Russell Crowe is also theirs - - he was apparently born in NZ, although he moved when he was like two years old to Australia. He speaks like an Australian and I would imagine calls himself an Australian . . . . but Kiwis claim he’s a native.
Keith Urban, the country singer/wife of Nicole, is also a New Zealander. Again, I think he vamoosed to the US when he was a teenager and hasn’t been back since, but they still claim him.
New Zealand is also a funny place for another reason: Kiwis won’t bother a celebrity on the street or in a public place because they believe they are equals with these people. Anyone Kiwi believes they are better than another Kiwi - - even if you are an international celebrity worth millions - - should be knocked down a few notches. This is such a prevalent phenomenon that a syndrome has been named after it . . . ‘Tall Poppy Syndrome.’ As in ‘no one is supposed to raise their head above the other flowers’ as a tall poppy would!
ANYWHOO…. Back to Phil.
So, because of the Tall Poppy Syndrome (which apparently Rod has suddenly come down with) NO ONE bothers Phil at all. He sits with his family of five without anyone even so much as glancing his way. Which makes my antics even more noticeable. I try to get my excitement under control….
Phil orders his drink and walks back to his table. Turns out Rod has a direct line of sight to his table, which is behind me, making gawking impossible. I ask Rod every five minutes for an update on what Phil is doing.
“He’s sipping his beer.” “He’s eating his dinner.”
I decide Rod needs to get a little more imagination, please! He can be the best colour commentator when it comes to American football, but when I ask for a little bit of detail here, he’s uncooperative.
While we finished our mains (entrees, you Americans), I contemplated asking the waitstaff if they might take my photo with Phil. Wouldn’t that make a great Christmas photocard to send friends!? But, because no one else was bugging him (or even noticing he was there!! …. I just wanted to scream out – “there’s a celebrity in our midst, wake up people!”), I decided against it. I would have ended up being the rude, celebrity-mad American fan. I figure I need to work on blending in with the natives.
Turns out, upon paying our bill, we did ask our waitress friend, Claire, about Phil. He owns a house in Matarangi! Huh, so, now I will be walking the beach with camera in hand! There may still be an opportunity for that photo yet.
I can hear it now . . . ‘Heather and Rod, you are the first Americans to arrive at the pitstop on this leg of the race - my posh Matarangi beach house. Please come in and meet my friends Rob and Amber.’
Heather
Anyway, tired of cooking for ourselves at the bach (beach house), we decided to pretty up and go to the golf club for dinner. It is still a bit quiet at Matarangi beach as most people stay at home (Auckland or wherever) for Christmas Day and Boxing Day (day after Christmas), so thus there were only about 25 people in the restaurant. A quiet night.
As I tucked in to my calamari and Rod into his tomato/feta entrée (appetizer, that is), I glanced at the bar to see a most famous face! In much too loud of a whisper, I hit Rod on the hand which stunned him out of his wine-appreciation reverie and said, “Oh my goodness! Look over there! It’s What’s His Face!!! You know from the Amazing Race TV show! Phil!!! It’s PHIL!”
Rod, coolly glances over the bar and nonchalantly nods in agreement and sips his Chardonnay.
“What? Are you acting cool? Do you see celebrities everyday?” I irritably say. I need a partner in my astonishment.
“Well, I’m not going to act like a fool like some people!” he replies.
Phil Keoghan is a New Zealander (and holds the record for highest bungy jump, just so you know!). We did know he was a native, as Kiwis claim any celebrity who has any connection to NZ as ‘their own’ and take all opportunities to publicise such in the media over and over again.
Russell Crowe is also theirs - - he was apparently born in NZ, although he moved when he was like two years old to Australia. He speaks like an Australian and I would imagine calls himself an Australian . . . . but Kiwis claim he’s a native.
Keith Urban, the country singer/wife of Nicole, is also a New Zealander. Again, I think he vamoosed to the US when he was a teenager and hasn’t been back since, but they still claim him.
New Zealand is also a funny place for another reason: Kiwis won’t bother a celebrity on the street or in a public place because they believe they are equals with these people. Anyone Kiwi believes they are better than another Kiwi - - even if you are an international celebrity worth millions - - should be knocked down a few notches. This is such a prevalent phenomenon that a syndrome has been named after it . . . ‘Tall Poppy Syndrome.’ As in ‘no one is supposed to raise their head above the other flowers’ as a tall poppy would!
ANYWHOO…. Back to Phil.
So, because of the Tall Poppy Syndrome (which apparently Rod has suddenly come down with) NO ONE bothers Phil at all. He sits with his family of five without anyone even so much as glancing his way. Which makes my antics even more noticeable. I try to get my excitement under control….
Phil orders his drink and walks back to his table. Turns out Rod has a direct line of sight to his table, which is behind me, making gawking impossible. I ask Rod every five minutes for an update on what Phil is doing.
“He’s sipping his beer.” “He’s eating his dinner.”
I decide Rod needs to get a little more imagination, please! He can be the best colour commentator when it comes to American football, but when I ask for a little bit of detail here, he’s uncooperative.
While we finished our mains (entrees, you Americans), I contemplated asking the waitstaff if they might take my photo with Phil. Wouldn’t that make a great Christmas photocard to send friends!? But, because no one else was bugging him (or even noticing he was there!! …. I just wanted to scream out – “there’s a celebrity in our midst, wake up people!”), I decided against it. I would have ended up being the rude, celebrity-mad American fan. I figure I need to work on blending in with the natives.
Turns out, upon paying our bill, we did ask our waitress friend, Claire, about Phil. He owns a house in Matarangi! Huh, so, now I will be walking the beach with camera in hand! There may still be an opportunity for that photo yet.
I can hear it now . . . ‘Heather and Rod, you are the first Americans to arrive at the pitstop on this leg of the race - my posh Matarangi beach house. Please come in and meet my friends Rob and Amber.’
Heather
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