They immediately got to talking. Or rather, Kate was talking as usual and Peter, being one of the two people there, had to do most of the listening. Peter’s persistence was impressive however, listening with gusto in the face of the arrival of the rest of the Derby Mansion, neighbours, and half of Christchurch City Council. Together they ruthlessly avoided involving anyone else as they tried to impress each other with knowledge of key issues of the day: like urban planning and daffodil-picking. Then Peter bought Kate a gluten-free beer, impressed her with his coaster-flipping (Br: beer mat-flipping) and her heart was gone!
It didn't take Kate long to agree to the proposition of a road trip (despite not fully understanding the implications of travelling with an urban planner) but as the saying goes: It's always better on holiday – and happily it was. So they set off together about a month later, touring the North Island before Peter flew out to South America, and back to the UK. Since then they've been seen in west Texas, the southern US, and various parts of France and England - but that trip will always have a special place in their hearts. As Kate likes to put it “we had each discovered our life's travel companion”.
Kate and Pete in the Twisted Hop- September 2005
