Cricket!

Michael has had a huge interest in cricket ever since the first time we came to NZ two years ago, so he was thrilled to find out that England and the NZ Black Caps were playing each other in Napier. We weren't quite sure what to expect being that this is a game where you can take a nap on the lawn and not really miss anything important. Well, as we found out, to New Zealanders, the 8 hour length of the match means that unheard-of amounts of alcohol were to be consumed.









They really don't hold back either. You are welcome to bring whatever food and drinks you can carry in. For this guy, it looks like he's loaded up on his cricket-watching fuel for the day. Many take the opportunity to get really dressed up like you see for the guys with the Tui panchos and sombreros, the dude dressed up as a cow, and the gentleman in the dress. After 8 hours of drinking, which is a realistic proposition for these kiwis, some get fairly restless near the end, and a couple of fights broke out followed by police escorts. They say cricket matches usually aren't this rowdy (they usually are more like going to a golf tournament), but it was in Napier, NZ this day.

This dude, the one in the red Retro Rockers shirt, I guess stubbed his toe really badly on something, and he was in need of something to stop the bleeding. I had brought a little white towel to sit on, and I guess he was so drunk that he did not think much of it to just mosey on over, pick it up from right beside me, and wrap it around his toe without even saying anything to me. I looked over at Michael, and we just smiled.

The final score ended up being 340-340. A tie! After 8 hours, they tied and did not even bother to settle it with a tie breaker. Michael and I walked away stunned and sunburned.