Taihape is a little town about a quarter of the way up the North Island. It makes a convenient coffee stop for those driving north to Taupō or beyond. While some choose to power on through, I have stopped there many times. About three months ago, we stopped there again with friends, on our way to Taupō for a holiday. Unfortunately, I had parked the car in front of a dress shop, which immediately demanded investigation by our wives. My friend and I spent a few dutiful minutes in the shop prior to being evicted for somehow not having the right spirit of enquiry. Outside, we were considering how much damage might be done to our bank accounts when one of the locals pulled up to buy a pie at the local bakery and café.
His car, an old Alfa Romeo, was thankfully interesting enough to distract me from the excited comments coming from within the shop that had started me wondering what dinner would actually be like at a soup kitchen. The car’s owner was in no hurry, and as it appeared that we were going to be waiting outside the shop for a good while, he was happy to talk about his car. I am always looking for the next magazine story but had not expected to find a scoop in Taihape. But ‘if you don’t ask,
