Karangahape Rd.
This place rocks…
When I was a young bloke living in the inner city, K Rd was the sleazy, down at heel, dodgy part of town. The Pink Pussycat and The Las Vegas were the wicked treats. Rainton Hastie and his Roller ruled the night.
I haven’t paid any attention to K Rd for a long time. Currently I have the enormous privilege and pleasure of working with some clients in this area and I think I’ve fallen in love. This place rocks.
If you ever want to see the living embodiment of fusion, multi-culturalism, ethnic pride and millennials just getting on with the business of being millennials, this is it.
Everywhere there are tiny cafes seating just a few people, often on the pavement and brimming with the energy of proud owners creating delicious morsels from wherever they originally came from. The coffee is invariably excellent and the service is gracious and quick.
This morning I parked at the corner of K Rd and Ponsonby Rd, had a meeting just across the road at Une Deux and walked tro my next meeting at Bestie in St Kevin’s Arcade.
I’m sitting at the back of the arcade watching an extraordinarily diverse crowd of people outside the multitude of cafes. Young people talking to old people. Laughter everywhere and the gesticulating and animation mostly seen in places like Italy and Greece.
Right in front of me are people in love, people doing business, people catching up with friends, people just taking a minute to rest and have a cup of tea and a very old lady who is being taken care of by her loving granddaughter.
Outside there is a constantly changing scene of people who have chosen differently in life. Here, trying on the persona of a hippie, a punk, a goth, a nerd or just making some shit up yourself is perfectly ok.
I’m here helping some businesses having issues but the amazing thing is that I am being energised and inspired by the sheer energy and spirit of this place. It is chaotic and a strange amalgam of old (as in Victorian), faded, shabby, new, exotic and a franchise store would stick out like a sore thumb.
Why am I writing this ode to K Rd? Because if you need a lift, a boost of life and possibility, come here. There is heart and passion and belonging and optimism and fun and there is commerce going on all over the place.
Because if I were to imagine a New Zealand in the future that has spirit and innovation and enterprise and humanity and diversity of all stripes, I’d model it on this place.
Karangahape Road, I salute you. You make me happy and optimistic and I will be back again and again to sample your many delights. Thank you for having me.