The ultimate contrasts;
Kona Worlds 2011, Nivaa Denmark vs Kona Worlds 2010, Miami Florida
Arriving in Nivaa, a mall town just 17 km North of Copenhagen was like coming to a place “full of empty people”. It was 10 in the morning and I found myself at the absolutely deserted local train station. Not a single soul, no taxies, no dogs, no nothing –apart from birds singing, and my Chinese travel companion busy studying the big map displayed at the platform. Daniel was heading for his first Kona Worlds. Coming out of Bangkok, my first thought was that a Tsunami warning must be in effect, but where to find higher ground in Denmark.?
Ah, only a 40 minutes walk with 50 kilo luggage each to the designated camping site. Piece of cake compared to the gruesome session behind us –including running through the endless “streets” of Bangkok airport, 12 hours in the air followed by “the how to find the right train stunt”. Be aware, they do not take Chinese credit cards. In fact they do not take cash either. The trick is to speak an impossible language and look completely lost, which was not that difficult in our case.
Anyway, while walking the deserted streets – my thoughts drifted back to last years insanity. Again, from “the center of the planet” I had a hard time deciding if I wanted to fly eastwards or westwards to reach the destination of the 5th. Kona Worlds;- Miami Beach Florida. I went for the Trans Pacific route to save a few bucks.. What a treat it was; Bangkok, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Miami, including three hours of immigration harassment in Los Angeles, just after passing a huge sign welcoming us to the United States of America. A complete 31 hours horror ride – which finally accumulated in a taxi experience not to be recommended. Spanish is a prevailing language in Miami. I could live with that part, but to end up with a huge African Cuban that didn’t seem to know the directions to Miami Beach, was a bit rough to handle at the time.
So here we are at Nivaa camping, and we saw a car and some living creatures for the first time. “Do you have sleeping bags or blankets with you.?”
Eeh, we just arrived from Asia. Our 2 x 3 meter cabin was not “furnished”.
Fortunately all those painful obstacles and obstructions completely vanish when you meet and feel the spirit of the Kona people. We walked the 800 meters down to the eminent Nivaa Yachtclub and suddenly realized why the town was deserted; the inhabitants were all there mingling with the competitors, dining and wining at the comfy club, open to the public. We were “home” and the 6th. Kona World Championships were on.
I had the exact same sensation in Miami, although after a radically different introduction. After walking 10 blocks from my hotel to the racing area the next morning - this time among 1000’s of busy people with no relations to me or our championship. Then suddenly the intense and positive Kona spirit I met on the beach instantly kicked in, although I had been feeling like a walking sand bag. I quickly found myself in the Kona world, - filled with constructive and happy people like from a different planet. ONE for all.
