Hawaii

Caro and I spent our first few days here looking around the shops, which fall into two camps.  

• Really expensive designer shops. 
• Cheapo sh*t tourist places (leis $5 each).

Caro scouted out the surf shops in the first five minutes, but they had almost exactly the same stuff as in Mount Maunganui.  (It occurs to me that there is this sort of "Country of Surf" that exists although it's not on any maps.  Surfies everywhere wear the same clothes and talk the same language.  

A bit like the Israelis before World War 2.  If there was a Surf Flag it would be a Mambo T-Shirt.  And if there was a Surf National Anthem it would be "Blister In the Sun" by Violent Femmes.)