🌿 Whanganui Diaries: A Day of Mishaps & Magic 🚗💨

❄️ Morning Drama: The Great Tire Hunt Woke up freezing in my campervan (note: never underestimate North Island winters!). Flat tire discovery—probably punished by yesterday’s 2hr forest mountain drive. 🌲🚗💢 5 tire shops later (with wildly varying quotes & attitudes): Shop 1: Kind Indian guy pumped it up for free (“Go enjoy your day!” 😭). Shop 5: $135 savior in an industrial zone (“Pay tomorrow!” 🫡). Bonus: Got honked at multiple times for driving too slow. 🚗💢 🏛️ Afternoon Redemption: Culture & Kindness 1️⃣ Whanganui Regional Museum Butterfly wall 🦋 (purple-winged rarity!) + Moa bones (Up-inspired bird?!). Staff gifted me a guidebook + kiwi-season small talk. 2️⃣ Botanic Garden 🌺 “Park anywhere (just don’t crush the grass!)” — a smiling gardener (whose joy was contagious!). Winter blooms = 10/10 (thank you, rhododendrons!). 3️⃣ Port & Beach 🌊 Windy AF, but the waves sounded like white noise ASMR. 🛌 Night Victory: New thick blanket = toasty bliss. 🥰 #Whanganui #NZTravel #VanLifeStruggles #MuseumMagic #KindnessMatters