Temuka/Small town

I passed through Temuka five or six times last year while making the bus journey from Christchurch to Dunedin and back. Temuka, settled in 1853 by William Hornbrook, consists of a dairy and adjoining tearooms, a Jehovah's Witness church and very little else. I don't want to be too critical of Temuka however. It has that strange, eerie vibe typical of quaint small towns that I, as an "urban type" enjoy. In small doses, from an observational point of view.

There's something very agreable about entering a dingy tearoom and having to order a cup of hot water, because you don't want to eat the yellowing savouries in the warming cabinet. Temuka probably looks the same now as it did in 1970. I find trips like this inspiring.