There is nothing quite like that feeling of standing up on a surfboard, feeling the power of the waves surging beneath you. Nor is there anything quite like falling off, having seawater rush up your nose, into your sinuses and tickling your childhood memories. As Frank, our surfing instructor and Gissy legend likes so remind us…

The waves are a force of nature.

Before this Antipodean adventure, the only surfing I had ever done was the web, but it has been an absolute delight to take to the water. Everyone in Gisborne seems to be a surfer – the house officers seem to know what the waves will be like at any given time and location, and popping down to the beach before or after work to catch some waves happens more often than not. You’ll almost certainly bump into someone you know down at the water’s edge. I wouldn’t be surprised if half of Gisborne has seen me in the sea, emerging from the water like Daniel Craig in Casino Royale.  

In some ways, it has felt like a completely different culture with its own terms and etiquette. 

On my first day at the hospital, two of the house officers were having a conversation about whether it was warm enough to use a 3-2 instead of a 4-3. It being my first day, I nodded along politely, assuming that they were talking about duvets. It wasn’t until a week later that I realised they were, in fact, speaking about wetsuits! 

I am now the proud owner of a 3-2 wetsuit and with A LOT of practise, I hope that one day I’ll be carving up those waves like a turkey at Christmas.The first Saturday I took to the water was a glorious sunny day. After Frank had us practice paddling and standing up on the sand, we were in water, trying to ride the white water – spending more time in it than on it.  

I regret to say that I did also take a surfboard to the face. The score stands at:

Pacific Ocean 1 – 0 Yathu

As I emerged spluttering from the water, blinking sea water out of my eyes and clutching my lip where said surfboard had impacted, I caught Frank’s eye…who had seen the whole episode. 

“Watch out”, he said and then began to say something else. 

“I know,” I muttered, reaching out to drag my board back out into the water. “The waves are a force of nature.”