Daily Photo: Wandering the Esplanade at 5am

The previous evening, getting up at 5:00 am to wander around St Clair’s Esplanade had struck me as a masterstroke. Now, standing in a pitch-black dawn yet to be breached by even a suggestion of sunlight, the genius of it all had worn off entirely, replaced by the chilling realization of my own foolishness. The coffee shops hadn’t even opened for God’s sake!

Instead, I had the ocean invisible behind the sea wall, a row of empty tables waiting for visitors far more sensible than myself, and the warm, golden starburst of streetlights burning into the dark. The Hydro Surf shop sat shut tight behind glass, its wetsuits quietly waiting for daylight while a solitary set of taillights smeared a red streak along the road, the only other soul foolish enough to be moving.

So, I stood on cold pavement, hands deep in coat pockets, questioning every life decision that led me to standing on this specific corner at 5:00 am.