Ann Gou and Bruce Ly run the Big Sur cafe on Richmond Road. They have both worked on and off in the hospitality industry from cafes to bars. Why did you call your cafe Big Sur? We adopted it from the previous owner.
Where were you born?
Vietnam.
How long have you lived in New Zealand?
30 years.
What was your childhood like?
It was a great experience. As a young immigrant growing up in a small Waikato community, I got to really experience being around farmland and the great outdoors.
I will die happy if...
Knowing that I have spent this lifetime learning and experiencing the world around me.
What is your favourite TV show?
‘The Chase’ – because I love knowing useless information.
Where would your dream holiday be?
Anywhere where I could trek through the wild – Amazon, Alaska, etc.
What’s on your bucket list?
Being able to witness and photograph the aurora borealis or northern lights.
Most Kiwi thing about you?
My love for rugby.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Hopefully wiser than I currently am today… hahaha!
What job would you do other than your own?
A pilot because I would be given the opportunity to fly different types of aircraft.
What do you dislike about your appearance?
Nothing really.
How would you like to be remembered?
As someone who made the most of life.
What do you love about your age?
Being able to say I’ve got some life experience.
What is something you really disapprove of?
People who look down on others.
What is your biggest disappointment?
Not becoming a pilot.
Ever seen a ghost?
Funny you should ask this… but I’ll provide a bit of background first. George, a neighbour in his 70s, lived behind my friend’s house. I used to have some really fun banter with him. One night I stayed over and decided to go to the toilet in the dark. While doing this I saw a black shadowy figure in the mirror and felt a shiver down my spine but I didn’t think too much about it as I was still half asleep.
Next day I saw an ambulance in the driveway and I asked what had happened. I was told that George had passed away that night so I think he was coming to say goodbye to me? Scary, I know!
Give your teenaged self some advice?
You should have put more effort into studying instead of playing lots of different sports, so you could get the grades needed to be a pilot.
How do you chill out?
I listen to music and I mean the stuff rom the 70s to the 90s, not the rubbish they have nowadays, or am I now just starting to sound like an old
grumpy man?
Your favourite hero of fiction?
Hunman (The Monkey King) I don’t know if you can consider him a fiction character?
As a kid I grew up watching it and he had all the magical powers I wanted to have, like being able to fly across the sky on a cloud.
A talent you would like to have?
Unlimited memory.
What cliché do you hate?
Better safe than sorry. Because I think if you’re living life safe, you’re not living.
Greatest weakness?
Ice cream.
Handshake or a hug kind of person?
Well it really depends – if I’ve only met them for the first time, I’ll shake their hand. But if I’ve met them more than once, I’ll most likely give them a hug.
Your dream guest list for a dinner party?
David Attenborough, because I love documentaries and I would just love to hear his life stories.
Do you have a party trick?
Not really. The only thing I can do remotely close is split the bottom of a beer bottle from the top with my bare hands.
Travel light or heavy?
Depends where I am going and what reason I’m going for; most of the time, pretty light.
Favourite movie?
‘The Green Mile’. Do I really need to explain why? I think this would be in most people’s all-time top 10 movies.
If you could change one law or policy in New Zealand, what would it be?
Bring back capital punishment for serious crimes against human kind.
(DAVID HARTNELL MNZM)