Auckland to LA

---

---

Auckland Airport Day 76
December 16, 2008

I am sitting here bored in the Auckland airport waiting for our flight to Tokyo. The TV is on and I’m seeing that there is a rainy weather forecast for the next week for most of NZ. That helps ease the sorrowful pangs of leaving. We saw a lot in our 33 days in NZ, so no regrets other than wishing it could have been 63 days. We are leaving with good feelings about NZ. It is a country with beautiful scenery, friendly people, great wine and food, and LOTS of sheep.

Fourteen Hours Later

Now we are on the last leg to LA. Can’t help but compare the U.S. airlines to others. At the beginning of the trip we flew to Sydney on United. We were very cramped with little legroom, there were only a couple of TV’s for the cabin, and food, drinks, and headphones were an added cost. In contrast, Air New Zealand from Auckland to Tokyo had comfortable seats with lots of legroom, good food and wine and headsets at no added cost. We were given chocolate ice cream and mango sorbet and candy between meals. Each seat had an individual video screen with a choice of 86 movies, and the same number of TV shows and music videos, about 25 video games, text news broadcasts, and a channel showing the flight progress. We are now on Singapore Airline and we are getting the same wonderful amenities and even better food. We chose the Japanese dinner and it came on a tray with about eight small covered plastic boxes and each box had a surprise in it: sushi rolls, shrimp with sauce, noodles, fish, vegetables, fruit slices, cheesecake, bread, and condiments. What fun!

Traveling from Auckland, there were very few clouds and we were able to have clear views of several islands in Micronesia. The hues of the turquoise waters surrounding the islands were a stunning sight. Landing in Tokyo was interesting, too. I guess I was expecting a cityscape, but we saw farmland, many forested areas, and typical suburban homes with lots of swimming pools. It was a bummer to be in Tokyo and not be able to leave the airport. We were most grateful for the English signs as we had to clear transit security, walk what seemed like a mile, and take a bus to another terminal. The airline attendants on the Air NZ flight said that they think we win the prize for traveling the farthest out of the way to get somewhere. I don’t think many travelers go from Auckland to LA via Tokyo, but as I mentioned earlier we were at the mercy of the frequent flyer miles system.

Back in CA
December 16, 2008

It seems strange that 28 hours after we began the trip back that it is still the same date. After landing in LA we took a Super Shuttle for the hour ride back to Tustin. We have a giant stack of mail to attend to, dirty clothes to wash, phone calls to make, etc. The Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade is tonight, but it is raining like crazy so don't believe we'll go.

After six plane flights, 8 bus rides, 38 boat rides (ferries, cruise ships, sailboats, tour boats), four rental cars, four rental vans, and five train rides we feel that we were definitely on the go on this trip and did and saw a lot. It was all good and a large percentage of it was truly wonderful. We’d love to go back to Australia and NZ again. Now we know the places where we’d like to stay a while.

I know that many of you actually read many of my entries and I thank you for that. We wish all of you could have been with us on this trip.

What now? First, we will spend Christmas with our sons, something we haven’t done in years and are greatly looking forward to. We were always traveling during the Christmas season due to my teaching schedule. We haven’t made any plans after that….maybe go house hunting again, and there are many more trips we’d like to take. So, once again I will say “Kia ora” (good health and good luck) to all of you. Joe and I also wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a wonderful new 2009.

---

Comments

[Mark of Sydney]

What now?
I am like junkie hooked on reading about your travels. Where am I going to get my fix now?? But seriously Joe and Judy, I enjoyed your trip nearly as much as you. My only regret is that we did not cross paths in Australia. I hope you settle in at home and return to the southern lands again in the not too distant future. We welcome nice people in Australia.

[J J]

What now?
Thank you for your kind comments. We met so many nice people in Australia. You are lucky to live in such a wonderful country. We missed seeing a lot of it, so hopefully we will be back some day.