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Published: January 9th 2010
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Flying here was interesting for sure. On the first flight I sat next to a couple who caught my attention long before boarding. The guy looked like he wanted to be the lead singer of White Snake or some other hair-rock band. The girl was a-once-too-many-times bleached blond with multiple facial piercings. They made out most the trip as if the plane was going to go down any minute. After he fell asleep, threatening to use my shoulder as a pillow, she proceeded to sift thru the various snacks she had packed along - not actually eating them, just taking each food item out of the baggies and feeling them a bit while examining them, then carefully putting them back. They were headed home to la la land - go figure.
My flight to Sydney via V Australia was clearly the highlight of my travels. I was suprised to arrive at the baggage check and find that it was more like a nightclub than a boring airport counter. Decked out with low Ikea lighting, soft techno and indie rock, and hip young staffers, all that was missing was the cocktails. This was a great relief after two United flights that seemed to be leftovers from the last decade. The club atmosphere continued on the plane as we were greeted by a bar bursting with champagne and hot, cheery captain who looked more like he belonged behind a set of turntables than cockpit controls. The plane was enormous and looked like it once belonged to Snoop Dogg. The lights were soft blues, pinks and oranges that faded slowly to match the hour of the night. Outkast was blasting from the overhead speakers and every seat was equiped with its own personal entertainment center. Clearly this is where the sky party happened. Pillows, blankets, nightshades, headphones, and earplugs were waiting for us in every seat. I chose a chicken curry for dinner and greatly enjoyed my complimentary libations. After catching up on some 30Rock and Family Guy and playing a few video games, I got a bit upright, uncomfortable sleep. This flight was 13 hours so we got a nice breakfast too before landing.
One more short flight would bring me to land in Auckland. After several long customs lines, I was finally free and made my way by bus to my hostel. During my commute I noticed a poster announcing that Carl Cox would be headlining for an electronic music festival that evening. Being as he is my fav house dj, I was super stoked that I had arrived just in time. However, in the back of my mind, I honestly knew I would be way too tired to go and took pleasure in reminiscing about all the times I saw him spin in the states instead.
The Empire Hostel was all it said it would be: tall, contemporary, and busy. I patted myself on the back for thinking to get my own room, as this was exactly what I needed upon my arrival.
After settling in I decided to take advantage of the rest of the daylight and take a short walk around town. I ended my walk with dinner at a chinese dive called "seven-up" or "s'up" for short. By the way, in New Zealand their "lemonade" is actually 7up. I found this out the hard way. I did manage to find some "Lift" which is made by cocacola and is a weak lemonade that is only slightly carbonated. What will i do with out my fav refreshment for all this while?!
When I got back to the hostel my apartment mates, Maria & Butch were there. They are a bright couple from Alaska who have been traveling the world since August. They are finally settling in NZ for a bit so Maria can finish her teaching degree. They said they were hunting for a car before heading to Hawke's Bay to find an apartment. We chatted for a bit before I retired early; Butch warned me of his loud snoring, but it would not compete with the loud chatters and hollers of the abundant asian hostelers partying outside all night.
I slept in and it was wonderful. I awoke to find a note on my door from Maria & Butch. It explained that they had found a car and decided to head out early. I was sad that we did not get more of a chance to hang out, but I was happy they had found a good vehicle. They invited me to stay with them in Hawke's Bay when I return to the north island next month. I think I may take them up on that, as it may be nice to meet Christy's cousin who teaches there (likely at the university that Maria will attend).
The sun was shiny and it was about 70, so I was determined to visit the beach; however, first I went to the art museum to educate myself on some Maori history and then walked over to the Sky Tower. The Sky Tower is sort of like the Space Needle, though it may be taller. I paid my way to get to the top and had great fun taking pictures of the scenery and all the brave people who were jumping from the top. It only cost 120 NZ $ to jump, but I figured if was going to do it I'd best wait til the end of my trip, just in case I died. After the Sky Tower, I took the bus to Mission Beach which is te nicest in the area. The area was packed with people from every culture. I walked the length of the beach taking pics and found some nice shells to make earrings from. Then I picked up some fish and chips from a popular local merchant and found a shady spot to enjoy it. The meal was simply wrapped in several large pieces of brown paper, and though I got the "regular" it was enough to feed two people. Having no one with me to share with, I tossed the rest of it a piece at a time to the seagulls and took pictures as they fought over it.
On my way back to the hostel, I took a different route and ended up a bit turned around. As I was cutting thru on a small side street I was stopped by a girl who said couldn't proceed any further becuse they were shooting a movie around the corner. I asked her for help on how to circumnavigate, pulling out my map. She started to try to help me find an alternate route and then decided it was too much effort and instead gained permission to escort me through. As we walked I of course had to ask what was going on, and she explained excitedly that they were filming a scene for the new Yogi the Bear movie. Apparently it is similar in character to the recent Scooby Doo remake, but with Yogi Bear. It definitley looked like a true hollywood set up, complete with mobil costume units, huge boom cranes, hundreds of people running around but not seeming to really doing anything, and enough trailers and trucks to take up 5 city blocks. Strange.
Anyway, now I am at the most boring part of my day - doing laundry. I'll spare you the details and write more tomorrow...
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