Dear Diary

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The Story So Far....

So it's been a long time since I've put anything up on here.... over 5 years to be precise. This is not an indication of a lack of travel, nor is it an indication of an absence from the site, merely a lot of paying off the last big trip and saving for the next. During this time I've managed a number of smaller trips to neighboring countries such as Indonesia and Singapore but in essence these have been single purpose visits, whether for a Formula 1 GP or a boys week away.

It's also been noted that with my last trip, the blogs stopped coming.... the main reason?? As the trip is called "RTW til the money runs out" I'm sure you can imagine. After spending 4 days in transit, sleeping in airports and on planes, by the time I got home the most driving need was a hot shower and a soft bed. Job hunting, renewing contacts with friends and family, and the general drain of no longer doing what you love took it's toll and unfortunately the Blog was never finished. My apologies to any and all that felt they'd been left hanging.

That being said, I managed to start planning for my imminent trip to New Zealand back in May this year, with the intention of spending 4 weeks doing a self drive tour of both the islands. Looking further ahead, I am still planning my next great trip which was intended for around late 2015 and would take in USA, Canada and a second stab at Europe.

And Then Everything Changed....

After the planning and purchasing of the New Zealand trip, my work got it into their head that a restructure would be just dandy... and all I could think was "Damn, you could've told me sooner!!"

While everyone else was worried about providing and being stable, I found myself in the unique situation of being able to view it as an opportunity. No partner, no kids, no mortgage, and a half baked idea of a trip in the distant future, I all of a sudden realized that this is the perfect time to bring everything forward and "cut off the bowlines" so to speak. So with redundancy offered and with a reluctance to leave friends that I've made over the 4 years with the company (but a distinct lack of regrets at being able to follow a dream), I am now in the throes of preparation for bigger and better things.

But I'm getting ahead of myself....



New Zealand...



With preparations done, packing done, and a passport ready, I'll be on my way tomorrow.... but not without a great surprise that fell in my lap.

Receiving an email confirming my tickets with Air New Zealand earlier in the week, it noted that I had only reserved seats on the return flight. Now I'm thinking "Was I so excited that I forgot to reserve the opening leg?" Upon further investigation it seems the airline has changed the type of plane that will be traversing the route and therefore all previously reserved seats had to be changed... no issues with that. The issue I found was that I'd sprung for some comfort for the overnight flight with Premium Economy tickets and the new aircraft didn't have any Premium Economy seating.

Looking through the available seating, it seems that with the lack of the class paid for, I have been upgraded to Business Class.

So there's me.... doing the happy dance around my lounge room, singing "BUSINESS CLASS BABY!!!!"

I just hope that I don't become dependent on this means of travel..... it may mean a very lighter wallet for further trips.

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Comments

[Dancing Dave]

Bon Voyage & Good Luck
Closing the door & heading off tomorrow...fantastic...but what to play to say goodbye? The Beatles "Goodbye" or "Bye Bye Blackbird" comes to mind...but you're pretty excited...maybe "Stairway to Heaven" is more appropriate.