In the morning, I was in Los Angeles, attending some lectures on Plasma Physics. After nearly a whole week of nothing but lectures and food, I was ready for my New Zealand vacation! After lunch, I packed my bag, and walked it about half a mile to catch the shuttle to the airport. After not having correct change for the shuttle, and almost having to pay $20 for the $5 fare, I accidentally told the shuttle driver the wrong airline, so he dropped me off at terminal 6. As soon as I got off, I realized that I needed to find terminal 2, so I dragged my suitcase through the maze of the airport parking garage, and eventually found the terminal where people were speaking with a New Zealand accent. Just as I was finding the line to get my ticket, I ran into my travel companion, Tim Andeen. We were finally off!
Together, we negotiated the various security checkpoints, and realized we still had 4 hours to kill, so we sat down at the bar for some beers. That’s when we met our first real introduction to the hospitality of New Zealand. At the table next to us were two women (probably in their late 30’s) who introduced themselves as “locals” who were also waiting for the same flight. One was from New Zealand, the other Australia. We were chatting about what Tim, Karen and I were going to be doing on our trip, and prompted me to pull out our fairly vague sample itinerary. Still with several hours before our flight, they decided to help us out, and made many additions and changes to our plans. By flight time, we had given them many laughs (especially when Tim asked if Kiwi, an endangered species which is also New Zealand’s national icon, tastes good or not), and they had given us a fully revamped itinerary, complete with a wine list, beer list, souvenir shopping guide, and new appreciation for the New Zealand people.
We boarded the 747 out of LA, and landed in Auckland, New Zealand, about 3 movies, 2 TV shows, and possibly a fraction of a night’s sleep later. Air New Zealand helped us find our way onto the next flight to Christchurch, on the southern New Zealand island.
Karen was waiting for us at the Christchurch airport, and so was a gorgeous New Zealand sunny summer day! As we hailed a taxi, from the wrong side of the road (yes, they drive on the left!), I began to fully realize that it was only 8:30 in the morning here. We had a full day to go!
Thankfully, we had a chance to refresh ourselves at the hotel in the morning, since Karen had already made our room arrangements, and since she had stayed there the previous night. Eventually, I was showered, had fresh clothes, and some tea. Then, the owner of the hotel (maybe bed and breakfast is a better descriptor!) decided to take us on a tour of the town in his old American Studebaker. The tourists and locals were all gawking and waving as we putted around town, taking in the sights and honking a horn that went “Aoooogah”. Our host was really interested in renovating old houses and other buildings (hence how he ended up running this hotel), so we got the full architectural tour.
The rest of the day was a flurry of local activities, with a constant presence of live music almost everywhere we went. We had lunch at the Dux de Lux, saw street performers as we walked through the Sunday market, found some espresso to battle the early stages of jet lag, went Punting down the Avon, explored the botanical gardens, sat down for some wine inside the complex of what used to be the local University, and stayed in our seats for a front row view of a surprise spontaneous gathering of a bagpipe band. After this, we walked the downtown area a bit, and went out for dinner. I tried to take a lot of pictures this afternoon, so hopefully they can share more than my jet-lagged ramblings of an amazing first day in an even more amazing country!
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