ENGLAND

This part of the trip has more been able catching up with long time friends and family before they go than wanting to go to the England and see the sights.  In doing this however I have managed to work my way around the country.  My time in England has been divided into four main areas; Southport/Liverpool with Kylie and her new family; The lake District and Yorkshire Dales with my sister Rachael and soon to be husband Hamish; Ringwood (where my sister lives) and beyond with my friend Kate and then finally the big smoke of London Town before leaving to New York with my sister and new friends..

Southport/Liverpool
My time here seems like a world away now, which I guess happens when you move around a lot while travelling.  It was great being able to be grounded after what seemed like endless nights in hostels and hotels for a time.  Also great were having home cooked meals, conversations around homework, being able to wash my clothes in washing machine, and being quizzed on my musical general knowledge of Justin Beber and the like by Kylie's two step children. I am proud to say I failed miserably on the music front.


Southport is a decent sized port town about 45mins by train to Liverpool.  I have to say my first impressions were not the positive of the place though it slowly grew on me.  The place seems to be somewhere to raise a family and then retire based on the proportion of pushchairs and people in wheelchairs and/or with walking sticks.  To my delight though I didn't buy there were also a high proportion of good quality shoe shops.  I also managed to do the rightful thing and test out a few local pubs.  All I attended were successes.


In my brief time in Southport, I got to know the train system to Liverpool well.  By doing so it helped ease my anxiety around this form of transport.  For me catching the train can be more stressful than catching a plane.  This primarily due to not knowing English geography as all trains are based on the final destination which is hardly ever the stop that I am going to.  


Liverpool should be known as the windy city, especially when down by the pier. I was nearly blown over twice by the gales that come through.  I think however it should also be known for more than just the home town of the Beatles (the museum I did go to by the way and was more enjoyable than I had thought it would be) and a port/industrial town which I had known it for. I spent a pleasant and at times moving 1 and half days in the city, mostly at museums and galleries and could have easily spent more if time had allowed.  Much of the city that I saw reminded my of Wellington, though with less hills and less good quality coffee shops.


My most memorable and powerful experience was at the International Slavery Museum.  This is a relatively new museum and takes up one floor of the Maritime Museum.  For me who has been to Ghana and touched the "Gate of No Return" just over five years ago, the exhibits brought back many of the strong feelings I had at the time.  The museum acknowledged that slavery still exists today and that much of the discrimination many face here in the UK, Africa and further abroad is linked to the slave trade.  After my time at the museum it took me a considerable period of time to feel "normal" again due to the strong emotions that came with visiting such a place.  

The nest blog will cover the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales and will be done in the near(ish) future depending on how busy the USA keeps me and I will likely do the pics once all the blog for England is done.

SCOTLAND

Now for those that know me, they are aware I am generally not attracted to “mainstream countries”, so my real enjoyment of Scotland has come as somewhat as a surprise for me. I think the green ruggered scenery with the many lochs, the amassing old buildings that have not been taken over by often ugly modern buildings as has occurred in other places, the Scots love for history and oh arriving into 23 degrees with sunshine are what when putting it simply did it for me, well at least at first.

I sadly did not take as much of opportunity of the weather and the city on my arrival as I would of liked due to exhaustion from sleep deprivation I was experiencing. My second day I was up bright and early and wondering the streets of the capital. Still not got my head around the idea that I would be seeing people at a bar having a beer or two at just after 9:30am in the same way I would be seeing someone having their morning coffee back home.

My day was taken up with a free three hour walk around Edinburgh tour, a walk around Edinburgh Castle, frequenting a pub or two and a underground city tour. All in all it was a day of gaining far more information that I could possibly take in. At least most of it was presented in a way that was entertaining. The tour was very useful to get an insight into how Edinburgh works and to get my bearings. The Castle I have to say overall was overrated and over priced, but at least I can say I have done that. The evening was pleasant as the city even on a Thursday just has soo much life in it. The underground city showed me how life was in the 1600-1700’s and I have to say I’m happy that I was not around. The pub we randomly walked into had three different live bands of which we saw two. One, I have to say was really good and could of kept listening for quiet some time, the other needed to think about finding a lead singer whom could actually sing.

The next three days were on the Haggis Isle of Skye tour. I have to say I was a little unsure about the tour at first as really did not know if being on a small bus with nearly 30 others and staying in backpackers were really going to be my thing. Thankfully any fears I had were soon elevated and I had a fantastic time. I can say I have never drunk so much Whiskey in my life as I did on the two nights of the tour. Nor did I appreciate Whiskey as much as I do now.


The tour took the group to too places to mention (actually it was too many places for me to remember). We based ourselves in the Highlands near Loch Ness. The area really does have a beauty that I have not seen in a long time. I felt that I was overly captivated with it and getting frustrated that I was unable to get a picture to capture what I was witnessing. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the area as have been to Ireland and did not understand what the big deal was often about its scenery.

The first night at Maggie’s Hostel was all about the quiz night. Without going into too many details I will just say this was like no other quiz night that I have been involved with before. There were physical challenges to be completed, costumes, and dancing mixed in with your box standard quiz questions. Mixed in with this was the challenge a few of us had taken on to drink at least one shot of every whiskey in the hostel bar. By the end of the second night I can say the mission was completed. I am really surprised that apart from feeling some sleep deprivation I experienced no other negative side effects.

Our second day was all about the Isle of Skye. This is a breathtaking ruggered landscape with only 10,000 people. It is currently believed there are at times more churches in villages than there are houses. Which as an interesting side note are 95% white. The day was really about just learning and experiencing highland life and scenery. It is a must see for anyone coming to Scotland.


The night was karaoke focused. I did my obligatory one song with Team Kiwi making sure the microphone stayed as far away from me as possible. Once the night was officially over there were a few of us whom stayed up and did the bar version of campfire sing-a-longs. By the end there were only two of us left and it was 3:30am before my head hit the pillow. This only to awaken to the rude looking time of 8:18am which meant I had 12mins to get changed, packed, have something to eat and get on the bus. I think I really did set a record in managing to complete this in just under 10mins.

The last day of the tour was a lot quieter than the first two as all our energy had been zapped out of us. We saw the Loch Ness and completed a short but very scenic walk, saw a controversial battle ground (which all I could sadly appreciate was that it was a paddock with a few signs on it) and did the customary visiting of a church. Before long the day was over and we were back in Edinburgh where as quickly as we came, we all left our own ways. My evening was one of the most enjoyable in a long time where I simply went pub hopping over a 6 to 7 hour period as a caught up with a member of the group. It was strange that while I went to bed just before 2am on a Sunday night/Monday morning I was still one of the first to bed in my hostel room.

It is now time for me to depart Scotland and head to England via three different train’s. The forecast shows I will be heading to warmer temperature again which is a positive and I might be able to get myself a decent coffee as it is something that Scotland really needs some work on improving, but it is still with a touch of sadness that I am doing so.

Final days in Sabah, Malaysia

So as most of you will have picked up I’m a little behind on this bog thing, especially as I am currently now on a train leaving Scotland. When I know look back on what has occurred since the last week it almost seems serial, though I think that sometimes this is the wonder of traveling.

So my last few days in Sabah before I took the what seemed like marathon trip to Edinburgh goes as follows.

Sepilock

This place was really the main reason that I took the trip that I did. Why you ask, well its simple that’s where I got to see orang utans! Sepilock has Malaysia’s only sanctuary of these wonderful creatures. The sanctuary they are based in is huge and is as close to the wild as they will get. For many of the oran untans after 7 to 10 years of rehabilitation they get to return to the wild. The public are lucky enough two times a day to get to see some of the creatures when they offer food and those that are interested come out to eat it. All I can really say about the experience is that I really just felt in awe of them and had to try and restrain myself from constantly clicking on my camera as it took away from the just being in the moment and enjoying them.

The afternoon was spent at the Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary which was an expensive but well worth expensive option. Sadly however it is in the middle of one of the thousands of Palm Oil Plantations. These monkey’s are honestly the strangest looking monkeys with their long nose that almost looks human like. What impressed me about this was the way the mothers took such good care of their young. The young were also connected to them and when they sense any danger it was impressive how fast they can move. While there I also got to see the silverback monkeys. These monkeys have such character and are full on. They clearly have the view that everywhere is there’s and they have rights to whatever they see.. Thus if you have food keep a watch out!. I was lucky enough to see very up close two of the six babies that have been born in the last year. The special part about this, is that they had to be around 2-3 months old as their colour had yet to change from gold to a dark silver.

Back in Kota Kinabalu
The next day was a traveling day back to Kota Kinabalu (Aka “KK“) where we went to our seaside resort. Sadly, I could only admire the view and not the water due to there being a high number of jellyfish. My next two days were all about water, beaches and sun.

The first was spent on a private island about 15min boat ride from KK. There I got to just chill out and enjoy the heat, sun and the view, Oh and yeah there was also snorkeling which was first off the beach and then later in the day off the boat. Also noteworthy of mentioning were the giant lizards that inhabit the island. My guess would be that they had to be at least 40 to 65kg in size. Again it was a time where I became very attached to clicking the camera.

The second day was about going scuba diving for the first time. For just under $NZ100 it just seemed like an opportunity that was not to be missed! Sadly the weather was not as good as the first day, though when you 6 to 12mts under water that all becomes irrelevant anyway. I overall loved the experience and was really surprised just how relaxed I was about the whole thing, well all but the going into the water backwards off the boat part anyway. It really did feel like another world under there and was far more impressive than I had imagined it to be. All was topped off to by being able to a large turtle up close just handing out on a rock about 8mts under water! If only scuba diving was not so expensive I could really see myself being a regular participant in this sport.

 

My last day in Sabah was a low key one, which was helped by the poorer weather. Though when I reflect on it now, it was just what I needed. As I then had four airports and over 20 hours of transiting ahead of me. With that in mine, here are my latest airport reviews.

 

Koata Kinabalu

Bathroom cleanliness 7



Functionality 4

Facilities 7

Decor 6

Staff 6.5

Food venues 7

Duty Free 6.5

Dubai

Bathroom cleanliness N/A



Functionality 8

Facilities 9

Decor 9

Staff 6

Food venues 9

Duty Free 9

Heathrow

Bathroom cleanliness 6



Functionality 6

Facilities 7

Decor 36
Staff 7

Food venues 6.5

Duty Free 6.5

Edinburgh
Bathroom cleanliness 5



Functionality 4

Facilities 5


Decor 5


Staff 8


Food venues 5


Duty Free 5

MASCOT

 MASCOT is a community initiative run by a village in the region of Kinabatangan. The village is about eco tourism and about conservation. My group was lucky enough to have two full nights with them.

The village Batu Puteh is about 5 hours bus ride east away from Mt Kinabula. I have to say it was refreshing to come to the village after the bus ride as all I saw when I looked out the window was Palm Oil trees. They have really taken over the place.

Once at MASCOT we were taken by boat to their eco stay which was about 15mins away. The place it peaceful and serene. It is situated among the rain forest and over looks a lake. We each had our own little huts above the ground with a little deck. The place is powered by a generator, though they use as little power as they can.



My humble accomodation at the Eco Camp

Once settled in, it was back out in the boat to go monkey and bird spotting along the river banks. It was my first time seeing a wild monkey in over five years. I realized that I still get just as excited as I did in Africa to see them. Due to the rain threatening to settle in, the trip was cut back a little. Later that night we had a night walk when we went insect and animal exploring. Sadly due to having about 2 hours of heavy rain earlier there were not as many creatures out and about as hoped. It was then to bed under my mosquito net to the sound of nature.

The next morning was another small trek through the rain forest learning about the different types of forests and medicinal use of some of the plans. It was then a boat ride up river to where we helped the environment. This was by getting our hands dirty and planting some native plants in an area that had previously been destroyed by fire. Once back at the eco lodge, two of us bravely got our feet nibbled at by fish. They did a good job at taking off the dead skin and after a few minutes of minor screaming, laughing and taking my feet in and out I started to enjoy it.



My feet being nibbled at. Apparently its a big thing in New York.

Once back at MASCOT it was straight into a cooking class with the some of the local women. It was my job to make some delicious banana balls. As with most food in Malaysia they were fried. Thankfully afterwards we all got to taste our fine culinary skills at lunch.

A music, dance show followed as did information on the project. As predicted the group were forced at the end to join in with the dancing. Lucky us, this dance involved moving in a circle holding hands and occasionally waving ribbons given to us to use. I was very happy when the song was over!

One of the most memorable parts of the stay was the home stay in the village. Kaori (fellow traveler from Japan) and I stayed with Musa and her 8 other family members. Only pictures can really describe the environment we were in. It was a wooden building that had lots of additions to it. The kitchen/dinning area had two complete walls and one partial wall. The wooden floor had decent size gaps in it, thankfully often these places had lino on it. There were large buckets to collect the water that feel through the roof when it rained (as it does on a daily occurrence. There were electric cords exposed throughout the house. The lounge was large with two tv’s at either end and large speakers about 1 meter high were scattered around. Windows in our room were wooden and a needed a rod to keep them open. I think that is enough to give you a picture of it for now in your head.

The family were matriarchal with Musa being the head of the family. Her husband said about 10 words to us in total. The grandchildren were lovely and full of energy, questions and eagerness to associate with us. At times they were a little too eager. The night was spent caring for their four pet rabbits that lived under the floor of the lounge, trying to watch Malay tv and then “English lessons”. It was ended however with the children deciding that they wanted to make us look beautiful and putting make up on us. Lets say it might have started well, but before long both Kaori and I certainly looked interesting and our faces represented more like canvas’s to draw on than girls ready to go dance.

The morning was brief with the family. By the time we got up at 6:30am two of the children had left for school. Musa and her daughter Anna were starting the washing and had prepared noodles for us for breakfast. Come 7:30am we were walking down the long wooden path outside to the village centre to start the next leg of our trip.

Mt Kinabalu

Pictures to come
Mt Kinabula is the tallest mountain in Malaysia and was the first to become a world heritage site. While when planning my holiday earlier in the year this was not a place I thought about, on learning about it I became somewhat excited and a little nervous about the prospect of climbing it. I knew however it was not going to be any Mt Kilimanjaro which I had hoped to climb earlier this year and no Mt Kenya which my sister has just climbed.
The travel agent and the tour company left out a few details on the Mt climb. This included the lack of emphasis on the need for water protection for not just you, but your gear as well. That as silly as a poncho may look, they are actually way better than an expensive rain and wind jacket. It was also failed to mention that there would be the need to climb up/down very steep surfaces in darkness with only the aid of a rope and a head torch. Lastly, they neglected to mention the level of fitness required, stating that only moderate fitness was required. Now with all that said, it was truly a great hike filled with so much more than sore muscles, wet clothes and tiredness.


My two day climb started off at Mesilau Nature Resort where we had spent the night before. After an amazing smorgasbord breakfast (honestly one of the best I have seen) and passing our gear to our porters we were ready to start the 8km hike to the Lagoon Hut. Now little did not know at the time that our wonderful leader had decided for us to take the longer and harder route. Thus, we all started with eagerness and enthusiasm. We happily stopped and took in the views along the way, had our regular food and drink stops (which at times were excuses for us to catch our breaths). Have to say the drink stops were not always that great as we were taking dehydration mixes which tasted disgusting. The first part of the climb was a mix of steep stairs and uphill climbs, with equally steep descents (we were never happy with the declines as we felt cheated due to the effort it took to do the climb) and some undulating. Every 0.5mkm was marked along the way. All in the group felt these were inaccurate however as they are the longest 0.5km we have ever done. The rest spot were covered and every now at then there were toilets (which you did need to hold your breath for). All in all the walk was going well until during lunch. This is where the changed. No more did we want to stop and take picture and no longer were we dodging puddles to keep our boots lean and dry. Every step was based on what was going to get me to the hut the fastest and easiest.


Most of the group arrived at the lodge which sleeps about 150 people around 4:20pm. All we wanted to do was sleep, but before we could do this we needed to repack for tomorrow, eat from the restaurant and arrange for our clothes and esp. boots to get try. We also spent a lot of time stretching mostly in vein to try and keep the muscle pain form seeking in. By 8pm it was lights out in our cabin. Early even for a week night.


After a rough sleep it was all up at 1:30am to get dressed and eat the first of two breakfasts. It really does feel unnatural to be eating at that time of the morning. Just after 2:30am four of the six with our trusted two guides head off for the 2.6km hike up to the summit. The first 30mins were nice as we needed to stop a lot for other people and the path was relatively smooth. After this however it turned into walking along cliff surfaces and 80 degree inclines with nothing to aid you but a rope. Let me say I have never held onto a rope so much in my life. It was at this time I had my minor freak out which my guide Banker (pronounced Banka) was very aware of as I was followed directly every step her made. It was at this time, he decided that I was going to be for most of the walk up and then back down to the lodge a “1 Assist” and a “Full’s Risk”. He took my hand every step I took and calming told me where to place my feet. At first I wanted to reject it, but in reality I knew I needed it to get me up the Mt.

As time ticked on, I became calmed and my steps also became smaller. I was also too physically exhausted to really be thinking about walking. By 5:45am we were approaching the summit. At this time a sudden rush came over me and the last part of the steep climb became easier. We arrived just as the sun was coming up behind one of the ranges. It was a glorious array of reds, oranges and reds. There was also the clouds scattered amongst the ranges. Apart from many, many people being on summit at the same time it was a really great time.


Once all the photo’s were taken and the cold were starting to set in, it was a steady decline down in daylight. Again Banker guided me down, not always successfully as I still managed to full while holding onto him. The rock climbing up, became abseiling down which was less frightening due to feeling more in control and being able to see clearly were you were going.

Once back at the lodge it was time to congratulate each other and have our second breakfast of the day. After an hour our 6km hike down began. While it was physically a lot easier to go down, the constant downward motion was killer on the knees and my poor left foot big toe (which is still sore). I still am thankful for having a walking stick to help with the balance and taking some of the shock. At times I were wishing for uphill. Though when right at the end there were a step uphill and stairs I was changing my mind. Once at the end my energy was completely gone and every step was labored and I just had no energy to even eat the late lunch.

After it all while I am proud that I completed it, I am still amased by how easy the gudes and the porters make it. II really do not now know how the porters can climb it so fast with up to 30kg on their backs. It is truly amazing to watch. Some apparently climb to the lodge 2 to 3 times a day! The other amasing thing is that there is a yearly race up and down the mountain which is the length of a half marathon. This years one will be happening in about a months time. The fastest recorded time is 2hrs 30 something minutes. The fastest girl is just under 3hrs 30mins. I am proud to say that a NZ girl Anna Frost came second last year. How she did it I have no idea.

The Beggining

Disclaimer: Now for the few grammar and spelling specialist of mine whom may read this please note that you are reading this at your own peril. I will often being writing this blog at night after long days and in a hurry.  So this will mean that there will be errors and you will just have to put this aside while reading this.

After months of a countdown my time away has finally come! So for the next 7 weeks there will be no more gym, no more Palmy cafes in the weekend and most importantly no more work! Instead there will be adventure, rough sleeps, lots of airports, new friends and a hold load of fun!

My trip started Friday night after completing a busy day at work tidying things up. There was nothing special about my flight to Brunei. Once there (this was 7am) I arrived to find one of the smallest international airports I have ever been to and what was there was shut! Please be aware that I have 11hours before my next flight.  I was lucky enough to have this lovely 84 year old gentleman befriend me for a few hours.  It was really great just being able to hear about this stories and how he came to be transiting here too. In short it was a promise to his belated wife whom died two weeks earlier from a terminal illness.  Finally at 11am the free tour starts it however only last 1.5hrs and is a tour around Brunei.  Just quickly these are a few things that I learnt while on the tour.

• The Sultan is the ruler of the country and he is referred to as "His Majesty".  Other wise you need to say his full name which is made up of 28 names.
• His Majesty subsidises petrol so they pay about 53 cents a litre
• If you work for the govt you get a free home and just need to pay utilities
• Health care cost $1 and this includes services such as being treated in Singapore if the hospitals there can't treat you
• Alcohol and tobacco are unable to be brought in the country.  You are able to being in from the boarder up to 12 cans of beer and 1lt of wine.  This is not to be drunken in public.
• His Majesty is the 2nd richest person in the world due to oil
• You need to be a resident for 15 yrs before you can apply for citizenship
• There is no income tax or other forms of tax in the country.



Brunei Water Village



Anyway, so while the tour may not have been all that great it did allow me to meet so people whom I later spent the afternoon with.  We jumped on a local "bus" which took us the long way back into the city. Saw a great local market, had a boat ride with a local around the water village (this has over 30,000 people living there, their own schools, police stations, fire stations and hospitals) and visited His Majesties Mosque.  All in all it was a pleasant afternoon. I have to say though that from what I have seen the country confuses me esp since it is meant to be such a wealthy country.  Overall I have the feeling that there were parts that were like Ghana and Samoa and then other parts that were like Singapore.



The best part about the day though I have to say is being upgraded to First Class without even knowing it!!!! I have to say I could really get use to it.  Sadly however it was the shortest international flight I have ever known. I was pretty much only in the air for 20 mins!!!  I really do have to ask is there really any point to this flight?

My arrival in Kota Kinabalu, Brunei was straightforward. I was quickly taken to my hotel where I then had a quick turn around to join my very small tour group for dinner. In all there are only 6 of us plus our guide.  After dinner it was another walk around a night food market where I was taken with the variety of produce, smells and colour there.



My first real day in Brunei was started by me going for a 7am run. I have to say I was very proud of myself. It was however only a 30min one due to the heat and also not wanting to get lost. I also got many a look from the locals as there does not appear to be many people out running, esp a woman.  The later morning was taken up with preparation for the rest of the trip.  This mainly meant shopping. This is an adventure in itself.  The malls and huge and are not easy to navigate. The stores love playing music very loudly  and proudly.  From the number of cell phone stores in the complex, one can only say that the country has an obsession with cell phone and the accessories.  There were truly at least 5 to 10 cell phone style shops on each of the 5 floors!

My afternoon was taken up with travelling and preparation for the BIG CLIMB up Mt Kinabulu.  I will however make this another port.

I will for now though on my rating scale of airports that I visit on the trip.  This will be done on a 1- 10 scale where the higher the number the better.  The first will be Brunei.

• Bathroom cleanliness 3
• Functionality 3
• Facilities 3
• Decor 3
• Staff 6.5
• Food venues 5
• Duty Free 3

The Long Trip Home

The last pub

It started at an insanely hour of taking a bus to the airport at 3.30am (which I nearly did not get off at as was half asleep) from town after taking the Laus at 12pm from near Kate's. All this so I can take a 6:30am flight as public transport is not 24hrs and a taxi would be over 35 Euros. It did however allow me to go to a pub and have my final pint of Guinness and get a dance or two in. It felt strange though going into a crowded pub with a large pack on my back and dressed in travelling clothes. This however was not enough to stop guys coming up and talking to us both.

Stadel Museum Campin Throne Of Mercy (Painting)
My 2 hour flight to Frankfurt from what I can remember was fine. I successfully managed to sleep through both take off and landing. This consequently meant my cell phone was on for nearly the whole flight. Once at the airport it was surprisingly fast through security and passport control and before I knew it I was on a train into the city. Managed to get myself to the river where I consequently turned the wrong way and was confused for the next hour. Though with time on my hands and the views nice I didn't mind too much. Once back in the right track I was walking past the many,many museums and being a tourist and taking lots of pictures. Took my last chance at the Stadel Museum to be cultured and see outstandingly amassing paintings from seven centuries. Though being overly tired and on a semi time limit I have to admit I didn't fully appreciate it or take it all in to an extent I normally would.

From here it was a continual wonder down the street where the place started to really come busy. Before this, I wondered where the six hundred thousand people of the city all were as I only was seeing scatters of people out running on cycling along the river. Everyone was out looking for a bargain at a street market which sold everything from second hand goods to new t.v's and pushchairs. Once back over the other side of the river again, the crowds continued at the fair and I went to see an amassing church (actually a cathedral) that had been taking up the view in the distance for miles. Right next door was Roma which is an area and also ruins. Afterwards it was a walk through central Frankfurt to try and get back to the train station. After 40 minutes I admitted defeat and got some help. This lead me to an underground station where I had to fail to pay to get on as didn't know of the station I needed to get to just how many stops it was. Then it was a confusing time of climbing up and down stairs trying to find the right platform and then metro to the airport. Thankfully it all worked out in the end and I easily got back in time to get on my plane to Hong Kong.

This plane ride sucked. The five day airline strike finished 15 minutes after departure. This meant we only got one meal on the plane. It was not vegan let alone vegetarian. The two salads were still frozen which included the piece of chicken. Needless to say I came off the 10 hour flight very hungry.

Once in Hong Kong my plans of going to explore the city disappeared as I was too tired to go through the hassles of all the extra security checks involved. It was weird being caught up in all the Olympics hype (there was promo stuff everywhere) and also police walking around with their fingers on the triggers of large AK riffles and having smaller guns on their belts. My eight hours there was spent either wondering the large terminals, reading, eating, dozing and yeah and trying to sort of the business of my wallet being stolen out of my bag with licence, credit card and lots of Euros inside. This turned out to be complicated getting sent from one place to another and in the end because my flight was departing they (lost and found people) over the phone from the Air New Zealand Lounge assured me they would email me the report. It however has yet to arrive.

I then had my 11 hour flight back to Auckland. Thankfully the service was good, the food was nice and the NZ wine was fantastic. I however was unable to sleep at all and managed to watch 6 episodes from last sessions Outrages Fortune among other things. Once in Auckland, unlike last time returning back into the country customs and bio security was a smooth and easy process. I then had a two hour stop over before flying back in a tiny bumpy plane back to Palmy and reality again.