So excited!!!! I'm going on my next overseas adventure-it's only a long weekend away but it requires a plane journey and a passport and I can't wait!!!!
And I'm excited because I'm heading to Auckland for a late birthday present from Bryce woohoo....2015 was a milestone birthday 50...half a century....so my son decided to give me a trip away and we decided on New Zealand, the country I grew up in and left behind 30 years ago, so it is going to be a grand adventure for me.
The last time I was in Auckland (apart from the international airport in 1985 when I left New Zealand for the big OE and then again in 2003 while I was in transit for a flight to the USA) was in 1977 when I was 12 so I expect it's going to be a little different (okay a lot) and I will be interested to see it through the eyes of an adult instead of a child.
I remember walking down Queen Street with my sister on Saturday mornings (my parents ran a coffee shop called the Mach 1 up near K Road) and on Saturdays, Wanda and I would go to the Civic, Regent or Odeon theatres and watch movies. We'd have $1 for the day and would buy tickets in the circle and still have money left over for an ice-cream and another treat. I think a movie at the Civic might be a great idea while I am in town (although I believe the Civic is now a theatre and the Event Cinemas are attached to it- but the sentiment will still be there), but I somehow don't think I am going to get a lot of change from $40 if I want an ice-cream and another treat.
I also remember doing Sunday afternoon rides to Mission Bay and having Devonshire teas in a coffee shop on the beach and it seemed to take such a long time to get there but when I Google mapped it earlier I realized that it only takes about 15 mins by car from the CBD. I guess I will have to find out if there is a cafe in Mission Bay that does Devonshire teas and do some reminscing :) I am so looking forward to the comparisons, and I am sure that I feel the same excitement that I did when I was a kid.
The only problem I have with going away is that it is another night flight (23.35), which is okay for Bryce because he is at work on Saturday, and as soon as he gets home he'll be showering and changing and it will be time to leave for the airport, whereas I have to check my passport, paperwork (again), try and not be excited while doing mundane things when all I want to do is get out to the airport and get on the plane (but somehow I will manage).
(As you can see from the photo below Bryce was a little tired after a 4am wake up and spent the time in the departure lounge sleeping.)
I managed to get through the day without any major problems, and headed towards the airport. I made the decision ahead of time to book online for parking in the long term carpark (saving $21 on parking). My only issue is having to put times down for entering and leaving the car park, I gave us an extra hour and a half on the leaving end...after the flight comes in hoping that there won't be an issue as we come through customs....it shouldn't be as we only have carry on luggage.
The departure lounge seems different from the last time I was there, or maybe I just wasn't paying attention-but it was nice to lay back on
a bean bag and just chill, watch James Bond and listen to the names of late passengers being called over the speakers. We caught up very briefly with my brother who was working on the MEL-CHC flight, and I have to wonder what it would be like to be in and out of airports for a living, and if you get that buzz of excitement at an airport because you are doing it all the time.
I have to say I am also feeling a little anxious as sadly I haven't been on a plane since Samara and my epic journey home (and in those last few hours I had my first ever feeling of anxiety on a plane journey) and I have concerns that I will feel that anxiety again because the plane is not a large one (Jetstar A320 three/three configuration). Let's hope controlled breathing, suduko puzzles and reading my kindle keep me from wanting to jump off the plane :)
3.5 hours until I land in Auckland and I'm getting just a little excited and hopeful that there will still be traces of the Auckland I remember.