To Kiwi Land

The whole experience of an international flight began with a snag.  It’s something I’ve read about extensively, but I wasn’t aware that New Zealand had the policy.  Like everyone else, I waited in line until it was my turn to check my luggage and receive my boarding pass.  What am I talking about?  Since I’m buying one way tickets as I go, no onward ticket had been purchased to prove that I’m leaving New Zealand.  It was either, not board the plane, or buy a ticket to Australia on the spot.  I ran to a chair, whipped out the laptop, and bought the quickest ticket ever.  Without a doubt, there were cheaper prices to be had, but I was in a hurry.  Thinking about it now, no one at Auckland International asked to see an onward ticket, so I’m resting the blame on the San Francisco side.  I’m bummed that I had to choose a date to leave, but after three weeks, airline tickets start to rise in price anyways.

I’m devoting a paragraph to Air New Zealand.  This carrier puts everyone else to shame, and although I haven’t flown much, it seemed to be the consensus from everyone around me.  Boarding the plane you find a pillow and blanket on every seat.  Everyone had their own personal monitor built into the headrest, with a huge selection of new movies, music, TV shows and games.  The preflight information was done via the personal monitors, and consisted of the characters from the Lord of the Rings.  There were some laughs on the plane.  The food was quite elaborate for airline food.  For dinner, the chicken was marinated in tomatoes and mushrooms, along with a side of seasoned potatoes.  A whipped cake with a glaze was for dessert, and yeah, it was good.  The flight attendants also served wine, so I had a glass.  Breakfast consisted of some potatoes, a cheese omelet, yogurt, and orange juice.  I also chatted with a woman who was going to travel with friends in New Zealand for a month.  We had the same brand backpack, so it was easy to start a conversation.  We talked travel and about the gear we brought for the month.  That made the 13 hour flight more enjoyable and pleasant.    

Lord of the Rings

A plane in the terminal

From the lower level

A free shower in the airport

The process of passing through checkpoints in New Zealand was fast and efficient.  The 10 minute walk from the gate was littered with Lord of the Rings props.  I’m not familiar with the movies, so I’m not sure how they pertain to the trilogy.  My Couchsurfing friend from San Francisco told me free showers are available at the Auckland airport, so I took advantage.  Now I’m awaiting my pickup from an Auckland host.  I hope to Couchsurf at least once in every country and it helps extend my travels a bit.

Next up are pictures of the harbor and the black sand beaches.