Off to Oz…

Off to Oz. Bumpy over the Tasman, but are now on the 34th floor of an apartment tower block. We can see for miles and miles and miles… Can’t connect to the internet. This could be a problem…

I decide to sleep on it.

Off to Cambridge

Saw Beau at his new sheltered accommodation down in Cambridge. He thinks it better than the place he was living at in Hamilton. Nice lunch, with Helen and Jane weeding his front garden 🙂

Helen has her first Teppan-Yaki and is no longer a chopstick virgin.

Helens Birthday

Helen doesn’t know we’re here, so we arrange to be in a side room of the restaurant (Vinnies, St ???) with the cards (including one we brought over from Michy) and present. We hear voices as they settle down in the next room. We walk in and join them at the table. Helen looks up, blinks and says “what are you doing here!”. We then have lovely meal, photos are taken and we all have a great time.

First day in Auckland

Janey picked us up and proceeds to spend most of the trip saying to Megan “you’re staying at Sky City, right?”. I think this is a ruse to put me off the scent, but it turns out Jane doesn’t know the hotel is supposed to be a surprise. Is the surprise ruined? After dropping off at Janes place, and meeting Dusty again (with attendant lots of ear tickling), we wander off to the local mall in search of money, birthday wrapping paper and other stuff. We get a takeaway box of sushi and sashimi (which I’m dubious about, as we’re off to a meal later on) and saunter back to Janeys. Dusty likes his portion of salmon, and I must have been more hungry than I thought, ‘cos mine goes down really quickly too. Janey drops us off at the hotel – it is a surprise, a big surprise. It’s called the Rendezvous and has a really cool reception area. Again reception high jinks sets in, their system is not issuing electronic cards at the moment, and the lass on front desk is convinced Megan has ordered two rooms (deja vu of Hong Kong). Presently, the mixup is de-mixed and we’re off upstairs in tow of the porter with his clothes truck.

The room is … big. Very big. This explains the confusion downstairs, as we actually have a suite. Three tellys (one in the bathroom), Jacuzzi bath, balcony, dining area, massive bed and walk-in dressing room. This is very big indeed and Megan has completely topped herself in this area! Yours truly strips off and decides to run the bath. Various large amounts of water are splish-splashed about as it becomes clear that I don’t know how to switch between the shower and bath. Once the bubbles were activated (hint: it helps to turn the bath on), I luxuriate in watching the telly whilst having a bath.

Arrived in Auckland

Get into Auckland. Very tired – I didn’t get any sleep, but watched 5 movies (Black Sheep – Genetically Engineered sheep go on the rampage – funny (although Megan was groaning at some of the Kiwi-isms in it), Hancock – better than I thought it would be, Shaolin Girl – Girl teaches Shaolin kung fu through the unlikely vehicle of lacrosse!, cool though, ‘something’ Bill – ok, but the relationship with the ‘boy’ and the man (Bill) was a bit stretched, Casino Royale – pretty cool). Because I didn’t fill in Megans entry card properly, she gets pulled aside for a more thorough inspection – ah, gotta make it up to her somehow.

Arrived in Hong Kong

Arrived in Hong Kong, getting through immigration/customs was not a chore, and the train to the city was quick, clean and efficient. There was a glitch at the hotel, as someone had transcribed my name as MacDonald and they had me down for two rooms. A Mr McDonald only asking for one room was a little confusing. A lass on the frontdesk called ‘Twinkle’ (really!) was very helpful, and although only a trainee, managed to get things sorted out. The room is small, but everything is there. The views from the room are spectacular.