Auckland, New Zealand - 22-23 Januarry 2019

Up early this morning -- breakfast with Colette and Marc as we say our goodbyes.  Just heard that the TSA in the US is calling in sick leaving airports with long security lines.   We are staying at the Pullman Auckland -- flying out early tomorrow morning.  Colette and Marc are staying in another hotel until Saturday.  

Azamara conducts an efficient disembarkation -- we take a taxi to the hotel where the room is not ready so we drop our luggage and take a walk.   I had forgotten how hilly parts of Auckland are particularly near the Pullman sitting on top of one of these hills.  We have a lovely walk around Auckland -- through the University of Auckland campus  -- back to the hotel about 11:00 am -- room is ready.

After getting settled, we walk towards the waterfront for lunch and see The Crab Shack, which we enjoyed in Wellington so in we go.   Nice lunch and view of the harbor.  Auckland must have really changed since 2012 -- none of this looks the same to me.     

Phil checking e-mails at The Crab Shack.

We spend the afternoon repacking our luggage as we plan to ship a box home from Miami.    For some reason -- we have way too much stuff on this trip -- which is not like us.

Phil inquires of the Concierge about a local neighborhood place to have dinner and he gives us three options close together.   We decide on Pilkington -- food is delicious.  Phil has snapper and I have chicken.

We are in bed early since tomorrow we have an 8:40 am flight to Sydney -- then to Dallas -- then to Jacksonville.    So we will recapture the 19 hours we lost crossing the international date line going to Australia.

 

23 January 2019 - Wednesday

Enroute to Jacksonville, FL

We are up at 4:30 am -- I now set two alarms and put in a wake up call ever since we missed our flight to China in 2014.

There is a taxi downstairs when we arrive in the lobby with our luggage -- and off we go to the airport taking less than 30 minutes.   The fare is $92 NZ -- even with the exchange rate that is high.   But -- we're here safe and sound with plenty of time. 

Check-in is smooth -- and we head for the Qantas Business Class Lounge with delicious coffee.  The gate for our Sydney flight is an 18-minute walk from the lounge  -- then we hear there will be a delay of about 30 minutes.

I notice an unusual duo in the waiting area.  The man is dressed in conservative black and gray with a black carry-on and briefcase. He appears to be about 60ish with dark gray curly hair.  The woman is clad in rhinestone wedge flip flops, short pink gym shorts with white trim, a tank top that does not cover her bra and she is carrying two Louis Vuitton bags -- a tote and a duffle.   Her long hair is tied in a ponytail on top of her head and she is not attractive --- mid to late 30's.   She also has a terrible cough.    These two just don't seem to go together --- I'm mesmerized.   I watch as she stretches herself across several seats using her duffle as a pillow.  They are not having any conversation,  yet it is obvious they are traveling together.

As we board the plane -- they are in the bulkhead seat and we are one behind on the other side of the aisle.   Before we take off while the woman is in the bathroom, the flight attendant says to the man: "When your wife comes back, tell her I'll need to put her bag in the overhead."  Do they have the same last name on their tickets? Or did the flight attendant make an assumption?  Could he be her father? 

Sydney Harbor from the Air.

During this uneventful flight to Sydney -- I keep watching this duo.  She pulls a role of toilet paper out of her tote periodically to blow her nose. .   During the flight: -- she has champagne and reads a magazine --- he has a coke (maybe with rum?) and reads a book -- both have their TV screens active.    I notice she has changed her flip-flops to white slippers that say "Sky City Grand Hotel".   They both take landing cards for Sydney which means Sydney is their destination.   Since we are in transit -- we do not need landing cards for Australia.

I watch a movie, "The House With a Clock in Its Walls" with Jack Black -- it is cute and keeps me occupied when I'm not watching my obsession. In preparation for landing, I notice she is using her phone in selfie-mode to reapply her make-up.    Actually it's a good idea. 

We arrive in Sydney at 10:12 am (Sydney is 2 hours behind Auckland).  Our flight to Dallas is at 2:40 pm.   So we find the Qantas Business Class Lounge and as we check in we are told that the flight is delayed until 5:00 pm.   I cannot believe it -- this means that we will miss our connection to Jacksonville and probably won't be able to have dinner with Patte and Dave.

So after going to the American Express Lounge to see if they can rebook us to get out quicker -- they cannot -- we settle into the Qantas Lounge for the day.  We e-mail Patte and Dave telling them of the delay and that we will call from Dallas when we know more. 

This is not exactly a bad place to be stuck -- there is food, drinks, Wi-Fi, several TV's, and charging stations.    The people watching is second to none -- and as I'm doing just that I see my duo at the other end of the lounge.   He is watching his computer screen -- she has put two soft seating chairs together and is taking a nap with a glass of red wine close by.  So -- they are in transit.   

It is amazing how the time just goes by --- I take a couple of walks through the "duty free" shopping area -- work on this blog -- have lunch and a snack and before you know it -- the time has come to board our flight to Dallas.

I notice my duo leaving the lounge - bag and baggage - after I hear an announcement for a British Air Flight.  I guess I'll never know the rest of their story.   

As we leave the Qantas lounge, for another long trek to the gate, we are told our flight arrangements to Jacksonville will be available in Dallas. At the gate -- lo and behold -- who do I see waiting for the Dallas flight but my duo.   When we board the plane -- they are in the middle two sleeper seats about three rows behind us -- we are in two seats by the window.   This plane is huge -- we are on the second level of an Airbus A380-800

The flight is 15 hours, 20 minutes -- we leave the gate at 5:06 pm Sydney time.    There are a number of passengers with missed connections.  One of the stewards visits each person to review the connection -- then lets us know he will have the information on our new flights before we arrive in Dallas.

Phil and I get comfortable in our sleeper seats with a padded coverlet over the seat and another as a blanket.   We are given drinks, food, pajamas (we take them but don't wear them), and a kit for freshening up.  The seats recline to a bed and we can watch movies, TV shows, documentaries and other programs on our individual screens.

The flight is not bad --- I sleep a little bit -- probably more than I realize.  Phil sleeps a lot.   All of a sudden -- the lights are coming on in the cabin and breakfast is being served.    Our steward, true to his word, gives us a slip of paper with our new flight information and tells us how to go about getting the boarding passes.  We arrive in Dallas where we must go through US Immigration and Customs.  This entails picking up our baggage and then rechecking it.

As we walk off the plane into the terminal -- along the windows there are signs, each with a different destination city.  Under each city are envelopes with passenger names and inside are the boarding passes.   This is so efficient -- I have to hand it to American who is the Qantas partner.   I am impressed.

So we move along -- go through immigration, retrieve our luggage, go through customs and finally recheck our bags.   All the while I'm thinking it will be a miracle if we see this luggage in Jacksonville.

Well -- the last I see of my duo is when he waits for her as she is in line to recheck a very large pink hard-cased suitcase.     I have no idea where they are going.  Phil thinks that he is a director or agent or some type of entertainment manager and she is the client.   Maybe she is a porn star --- wouldn't surprise me given the way she is dressed. 

Our flight to Jacksonville is at 8:36 pm getting in about midnight.   We are at the Hampton Inn at the airport.   Patte and Dave are kind enough to leave our travel information for the next cruise at the hotel since it was sent to them at our request.

We fall into bed setting several alarms since we have a flight to Miami in the morning.

It is always good to get home to the United States.

Thanks for Reading.

Pat