8/3/15

Dear Diary,

Today is the final day for the New Zealand part of the journey and the final day with the family as Mum and Stepdad continue their travels further up the North Island. I’ve had a great time exploring New Zealand’s South island, a little bit of their North island and now I’m off to explore what they call the West island ... or Australia as the rest of the world calls it!

But first there's lots of time for awkward goodbyes before my afternoon flight and in an effort to delay misty eyed embraces we all head down into Auckland’s harbour district in an attempt to enjoy a morning harbour cruise but we are thwarted by a ‘Fun Run’ that blocks our entrance to the area. It is a little frustrating but Murray's rapid rise from calm demeanor into ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ levels of rage set me off into a giggle fit (which, for some reason, doesn't seem to help).I’m not sure if my inappropriate mirth was a deciding factor in getting dropped off at the airport several hours earlier than planned but thats how the day went. Thankfully there was a TV showing New Zealand hammering Afghanistan in the terminal and by the time I had to board the plane Afghanistan had produces a solid comeback.

Awkward goodbyes, misty eyes and firm handshakes at the airport don't last long as you only get 15 minutes free parking but its long enough to crack some voices mid sentence. It will be over a year until the next time I get to see my mum IF she decides to visit Scotland next summer. Living on opposite sides of the world does have its advantages from time to time but I envy people who can just pop down the road for a chat with their Mother on a whim costing no more than a bus fare. It’s a little more pricey to get from Scotland to Australia than it is Tollcross to Stockbridge and the journeys take much longer and are few and far between.

It’s awful to say goodbye and It’s an awful flight as I am stuck with, not one, but two screaming babies behind me. What follows is four hours of hell. The flight is full so there's no chance of moving anywhere else. I am trapped in hell. I have some pretty decent headphones that block out a fair bit of noise but not even the upbeat, high pitched pop warblings of Kylie's latest album can drown out this misery.

I land in Melbourne with a headache which isn't helped when the Skybus drops us off in central Melbourne and then informs us that the courtesy shuttle that delivers people to their accommodation door has ceased running for the night. I’m developing my own ‘Larry David’ head of steam at this point and refuse to work out the tram system when I am dragging my full three items of luggage with me so I have to grudgingly shell out for a taxi.

Thankfully the fare isn’t too much to get to my Melbourne mates, Myles, place. Hes not in when I arrive but, in a nice bit of forward thinking, he gave me a spare key before I went to New Zealand, which was actually a stroke of genius cooked up by two organizing incompetent blokes like us. Opening the door I am greeted by two rabbits ‘Ivy’ and ‘Harley’ (can't tell which one is which) and a note telling me to make myself at home and he will bring in take away when he comes in from work.

There's cricket on free to air TV, Australia v Sri Lanka, so I break into the duty free, settle in on the couch kick back letting the stress and bad feelings of the day slide away until Myles and his lovely wife Anita come in with food and laughter and we all exchange stories while the cricket plays in the background.
It’s not quite the same as being spoiled by my mum but it is a very pleasant way to end what was one of the worst travel days of the trip so far.



"Look for the ridiculous in everything and you will find it." Jules Renard - (1864 - 1910)