Down Under Day Two

As my readers likely gleaned from the way the Day One travelogue ended, my medicinal strategy to Jedi Mind Trick my physiology for minimal jet lag more or less worked. I was able to sleep for a significant portion of the 13 hour oversea(s) flight from San Francisco to Auckland NZ, via a combination of a strategically timed dosing of melatonin and hydroxyzine (an antihistamine with both anti-anxiety and sedating properties), ample leg room (due to a pre-paid seat upgrade), comfortable footwear and clothing (including a fleece balaclava that allowed me to regulate the temperature of my head), and good earplugs (to block out all but the most obnoxious ambient noises). I now believe I have international travel comfort locked in about as well as it can be. I would say I achieved at least five hours of good sleep on the flight, which is acceptable.

Our plane landed in Auckland NZ at about 9 AM local time. The customs and immigration process went fairly smoothly. My Australian passport is recognized by New Zealand, without the need for a visa. Deborah had a valid visa for her American passport. We were a bit unsure if some of the food we brought with us was prohibited in NZ, but we declared what we had and were transparent about it. I was most worried about the packages of raw nuts (shelled pecans and walnuts). A trained contraband sniffing dog honed in on my bag of food, but we think the dog was simply attracted to the peanut butter of our PB&J sandwiches, because the customs officer waved us on after determining we had nothing forbidden with us. We exited customs and entered Auckland NZ proper.

A pre-arranged limo driver named Gary met us near the airport exit, holding up a tablet with our names on it. He was good natured and told us quite a bit about NZ's sociopolitical climate (in summary, it's miles ahead of the US on many quality of life metrics) on our roughly 30 minute drive from the airport to the Sudima Hotel in downtown Auckland. When we arrived at the hotel, our room wasn't ready yet, because we got in so early. However, one of the reception staffers offered us a complimentary upgrade to a nicer room that was ready, and we headed there.

Now, if this room was an upgrade, I cannot imagine what the original room was like. The room we got was tiny and austere. Basically a bed in the center of the main room and a bathroom off of that. There was a microscopic mini fridge, capable of containing almost nothing, and a small shelf with coffee/tea making amenities. There was a TV too, but we didn't have much interest in watching it. The room served our purposes, a safe space to sleep and bathe, although a microwave might have been nice. We deposited our bags and settled in a bit. Deborah took a shower, after which we took a short walk over to an eatery called the Sunflower Vegan Cafe. It was good plant-based eating. They did not skimp on the portion sizes. It was a bit heavy on oil, but it was tasty and filled us up.

Upon returning to the hotel, we succumbed to intense power naps for a couple hours, catching up on the sleep deficit acquired on the long journey to get here. It was hard to shake myself awake from the nap, but I eventually did.

We had dinner at the vegan friendly hotel restaurant, called EAST, which I cannot help but point out is an anagram for EATS. It was Asian themed. There was no skimping on portion sizes here either. I got a pho noodle bowl. I can't recall what Deborah got, but I will replace this sentence with that information if/when I do.

After dinner, we decompressed in the hotel room for a spell, and then went to bed, fairly satisfied with the day.

Fin.

Boycott SMSM

Hi Readers!

I hope this post finds you and brings you joy. Of course, if you failed to commit to a complete social and mainstream media (SMSM) fast after the New Year, then you are now experiencing the opposite of joy, and I am very sorry. Because the Diabolical Forces in the Universe (DFUs) can now freely enter your life and poison you, mentally, physically, and spiritually.

Fin.

Down Under Day One

It's Day 1 of the Big Adventure Down Under (BADU). On Day 0, which was yesterday, we mostly completed our pre-trip checklist, with the exception of a few last minute checklist items that could only be done early this morning - turning the thermostat and hot water heater to "vacation" mode, turning off the ice machine in the freezer, and making sure the refrigerator doors were all fully closed.

I woke up early enough to squeeze in a quick 30-minute Peloton workout and a shower, after which I packed some bagels and the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I prepped yesterday into my carry on bag. At some point, Deborah got up, showered, and did her last bit of packing. We had already deposited our dogs, Ziggy and Nyah, at the canine boarding house, Ruffin It, yesterday evening. So, the house was fairly quiet, all things considered.

We finished the last minute prep with a few minutes to spare before my buddy Stefan arrived in his blue Tesla to take us the the Madison airport (MSN). The 25-minute drive went without incident and we arrived at the United Airlines departures entrance of the airport about 7:30 AM. There was basically no line at the United ticketing counter, where we showed our passports, checked our suitcases, and got our trifecta of boarding passes (MSN to Chicago Ohare, Chicago to San Francisco, and San Francisco to Auckland, New Zealand). As a dual citizen of the US and Australia (with valid passports for both), I don't need visas to enter New Zealand or Australia, although Deborah does (for both).

There was, likewise, no line at TSA (PreCheck) Security and we breezed through that as well, arriving at our departure gate - by way of stops to get coffee and fill our water bottles - at about 7:45 AM, a solid three hours before our plane was slated to depart for Chicago. They say that you should arrive at the airport at least two hours ahead of departure for international flights, and this might be true if you are starting your trip at a major airport. But when you enter the air transportation system via a small regional airport, with minimal obstructions to passage and physical, mental, and spiritual well-being, I think an hour ahead is more than ample.

Sidebar: When I visit my sister in Colorado Springs CO, I sometimes fly non-stop into the Denver airport, which is a perfectly fine (and cost effective) arrival destination. But returning home out of Denver is an exercise in exhaustion and confusion. So, coming back, I try to fly out of the Colorado Springs airport, which is even smaller than Madison's airport. It's so much easier to enter the system there (despite the higher ticket price), even if you have to change planes in Denver, because by then you are already safely in the air transportation system. It's getting to the Denver airport and through it's labyrinthine TSA Security checkpoint (even with TSA PreCheck) that is nightmarish...and if I am traveling with my elderly parents, forget about it!

Deborah and I bided our time waiting to board by reading books on our phones and - in my specific case - writing travelogue entries like this one, respectively.

Unbelievably, both our flight from MSN to Chicago AND our flight from Chicago to San Francisco were on schedule. I have to say, United Airlines have proven themselves a reliable air carrier on most of the occasions I have used them (unlike a certain other American airline that shall go unnamed). At Chicago, we busted out the lunch of PB&J sammies I had prepared prior to our journey for just this occasion. Deborah also felt the need to purchase an overpriced snack pack of pretzels and hummus, along with a Diet Coke, and I joined the fray by throwing a small bag of Unreal coconut and dark chocolate candy bars into the mix. We refilled our water bottles and emptied our bladders in preparation for the longer Chicago to San Francisco flight, which departed on time and was remarkable smooth. The Captain of the plane turned of the seatbelt sign just about as soon as we reached our cruising altitude of 34,000 feet, and didn't turn it an again until we started descending into the San Francisco air space.

I tried to sleep on the SF flight, but to no avail. My brain was fully awake, having been informed - accurately - by my biological clock that it was still the middle of the afternoon in Madison WI. I remained hopeful that I would get a few hours of decent sleep on the 13 hour overnight international flight from SF to Auckland NZ, since my biological clock will, by that time, make it feel to my brain like it is 3 AM by the time that plane is up in the air and all the in flight meal service rigamarole is over (I'm estimating a maximum of two hours for all that). I'm aiming to try to sleep for a solid eight hours of that flight, although my brain and biological clock will no doubt conspire to awaken me around 6 or 7 AM Wisconsin time (1 or 2 AM Auckland time). However, I will be well armed for battle with my physiological inner workings...to wit, a hefty dose of over-the-counter melatonin and a precribed dose of prescription hydroxyzine (an anti-anxiety medication prescribed by my doctor, which also has soporific effects on the brain). I shall imbibe said medicinal arsenal about two hours into the flight, which - by my calculations - should equate to about 10 PM Auckland time. Fingers crossed.

If there is any continuation of this travelogue post beyond this paragraph, it means my physiology won the battle...