The day has finally arrived … we have been counting down weeks since we got home from Melbourne and the last few weeks in sleeps, so a lot of excitement this morning. It was a relatively early start to get everything done. I had a quick swim and spa and Mark had a spa (apparently the pool was too cold) and I spent the rest of the morning getting the house ready for Jess, who is staying at the house for us while we are away. Definitely an added thing to think about but 7 weeks felt too long with no one there.
Our rides arrived (thank you!) on time and after a few last minute instructions and watching the penalty shoot out in the football we were off.
Arrived at ChCh airport in plenty of time and checked in with the usual hassle around the hyphen in my name. Security was really quiet and it was straight to Koru. Greer stocked up on apple juice and Mark took TJ and Sophia out to play chess, which TJ/Mark very narrowly won.
Our flight was on time and it was smooth running to Auckland. A quick transfer to the international terminal, through security (again very quiet) and back to International Koru for a few more hours.
We eventually boarded the plane and got settled in for our flight. I fell asleep pretty quickly and decided against the dinner – the boys had the braised beef and the girls Mexican chicken all came with ice-cream
Sophia and I watched Mrs Harris goes to Paris together, although she fell asleep during parts of it. Overall a pretty easy flight. Fortunately we were towards the front of the economy section of the plane and made a quick exit and walk to immigration so our wait was pretty short. The queue was long with only 2 officers on so those who took longer to get there would have had a long wait. Our bags were also off quickly and for once there were no issues at the rental car.
Before long, we were heading out of town in our huge Ford Expedition – plenty of room for extra shopping. Soon, the skies opened and there was a huge thunder and lightening storm which made driving pretty difficult for Mark. It didn’t last too long and we soon arrived at our first stop, Buc-ees – a Texan chain of gas stations and service areas. Time for a quick bathroom stop at “America’s cleanest bathrooms” and check out the store – it was massive, lots of trashy souvenirs and lots of big food and drink.
After a quick bite it was back on the road, more thunderstorms, another quick bathroom stop at another Buc-ees before arriving in Dallas, our first stop.
We went straight to the house we have rented – very central, 3 bedrooms and lots of space.
It has been a long day, time for Mark to sort everyone’s devices and bed.