A Few Weeks Away

I booked flights for a much-needed visit to travel from our home in the South Island to my daughter’s home in the North Island. This was done a few weeks in advance of my travel but it didn’t turn out to be as straightforward as I expected when I made the bookings. Instead, I was caught up in the current cyber crisis affecting different types of transportation now that has cancelled or delayed hundreds of thousands of flights to various destinations around the world. Unbeknownst to me, I also scheduled my departure on the last day of the region’s school break, so the airport was packed to the brim and all flights were filled. And per usual I was still packing the night before despite wanting to get that all done earlier in the week.
So, there we were rushing to get there in time to check in, not knowing that the flight was delayed by very thick fog, which we thought would be burned off by the time of the departure. John helped me check in and then left to do some grocery shopping before driving home. Eventually we boarded, took off and were in the air for a good half an hour when the captain came on the intercom to tell us that we were 50 kilometers from Christchurch and we were turning back to the airport we’d just departed from because of some engineering issues. A stewardess chimed in a minute later and said that we shouldn’t worry since it wasn’t anything to do with the mechanics of the plane. It seemed to be about the air conditioning that some passengers complained was too warm for a couple of minutes. Then we were told that we had to pick up our checked bags and make our way to the airline counter to try (key word) to rebook an alternate flight or flights after hearing that there were no other flights to the city of our original destination that is an hour’s drive or so from my children’s house. When I arrived back to the airport lounge there was even more bedlam there than when I left as passengers were rushing hither and thither to figure out where to fly to that could eventually link back to that first city. But I had an ace up my sleeve and that was that there is another city, also about an hour’s drive from the airport and their home. And for some unknown reason, there was a plane with room on it for me on that plane that was departing within a couple of hours. In between making that booking I had to stay calm and composed even though I might have had to speak to John in time before he went all the way home, in case he had to get me, and I had to contact my daughter to tell her mate who was driving to destination number one that he needed to wait and see how I would get up there. I even texted my son and called him too asking if he could drive me from Wellington which is several hours from their house but eventually found out he was working until 6 and couldn’t do that until that night. Eventually, it was sorted and I didn’t have to make two flights to get to the general area and by the time I arrived at the second destination, Napier, it was about 6 hours later than the time I would have arrived in the first city, Palmerston North. Since I’d been up since about 6 a.m. it was a BIG day that was relatively stressful and disappointing but I actually handled it well considering I could barely lift all the crud I'd put into the checked bag although several strapping males helped me in various parts of the journey.
But to put it in a nutshell, I am so happy to be here, and today is a sunny day and I am basking in it. I managed to get here in time for my grandson’s birthday and my son-in-law’s, which is also on the same day. And I am very grateful that I was able to keep my cool and think outside the box but meanwhile poor John is taking care of our oldest cat, Shaq, who is doing very poorly at present and I am trying to talk him through giving him pills and a syringe of pain meds and hoping for the best. But I’ve put off visiting them several times in these last few months and I was determined to be here for these birthdays. So even though I was the last person in the very long line at the counter, I got what I wanted on the same day that I wanted it and that was quite an accomplishment considering the odds. But of course, there are no guarantees, especially in today’s current global climate, so well done me.
Now my days have been filled with endless laughter and a few tears while I kick back and enjoy the stark beauty of the late winter landscape of this gorgeous estate. We are going to do some transplanting of seedlings that my daughter has grown from organic seeds into the newly dug planters outside that are covered with insect proof nets. There are 180 small seedlings to put in the ground to be mixed in with the other 70 meters of plants she’s already planted. We’ve got our work cut out for us and it’s a real pleasure to finally be up here to assist with this. She had a terrible accident with some boiling pasta water that covered a large part of her forearm in a 3rd degree burn and she definitely can use the help now that it’s finally beginning to heal. And I keep thinking that many passengers were unable to complete their trips and had to wait days to actually book to get to Palmerston North whereas I pulled a rabbit out of my hat on that very same day. Lucky me.
So, I hope you enjoy the mixed assortment of some of my first photos here in their very glorious piece of paradise. I’m just lapping it up.