Sunday, December 30, 2012

Bags are in Auckland!

YEAH!  YIPPEE!  Our luggage is in Auckland, certainly on target to be delivered to LuggageFree's agent in Auckland by Jan 3rd.  LuggageFree assured us their agent there would hold it until Jan 9th and deliver it to the ship.


That's it on the luggage tracking!  

We're now 4 days away from departure and have our "take with" bags all packed.  The newspapers' stop and restart have been scheduled.  Our bank and credit card company have been notified of our trip so we won't have trouble using ATM or credit card during our trip.  The refrigerators are almost completely empty of any food that would spoil should there be an extended power outage.  We have one more meal for here then will eat out.
rf

Friday, December 28, 2012

Luggage in the Land of Grass Skirts!

WHEW! It's fun to follow our luggage as it makes its way to Auckland!  It is now in Honolulu!  And, most importantly, it is still on target to be in Auckland before we are!

Had we thought about Hawaii as a possible connecting point, we may have asked Regent to route us through there.  We would stay-over a couple of days and visit my sister!
rf

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Luggage is now in Memphis

Luggage Free shipped our bags through Fedex and supplied us with a tracking number!  Just checked the status and found they are currently in Memphis, Tennessee, that is!  They are scheduled to arrive in Auckland before we leave here!  This is goodness!
rf

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Bags are on their way!

Bags are packed, (they've been packed for a week!) and waiting to be picked up!
WHEEE!  The bags are on their way to Auckland!  American Expediting, representing LuggageFree picked them up right on schedule around 9:30! 
Luggage Free will be sending us a tracking number a little later today then, we'll be able to follow them as they wing-it to Auckland!!
rf

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Now less than 11 days!

We're now down to less than 11 days before we leave home on Jan 3rd!  Our big bags are packed and ready for pick-up the day after Christmas!  We're shipping them from home to the ship using a company named LuggageFree, NO, it is not free (oh but I wish!) but it keeps us free of luggage handling in the airports!
rf

Sunday, November 18, 2012

But Who's Counting?


As I write this, we are 6 weeks and 4 days from our departure date, "but who's counting?".  We mailed our Chinese Visa apps over the weekend so those should be back in plenty of time!
rf

Monday, October 1, 2012

Helicoptering in Auckland!


In reading more about Auckland and, especially looking at photos of the area, we decided that part of the one day we had free would be a good time to see part of the area from overhead!
In searching for a desirable helicopter scenic ride, we found HelicopterMe.  They offered exactly what we wanted and, with an email to the company, we received a prompt response advising they could:

  1.  Provide a flight on the day we wanted
  2.  Confirm window seats for each of us

And, most importantly, should there be a weather issue, they would give us a full refund!
(We’d “e-talked” to others but couldn’t get the same guarantees!) 


Here is another view of the helicopter over the west coast.  We are sincerely looking forward to having a clear, or partly cloudy day in Auckland when we have an opportunity to see it live!






We'll be staying at the Pullman Hotel (A) in downtown Auckland.  Thanks to Google Maps, we were able to pinpoint where the Aerodrome (B) is and how far away it is!  



And, an arial view!  The heli-pad is just to the right of the larger of the two planes toward the top.  'Tis truly in a rural setting!





And from the street view option of Google Maps, a view from the street approaching the buildings!

Sooo, we now have an idea of what  to expect.  Wish us good flying weather and we'll add pictures of the "real thing", hopefully, sometime in January!


That's it for now.
rf