We never looked at our departure time as the tickets had been changed just before we left and our flight is at 7:00am!!! That means 5:00 at the airport and we just finished visiting downtown Auckland and some shopping and have emptied the car so we can pack up all of our stuff. What we can't figure out is how we can have about 70 pounds of stuff each and I had two sleeveless tops and only three t-shirts etc. This morning I left my tourist books (heavy) for Australia and New Zealand at the motel we checked out.That makes for some space for other stuff.
My suitcase originally had four wheels, after the fourth flight I lost a wheel so was down to three, after another flight I was down to two and the two remaining ones are on the wrong side of the pull bar (which did not pull out after the fourth flight either until one of the hotel workers helped us with our bags and he pulled it out, so now I can drag my suitcase and the remaining chunks of heavy duty plastic glide on smooth floors. If the airport is carpeted I will have a big problem. But so far we have been lucky in getting a cart to put all our stuff on it and we look like a pair of refugees with all of our worldly stuff! I tried to buy another suitcase, but there was no selection (Target had one kind available and it was too small) and who has time to go shopping when one is on a birding trip.
Right now it is hot here and I am looking for the airconditioning controls to cool off the place. So much for logistics.
Today we took a ferry to Tiri Tiri Matangi and had a great birding experience and would recommend this place highly to any birder. There were lots of birds and we had seven lifers today: Stitchbird, Whitehead, Northern Island Robin, Saddleback, North Island Kokako, Red-crowned Parakeet and Brown Quail. This place is a 30 year experiment by the NZ Department of Conservation to save some of these birds by eliminating predators which were introduced over the years and it is a success. The birds came back in numbers by reproducing and still enjoy this island where predators were eliminated. It was a wonderful experience and one can stay there also.
The day was perfet and our guide Peter was knowledgeable and wanted everyone to share in seeing the birds. It was a hot day and not a cloud in the sky. After we returned on the ferry we went on to downtown Auckland for some touring of the big city and some shopping. I think I will have to pay the $100 to AirCanada for a second bag on the return trip as I am way over the weight limit now.
So this brings my trip of a lifetime to Aussie and NZ to an end. The time has flown and I probably got over three hundred lifers in Australia and over a hundred in NZ. It was a great time with wonderful birds, met great people and it was great to travel with Colleen and practice our YEEEAHS! Maybe we an do it again.... somewhere else.
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