Category Archives: travel

Wanderlust

Song Lyric of the Day:

Homegrown alligator, see you later / Gotta hit the road, gotta hit the road / The sun it changed in the atmosphere / Architecture unfamiliar / I can get used to this

George Ezra / “Shotgun

I haven’t traveled a lot the last few years. And you can guess how little I traveled in 2020. My last major trips were New Zealand and Toronto, Ontario, in 2014, Disney World in January 2018, and Toronto again in September 2019. Other than that, over the last few years we’ve visited my sister’s family in Huntsville, Alabama, and traveled to Columbus, Ohio, to visit close friends, and taken two trips to the beach. These days I fantasize about traveling, because OH MY GOD WE CAN’T GO ANYWHERE DURING THIS PANDEMIC. I’d love to plan a vacation for the family for sometime this year, but things are still so uncertain there’s really no point in planning anything.

I’ve been fortunate to have traveled a lot overall in my life, though. Way back in (year redacted), when I was a freshman or sophomore in high school, my mom scrimped and saved to send me on a French-class trip to Europe. Over the course of 16 days, we visited Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, and England, in that order. I dream of being able to send Coraline and Sebastian on a trip like that someday, and I’m forever grateful to my mom for working so hard to make sure I could go. I was able to repay her in kind, to a degree, when my sister and I won a contest just by answering trivia questions over the phone related to our VHS rental of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. We received a letter saying we’d won a prize and included paperwork to sign and return, so I was thrilled at the thought of winning a T-shirt or — a kid could dream — our very own VHS copy of the movie. (Yes, I’m old.) The next letter we received, however, informed us that we’d won a 7-day, 6-night trip for two to Paris, France. I remember reading it out loud and my mom screaming so loud I thought she’d just killed my dog, Spot, by way of a heart attack. Being that my sister and I were both minors, I couldn’t chaperone my sister around (sorry again, Sam!), but our mom could chaperone me around. The trip was a whirlwind (which my sister still hasn’t forgiven me for; did I mention I’m sorry?), which included us visiting Versailles, the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, the Catacombs, and me vomiting on the Eiffel Tower. I’m not afraid of heights, so I think something I ate hit at a very unfortunate time. Again, my apologies to Paris.

Growing up, my family and I would visit relatives in New York City, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Puerto Rico; that last one was very infrequent since flights cost a fortune we couldn’t afford. When we got married, Rich and I took a 7-day honeymoon cruise throughout the Caribbean, including a day trip to Aruba that started out with a horrible beach, but ended with us at a much nicer one. He and I enjoyed a trip to Uruguay with a couple of close friends a few years later, and we made a few visits to New York City over the years, too.

When Coraline was almost one, we took her to visit family in Iowa. A few years ago, we traveled to Denver, Colorado, for her godmother’s wedding. Since Sebastian was born, our only trips as a family of four have been to Columbus and Huntsville.

The itch to travel isn’t due to a fear of missing out, though (I loathe the acronym FOMO), but, frankly, boredom. I work and spend time with my family, which is all well and good, but a change of scenery would be nice, especially these days. We enjoyed a taste of it with our trip to Disney World in 2018, although we did leave Sebastian with my sister and her family that week, because he doesn’t travel well and does horribly once off schedule; he still does, actually. The joke was on us, though, since a huge cold front hit while we were there, so we were grateful he was back in Alabama and not being dragged around in cold weather or holed up in a hotel room. (I was layered in four tops and two pairs of pants every day except our last day there.)

My trip to Toronto in 2019 was the first time Rich was alone with both kids. Ever. He had to travel internationally when Sebastian was a few weeks old, so by now Coraline, Sebastian, and I have it down pat when Rich is away, whether it’s for two days or two weeks. I admit, though, when I thought of Rich being left in charge, I thought of the house at the end of Poltergeist — you know, when it self-destructs. Problems with my control-freak tendencies, I know, although Coraline was excited at the thought of helping to run the house in my absence. Seriously — that kid knows everything about what goes on in the house. And of course, Rich handled everything splendidly while I was away. Although Sebastian has ordered me to never leave them again. Fingers crossed we’ll get to go on an adventure together someday in the near future.

 

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Toronto International Film Festival 2019 Mini Film Reviews for Day 4

I’m at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, so I thought I’d post some mini reviews of the movies I’ve seen so far. I’m breaking up the posts by the days on which I watched the movies. Descriptions by/from TIFF.net. Reviews are my own rambling opinions.

Weathering With You

An old tale taken from Japan’s ancient Shinto myths and projected onto a bleak near-future of floods, pollution, and global warming, Weathering With You follows the difficult lives of a runaway and a lonely girl who has recently lost her mother.

Sixteen-year-old Hodaka arrives penniless in rainy Tokyo and finds shelter and employment with Suga, a detective who runs a sketchy occult magazine. Working on the urban legends column, Hodaka is asked to track down a rumoured hare onna, or “clear-weather woman,” someone with the magical powers to part the clouds and let bright rays of sunlight shine through. His investigation leads him to Hina, the kind-hearted, gentle girl who works at a burger shop and offered him food when he was starving. Hina has the power to control the sky — a gift that could bring unexpected wealth in a perpetually wet and overcast city like Tokyo.

My take:

(Full disclosure: I dozed off during the first 10-15 minutes of this movie. I’d had one and a half drinks during the day, and the lure of a dark theater was too much for me to handle. I managed to snap out of it and stay awake for the rest of the movie, though.) I loved the animation style, and the story was interesting, rooted in the urban legend of the sunshine girls (and boys). I genuinely cared about Hodaka and Hina, as well as the supporting characters, particularly Hina’s younger brother, Nagi, a pint-sized lothario. The movie had a good balance of realism, fantastical elements, and humor.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Yes. The attention to detail in this anime film is amazing. The story is made richer for it, so it deserves the big-screen treatment.

Pelican Blood

Wiebke (the ever-dynamic Nina Hoss, also at TIFF in Ina Weisse’s The Audition) is a horse trainer and adoptive mother to Nicolina (Adelia-Constance Giovanni Ocleppo). The two share a strong bond and live an idyllic life in the countryside. Together they plan on expanding their family to include Raya (Katerina Lipovska) and travel to the young girl’s native Bulgaria to bring her home.

Shortly after that trip, Wiebke learns that her new daughter suffers from an attachment disorder and cannot build emotional connections to those around her — further, she begins exhibiting shocking behaviour and grows increasingly violent, claiming her actions are motivated by the provocation of a dark spirit. After a specialist explains that Raya will have lifelong issues and does not feel empathy, Wiebke must decide whether she is willing to keep her new child and simultaneously risk Nicolina’s safety.

My take:

I found this movie interesting, but it didn’t rock my world. I found Raya unsympathetic enough that I didn’t want Wiebke to try and “fix” her. That said, young Katerina Lipovska is an amazing child actor, particularly for one so young. Other movies have tried and done better with the “evil” child aspect of this story.

Worth seeing in a theater?

No. It’s interesting enough to hold your attention, but wait until it’s streaming online.

 

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Toronto International Film Festival 2019 Mini Film Reviews for Day 3

I’m at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, so I thought I’d post some mini reviews of the movies I’ve seen so far. I’m breaking up the posts by the days on which I watched the movies. Descriptions by/from TIFF.net. Reviews are my own rambling opinions.

Love Me Tender

Seconda (Barbara Giordano) is certainly not lacking in inspiration or energy, though she is bound to her family apartment and her cloistered routines. She is a 32-year-old woman with acute agoraphobia. One day, her mother dies and her father deserts her, leaving Seconda to battle her demons and fend for herself. She has sporadic connections with the outside world: a little girl who verbally attacks her from the courtyard and abusive phone messages from Henry (Gilles Privat), a debt collector who threatens action. Preoccupied yet burdened with her own survival, Seconda gets a chance for release when a homely bottle collector named Santo (Antonio Bannò) visits, but she must play her cards right. A maelstrom of circumstances changes everything and, after a lot of determination and gusto, anything is suddenly possible.

My take:

This movie got off to a slow start, as can be expected when your main character is an agoraphobe who won’t leave her home. Once she does leave, though, it gets much more interesting — and a lot funnier. I would have liked a more defined ending, although I can live with what I got. The movie’s saving grace is lead actress Barbara Giordano, who is captivating enough to hold your interest while using simple body language to get big laughs.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Only if you’re an art-house movie lover. I did enjoy the film, but I don’t think it’s one that needs to be seen on the big screen to be enjoyed.

The Giant

Charlotte’s (Odessa Young) life is changed forever when the teenager’s small Georgia town is shaken by the beginning of a series of murders on the same night that her missing boyfriend coincidentally reappears. As an unknown killer on the loose preys on young women over the course of a summer, Charlotte has to navigate this new danger while also struggling to recover from the trauma of her mother’s recent suicide.

My take:

Oh, where to start? The extreme close-ups that had me feeling more like a dermatologist than a moviegoer? The flared-up cinematography that didn’t really allow for much cinematography? The story that was so confusing I still don’t know what parts of the story even happened — the murders? Joe’s return? The blaring sound design that telegraphs a scene change or shift with a deafening crescendo? I kept waiting for something, anything to happen, but nothing ever did.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Hell no. Not unless you’re a film student and want to learn what NOT to do with your first feature-length film. Other than that, this was a waste of almost two hours of my life I can never get back.

Color Out of Space

When an iridescent meteorite plummets from outer space and into the property and foundations of a remote New England estate, a malignant force begins to insidiously permeate the lives of an unassuming family. The effects are gradual — time begins to dilate, nature assumes an otherworldly hue — and all things bright and beautiful eventually mutate and corrupt under its influence. So proceeds this eerie adaptation of the short story by H.P. Lovecraft, one of horror’s most haunting, here presented by the enigmatic South African filmmaker Richard Stanley. … The patriarch of this doomed brood is none other than Nicolas Cage, continuing his recent renaissance as a midnight-movie staple with an increasingly unhinged performance that reliably ricochets among every technique in the Stanislavski playbook. The rest of the ensemble, which includes Joely Richardson and Tommy Chong, play effective foils to Cage’s delirium, but the real star of the show is the alien entity itself. This all-consuming, dispassionate menace manifests itself in a series of grotesque, body-horror, and psychedelic spectacles, worthy of its ineffable literary origins.

My take:

I should have read the short story instead.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Only if you’re a die-hard Nicolas Cage fan or special effects aficionado.

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Toronto International Film Festival 2019 Mini Film Reviews for Day 2

I’m at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, so I thought I’d post some mini reviews of the movies I’ve seen so far. I’m breaking up the posts by the days on which I watched the movies. Descriptions by/from TIFF.net. Reviews are my own rambling opinions.

The Personal History of David Copperfield

From the imaginations of Oscar nominees Armando Iannucci, director of TIFF 2017’s The Death of Stalin, and Simon Blackwell, who co-wrote Iannucci’s breakthrough feature In the Loop, comes this gloriously frenetic adaptation of one of Charles Dickens’ most beloved novels. Starring Oscar nominee Dev Patel and featuring an august supporting cast that includes Oscar winner Tilda Swinton and Golden Globe winners Hugh Laurie and Ben Wishaw, The Personal History of David Copperfield is gloriously entertaining, careening through 19th-century England as it tracks its hero’s zigzag destiny.

Born six months after the death of his father, David (Patel) is lucky to be raised by a loving mother. But when Mum weds the dour Edward Murdstone, David is shipped off to the cottage — actually a capsized boat — of his housekeeper’s family. These peculiar accommodations prove to be only the first of David’s numerous temporary abodes, which include an oppressive boarding school and the home of his eccentric aunt Betsey Trotwood (Swinton). Wherever David goes, whether living in poverty or comfort, he writes pithy impressions of all those he encounters — impressions that will one day constitute his autobiography.

My take:

This movie is perfection, from the cast to the writing to the visuals and cinematography; it’s a feast for the mind and for the eyes. (And no, it’s not about a certain magician, it’s based on the Charles Dickens novel.) It’s lush to look at, and you’re invested in David’s story and rooting for him throughout, from precocious child to young adult. I can’t say enough about the cast. Led by the amazing Dev Patel, Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, and Peter Capaldi just about stole every scene they were in. There are too many other cast members/characters to list here, but they’re all memorable.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Yes. Absolutely. See above re: a feast for the mind and for the eyes. Also, I went in to the movie liking Tilda Swinton and came out worshipping her.

Sea Fever

Siobhán (Hermione Corfield) is a brilliant young marine biology student, more at home amidst laboratory equipment than people. As a component of her studies, she boards a trawler overseen by a couple (Dougray Scott and Connie Nielsen) whose amiable demeanour shields both financial worries and profound grief. Siobhán is not exactly welcomed aboard: her cool, scientific perspective is at odds with that of the salty, superstitious crew of “fishmen,” and her red hair is considered bad luck. Not long after setting sail, the old ship’s hull is glommed onto by a bizarre, bioluminescent creature of unknown genus.

My take:

This movie is a bit more of a slow burn than what’s usually in today’s horror movie scene, but I liked it. Everything that can go wrong on a fishing boat expedition does, and then the weird things begin happening. Are they all hallucinating? Is there something else at play? And how can they survive it? The long takes on open seas and from underwater angles help add to the feeling of isolation felt by those on board the ship. Thanks to its premise and the director’s steady hand, the climax avoids the usual everything-thrown-at-the-wall chaos of most modern horror.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Yes, for the beautiful cinematography that adds to the sense of claustrophobia and isolation felt by the ship’s crew, but I don’t think anything will be lost in translation if you watch it at home.

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Toronto International Film Festival 2019 Mini Film Reviews for Day 1

I’m at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, so I thought I’d post some mini reviews of the movies I’ve seen so far. I’m breaking up the posts by the days on which I watched the movies. Descriptions by/from TIFF.net. Reviews are my own rambling opinions.

The Whistlers

Corrupt cop Cristi (Vlad Ivanov) travels to the Canary Island of La Gomera, where he collaborates with mobsters in order to try and free a shady Bucharest businessman named Zsolt (Sabin Tambrea), who is believed to know the whereabouts of a mattress containing millions in cash. Under heavy surveillance on the island, Cristi is taught by the local gangsters and a femme fatale, appropriately named Gilda (Catrinel Marlon), to communicate in an indigenous whistle language called “El Siblo,” which is unintelligible to the police because it sounds like bird calls. Full of double-crossings and unexpected twists and turns, Porumboiu’s neo-noir thriller is an intelligent, entertaining, deadpan-funny caper that explores the limitations of language while at the same time using it as a poetic form of resistance.

My take:

I chose this movie because it sounded interesting and fairly different from my standard fare, and it did not disappoint. The locations were gorgeous, the characters were fascinating, and it was funnier than I expected. I found myself really rooting for Cristi, despite his obvious character flaws, and the gorgeous, kickass Gilda. I liked the movie’s structure in that there were “chapters” devoted to each main character’s story, with very little overlap between segments. Well edited, it put together a cohesive, linear story. I also learned from the director during the post-screening Q&A that there were/are in fact civilizations that use(d) a whistling language, which the actors were trained in, which added another layer to the movie as a whole.

Worth seeing in a theater?

Yes. The Whistlers was entertaining enough and beautifully filmed so that I appreciated the big-screen treatment.

Blood Quantum

Jeff Barnaby’s astutely titled second feature is equal parts horror and pointed cultural critique. Zombies are devouring the world, yet an isolated Mi’gmaq community is immune to the plague. Do they offer refuge to the denizens outside their reserve or not?

The term “blood quantum” refers to a colonial blood measurement system that is used to determine an individual’s Indigenous status, and is criticized as a tool of control and erasure of Indigenous peoples. The words take on even more provocative implications as the title of Jeff Barnaby’s sophomore feature, which grimly depicts an apocalyptic scenario where in an isolated Mi’gmaq community discover they are the only humans immune to a zombie plague. As the citizens of surrounding cities flee to the Mi’gmaq reserve in search of refuge from the outbreak, the community must reckon with whether to let the outsiders in — and thus risk not just the extinction of their tribe but of humanity, period.

My take:

I felt like the social/political critique aspect of the movie was oversold. While it was great to see an ensemble cast comprised of Indigenous actors, not a lot was done with that fact other than the characters’ immunity to the zombie plague. I felt like more time could have been devoted to really expressing what the filmmakers intended to say, but didn’t quite convey. Most of the main characters were easy to root for (Bumper was my favorite), while the villainous ones were easy to hate. That said, this was a fun zombie movie entry with impressively gruesome, extremely gory kills (done creatively on a budget, it turns out).

Worth seeing in a theater?

Yes and no. Yes to support the underrepresented Indigenous community, and yes if you really enjoy your gory horror movies on the big screen. No because other than some imaginative kills, we’ve seen this type of zombie movie treatment already.

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There and Back Again

Song Lyric of the Day:

Many places I have been / Many sorrows I have seen / But I don’t regret / Nor will I forget / All who took the road with me

Billy Boyd / “The Last Goodbye

Last year I was ridiculously fortunate to be invited by my friend Nan to accompany her on the trip of a lifetime. She won a trip for two to New Zealand in the Hobbit Fan Fellowship contest. I had suggested she enter, and she said that if she won, she’d take me with her (I posted her winning movie at the end of this post). Clearly, she made good on her word, for which me saying thank you again to her (for the millionth time) still doesn’t seem adequate. Still: Thank you, Nan. You are forever my Hobbit boo. I knew when I first met her that we were going to be great friends, but I could never imagine how much and in how many ways I would come to treasure our friendship, and she knows that extends much deeper than the trip. Although that is some really fantastic icing on the cake.

Last week some of our Fellowship friends got together for the one-year anniversary. Neither Nan nor I could afford to fly to London, but we were with them in spirit. It would have been great to see some of our new friends again and reminisce about the trip as well as make new memories. Maybe next year we can manage to join them again.

It’s a strange beast to be a part of something like this. I can only speak for myself (and Nan, to an extent), but the Hobbit Fan Fellowship trip was a truly life-changing thing. Even before we set off on our first flight (of three) on the long journey to New Zealand, Nan and I knew we were going on the trip of a lifetime. Not only was it an all-expenses-paid trip, but New Zealand 100% Pure, Air New Zealand, and Warner Bros. went all out with the events, surprises, excursions, chartered flights, special guests, and even meals they planned for us (open bars rule!). It really was the kind of vacation experience most of us can only dream of. My only regret is that Nan and I couldn’t share it with our family and other close friends, a regret I imagine some other members of our Fellowship might also have.

We did, however, get to experience this with 148 other people from all over the world, 74 of which were the lucky “plus ones” like myself. We got to know the sweet, kind, funny, smart tour guides, Air New Zealand flight crew, Warner Bros. reps, and camera/sound crew who led, accompanied, spoiled, and documented us every step of the way. While we didn’t get to know or talk to everyone on the trip, those we did were like us: eternally grateful to have been invited on this journey. The Fellowship is made up of a really good bunch of eggs.

I hope and will do my best to save up so that Nan and I can join them for another reunion, one I would love to bring Rich and Coraline along for. Because after hearing about the magic of New Zealand and Rich reading her The Hobbit, Coraline can’t wait to experience it all herself someday.

In the meantime, I’ll continue to treasure my memories of that magical week in the Real Middle-earth, and be happy I have 149 other people who know exactly what it was like to be there.

I made sure Nan was right next to Peter Jackson for our group photo following the screening of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

I made sure Nan was right next to Peter Jackson for our group photo following the screening of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (she’s to his right, and I’m right behind her).

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Photoblogging: You Go Squish Now

Squished

This is me pretending to get stepped on by a troll in the courtyard of the WETA Cave in Wellington, New Zealand (11/06/14). Thanks to my new friend Lauren for taking the pic.
And yes, soon I will finish posting the trip recaps. I find myself in the same boat as my Fellowship friends in that by stretching out the sharing of events and photos, it’s a little easier to admit that the trip of a lifetime is, in fact, over.

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New Zealand Day 1 Recap

After an epic LAX layover, Nan and I had an equally epic 12-hour flight from Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand. Air New Zealand more than lived up to its stellar reputation, and the plane had what is by far my favorite in-flight entertainment console ever. In between several naps I watched Guardians of the Galaxy, Housebound, the season finale of episodes, and most of Bad Neighbours (aka Neighbors in the U.S.).

This made my limited periods of consciousness between naps fun.

This made my limited periods of consciousness between naps fun.

Even wearing compression socks and taking short aisle walks, I got off the plane in Auckland with the cankles I never got during pregnancy.

Nan and I claimed our luggage and immediately encountered a camera crew doing interviews with Hobbit Fan Fellowship contest winners and their guests. Even though we had left Knoxville 30+ hours ago, Nan and I were more than happy to oblige and talk about how she won, where we were from, what we were most looking forward to.

After the interview we followed our fellow hobbits across the street to the Novotel Hotel, where rooms had been booked for all of us to freshen up. After a half hour we took our luggage to a conference room area where we checked in, got our badges, and were given Hobbit-branded T-shirts, windbreakers, and luggage tags as well as a swag bag. After check-in we met everyone in a big conference room with a buffet and The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey playing on two big screens.

Nan with the swag bag we received at check-in.

Nan with the swag bag we received at check-in.

We were welcomed by reps from 100% Pure New Zealand and then divided into groups based on where we came from. Nan and I are in the Hobbit group with everyone else from the Americas, with the other groups being the Wizards, Dwarves, and Elves.

Once sorted, we were bussed to the airplane tarmac — which apparently took jumping through a lot of hoops — to be photographed in front of the Hobbit-branded Air New Zealand plane that most of us flew in on.

We were featured in the local paper in Rotorua using the plane photo op. Nan and I are somewhere on the right toward the back.

We were featured in the local paper in Rotorua using the plane photo op. Nan and I are somewhere on the right toward the back.

Once the photo op was over — the local and international media coverage has been unreal — we hopped on a bus for the three-hour drive to Rotorua. We had a brief period for refreshing ourselves (again), then it was back on the bus to go to Te Puia, a living Maori cultural center. We saw mudpools and the Southern hemisphere’s largest active geyser (Pohutu), learned about Maori culture, and were treated to dance/musical performances in the meeting house, which were so much fun to see. After the performances were over, it was time for a huge buffet.

After our evening at Te Puia, it was back to our hotel where Nan and I passed out by 10PM. Which was a good thing, since we had to get up early to tackle day 2: Hobbiton.


Created with flickr slideshow.

*I have not had good luck with Wi-Fi while here, and after a whopping phone bill post-Toronto, I now leave the Cellular Data option turned off so I’m not racking up excessive charges by using Instagram and Twitter. Tonight has been the best Wi-Fi connection I’ve had since we got here.

 

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This Post Is Coming to You From the Future*

Song Lyric of the Day:

Diamond clouds / I think we’re getting closer / Don’t stop now / Off the ground / Higher than a supernova / Don’t look down

Cazzette / “Beam Me Up

Yesterday was a long day of traveling from Knoxville to Houston to Los Angeles on our way to Auckland, New Zealand. I actually wrote this post 12 hours after we left Knoxville, during our almost 10-hour layover in Los Angeles. Suggestion: LAX could really use a small movie theater for people with 10-HOUR LAYOVERS.

Our day started with Rich and Coraline driving Nan and me to the airport. Coraline was not only giddy about seeing Miss Nan, she was thrilled to be allowed to wear her warm footie PJs for the drive (she was wearing a coat but not getting out of the car). Our flight from Knoxville to Houston left around 9:30AM, and it was the standard puddle-jumper most outbound Knoxville flights use. We didn’t really have a layover once we got to the Houston airport, which is an hour behind Knoxville; it was sheer luck we happened to stop in front of our gate for our Los Angeles-bound flight when they announced it was time to line up for boarding. The plane to L.A. was one of the bigger planes I’ve been on in several years. So big it actually scared me when we had minor turbulence — apparently I’m really used to puddle-jumpers these days. I counted at least seven instances where I thought, “holy cow, this is it — I’m going to die.” Thankfully, that did not happen. Obviously. But still: scary turbulence = scared Pattie.

The flight to L.A. (which is 3 hours behind EST) took a little more than 3 hours, but not longer than the 3 1/2 hours or more that would’ve gotten us fed. This is where I’d like to point out that the Think Thin protein bars I brought with us are what kept us from potentially fainting from hunger. Me, anyway. Once we landed at LAX, it became our mission (after checking in our luggage with Air New Zealand) to find food. Real food that didn’t come in a little wrapper. After grabbing the LAX shuttle back to the main terminal because the international terminal really didn’t have any viable food options, we decided on Wolfgang Puck Express, where the food did not disappoint (turkey sandwich with bacon and avocado = divine).

We sat in a gate lounge that had closed for the day and was being used by other weary travelers, where I wrote this post and finally checked in on Facebook for more than my standard 20-second pop-in. (I’m basically a cat burglar on Facebook, in and out before anyone notices.)

One more flight to go, and then we will be in the real Middle-Earth. Fingers crossed we have another safe — preferably turbulence-free — flight. I think it’s a safe bet to say that no matter what the in-flight entertainment might be, Nan and I will both be grabbing some much-needed shuteye.

Here’s hoping I get to update again once we’re all settled in tomorrow.


Created with flickr slideshow.

 

*It’s 17 hours ahead of EST here in New Zealand. SEVENTEEN HOURS.

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Next Stop: New Zealand

Song Lyric of the Day:

We’re a thousand miles from comfort, we have traveled land and sea / But as long as you are with me, there’s no place I’d rather be

Clean Bandit / “Rather Be

Today is the big day: My friend Nan and I are at the airport right now waiting to fly out of Knoxville on our way to NEW ZEALAND. I admit that I don’t know a whole lot about the country, other than it’s beautiful and has more sheep than people. Which is a fact one of my favorite horror comedies, Black Sheep, really hammered home; the tagline is “the violence of the lambs,” and with good reason.

New Zealand is also one of the top countries I’ve always wanted to visit — and we’ll be soooo close to Australia, another dream destination.

In the spirit of Googling and learning more about New Zealand, I came across this fun list from Buzzfeed, 69 Facts About New Zealand That’ll Blow Your Mind. I’m especially fond of this fact: #6. Only 5% of NZ’s population is human- the rest are animals.  I’m hoping that means I have a better time with Wi-Fi than I did in Toronto last month. Unless the sheep there have smartphones. Then we’re pretty much screwed.

Nan has this to say:

#HobbitContestWinner Nan here. Who’s excited? I’ll give you three guesses and the first two don’t count! NEW ZEALAND, look out — Pattie and Nan are on the way!

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