The Audible that Saved the Day

 

Day 12 - Thursday, Jan 1 – New Year’s Day

When doing all this traveling and adventure, it is a bit difficult to keep track of the days, and this Holiday just seems a bit … ??? The rest of the family is yet to celebrate New Year’s Eve, we are getting on a plane to head to our next destination (Rotorua), we are somewhat disconnected from the usual US college football playoffs that run rampant on NYE and NYD … so in some ways, it is just another day.

 

 We enjoyed our last breakfast on our patio overlooking Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkable Mountains and headed to the airport for a planned flight to Auckland and then transfer to a flight ot Rotorua. Note the word “planned.” In Rotorua, we we booked to get two mid-size SUVs since there were no vans large enough for our whole family of seven. From the early days of our planning, this was a bit of a disappointment since we would have much preferred traveling together … as well as one less driver on the wrong side of the road!

Now, a brief diversion. In Latin the word “sinister” means “left.” Left-handed people were viewed as unusual or odd. Over time (I mean centuries), the word sinister became a connotation for suspicious, ominous, threatening or evil or … driving on the left side of the road.

Back to the story. We arrived in Auckland airport with no problems, but as we contemplated hanging out there for 4+ hour layover, we realized that we could drive to Rotorua in 2 hours 25 minutes (according to Google Maps). We called an audible (sorry for the American football terminology for international readers unfamiliar with this term – but we made a real-time, immediate adjustment to our strategy). Steve went to Budget to explore swapping one SUV rental in Rotorua for a large van in Auckland (lots bigger airport; lots more vehicles to choose from). There was a Hyundai Staria (8-seats with plenty of storage). Steve requests the agent to hold that swap for a few moments (thankfully no one else was in line). Meanwhile, Barry and Monica and kids were off to NZ Air to see if we could recover our baggage. Steve calls Barry – yes, they have a van and can do the swap. Barry calls back 3 minutes later – yes, they can retrieve our bags in 10-15 minutes. Steve to agent – book the van.

The van was booked and the Helfrichs arrived with the luggage at about the same time. We boarded the spacious van, and Barry agreed to be the wrong-side driver. Monica and Steve were (needlessly) coaching barry, “Stay left!” With enough cars on the road, it was easier to follow the traffic and get on the highway south for Rotorua. It was a very pleasant and scenic drive that got us to our hotel 1 hour before we would have taken off in Auckland!!!! WHAT A GREAT AUDIBLE!

This allowed us to spend the evening walking around Rotorua, and we found a large playground by Lake Rotorua that the kids thoroughly enjoyed.

  

 

Of particular note was the balance beam challenge. We saw many others try and fail on the balance beam. Barry and Monica were the first to master this, and I cannot help but point out, if you didn’t already get it, the symbolism of achieving this feat. Some others followed with Barry doing most of the work.

We had dinner on eat street, and everyone enjoyed their meal. It was Magnum Bars and other treats on the walk to our hotel, which is in central Rotorua. Another stroll around some touristy parts of the city ensured, but stores and shops were closed for the evening and for the NYD Holiday.

    

So, what was supposed to be a full-day of travel and the use of two SUVs turned into a win-win. We got more time at our destination, and we reduced our vehicle burden in half.