preppie to my Euro trip...

Sunday, 19 October 2008
Counting the weeks….

“I love reading (well I use to when I was younger and while still in charged of my time). A trip or a holiday is like a good book to read! The only reason you want to read it again is if you did not understand it the first time. It doesn’t matter how masterfully written it is, reading it year in year out gets a bit boring in the end! So does the places we visit”…. G. Crawford
As I start the countdown to the first of my (childhood) dream trips, I am feeling rather apprehensive instead of feeling excited! I have always wanted to do this trip even when, as a child, I wasn't sure the place I want to see is real. There was always a possibility this place could have been just a product of the writer's wild and active imagination.
Well, this year has been a year of many firsts for me.

It is the first time since I left home that I have accepted being alone and that I am not scared of it! It is the first I have traveled where I really wanted to go, did what I really wanted to do, saw what I really wanted to see and enjoyed it so much more than all the trips I had in the last thirteen years put together! This year is also the first I am in a job that I can enjoy and which actually gives me some sense of worth!
But most of all, this will be the first time I will be traveling on my own…well, some parts of the trip anyway!

Although it takes me out of my comfort zone and my heart thumps a bit each time I visualise myself alone in a foreign county; I must also admit that it does feel quite liberating! Oh and yes, it is also my first time to fly with AirNZ, New Zealand’s national carrier. They seem to have created a name in the aviation world as per their outstanding “go the extra mile” brand name. Will soon have the chance to prove that!

I have decided to do this blog to keep in touch with family and friends and of course to share with you the excitement, frustrations, fun, adventure, tips, lessons etc, etc I will experience while away. In the past I have invested too many days and sometimes weeks trying to put together photos, videos and notes of our trips; at times staying up until the wee hours creating movies of our trips shortly after our return. Most of the times I take notes but a lot of the details can be overlooked doing it the old way!

This time I know I will not have the luxury to waste sitting in front of my son’s computer (hi Sam…see I let everyone know it’s your computer) for I have to report back to work as soon as I touch base. And for those who have flown with me before…you are well aware I never sleep while I’m on board! So instead of watching every inflight movie available, I will endeavor to put my time into good use by blogging… that’s the plan anyway…

For others, who will randomly come across my page, you can call me Jorgn! I live in Auckland, New Zealand where the human population is dwarfed by the number of sheep in the country.

New Zealand is a slice of paradise in the bottom of the Globe (and aside from just being too close to the South Pole, yes…we do get the Southern Lights or Aurora Australis in the South Island); 100% Pure NZ is populated by down to earth Kiwis, very friendly and open people.

I will throw in a few impressions of New Zealand and a few other bits and pieces as I count the weeks, then days prior to my trip! So folks stay with me…

Before I forget…Thank you Kenneth and Joy for lending me your well travelled super Nikki…I just hope it doesn’t rain all the time so I can take great pics with it : o ) And more Thank You’s for inspiring me and pushing me to go ahead with this trip. I luv you guys… and Jane and Sam…RV and Melissa…of course you are all included… stay lovely and beautiful…inside and out!!!

My only resources for this trip is my huge trust in the Lord for my safety and well-being while I am away; a lifetime of childhood dreams; a burning desire to see different parts of the globe to learn from other cultures; a slowly but definitely growing self-confidence; a pocket not even half-full of cash… and worst…I don’t even have a credit card to cushion me in case the few left over coins in my pocket are spent (hhhmmm….I start to feel depressed when I think of this so I won’t). I am just relying on Luke 12:22-31 and a good friend who reckons is able to show me a slice of Europe on a shoe string… (I hope the shoe is not one of those branded name ones coz I know even their shoestrings can cost an arm and a leg to someone like me with limited resources)….

Just a few impressions of North Shore, NZ