New Zealand 2024

I slept surprisingly well on the self-inflating sleep mat, although the sleeping bag that I brought over from the UK was a bit lightweight, even in the New Zealand summer weather, and I was glad I had borrowed a blanket too.

For the past couple of days we had all been keeping a close eye on the weather forecast for this Saturday. Although we had been really luckly so far, with plenty of sunshine and warm weather, this was forecast to all change just as Nomad Fest was starting.

It’s the day before Nomad Fest and there is lots to do to get the festival site ready. However, I’ve volunteered to take Nick and the kids to the Zoo! Let’s face it, we would only have got in the way otherwise.

Today is an early start because we’re booked in to go on a tour of Hobbiton Movie Set at 09:20, and it’s a 45-60 minute drive away.

We had a bit more of a laid back morning today as we didn’t have anything booked until later in the day. This gave us a bit of free time in the morning, so we decided to go the Classics Museum.

I slept well after a long day of activities the previous day, but I was still awake around 7am. That wasn’t too bad though as was just me and the kids up and it gave me time to get showered, have a shave, make a brew and get ready for the day.

It turns out that there was no need to set an alarm to wake up, as I was awake just before 07:00 anyway. I went into the kitchen to sort myself out a cup of tea and some breakfast and was soon joined by Eddie and Jessica, who looked a lot more refreshed than yesterday.

My flight was due to land at 12:25 NZDT on Sunday 4th February. Due to the time spent on the plane and the time zone differences, I had essentially missed Saturday except for a few hours in Seoul Incheon aiport.

The trip began with a taxi from Banbury to London Heathrow T2. I was lucky with the traffic and I made it to the airport, got through check-in, bag drop and security, with time to see the family group take off on their flight. I wished them godspeed and made my way to the airport lounge to have a snack and drink before my own flight.