Getting four hours sleep by 9pm was great. Getting only two more for the rest of the night was definitely not. I gave up in the end, got up, packed for the flight and headed out. When I left the motel I didn’t set the satnav. Instead I vaguely headed towards where I knew the […]

After bidding the possums goodnight I slept well, the best I have in New Zealand. A solid 7 hours, maybe a little more. The walk to the shower in sandals and a towel was fortunately unwitnessed and I had what was a good shower between the trees, under the open sky. Back in my cabin […]

I started the day in a bad mood. Something to do with 3 hours sleep, 3 hours trying to sleep then getting up before 7am because of the noise from other guests. They weren’t making much noise at all, but every weight change made the floor creak, I knew precisely when they had a shower […]

I had an early start again today. Not really from choice, the traffic noise from 8 feet from my head was a little too much to sleep past around 5.30am. At 8am I was in the car, far earlier than planned. I passed Lake Taupo, larger and more protected than Lake Rotorua, line along its […]

My body woke me up just after 4am. Last night’s dinner was a zero calorie meal and I’d woken up to assure the dessert wouldn’t count either. It’s one form of weight loss, although hard to plan around. I stayed awake to track the football online. Going to be a tough second half to the […]

Having a shower this morning was surprisingly difficult. I’m not used to looking down at the water leaving from the shower head at its highest extension. I’d slept well, the neighbours quietening by 10pm and waking again at 6.42am. At least, that’s the time they started talking again. I’d been awake a couple of hours […]

Rolling green hills covered in farm animals. Quarries in the distance. Overpriced fuel and roads moving too slowly past empty roadworks. Incessant excessive rain and a passion for rugby. It seems I travelled half the planet to visit Wales. The day started brightly. Actual sunshine, dry concrete below the car, a chance to view the […]

Halfway through my holiday! I woke up, sent an email, then the keyboard broke. The x and c keys started giving me both letters from a single press. The 1 and 2 keys did the same, but with 1 and 2, 3 and 4 also being generous. The more interesting combination was V and the […]

I woke up early today but a comfortable bed and knowing that my day would start with laundry made it easy to snooze back into dreamland for a while longer. When eventually I did rise I went hunting for the hotel laundry. A single washer and dryer it was hiding on another floor only accessible […]

The problem with sensibly early nights is that they lead to stupidly early starts. At 6am I was admiring Sydney. Stood on the aft deck I had a strange sensation the world was overtaking us, but it was just the 90,000 ton ship I was stood on reversing through a harbour. At 7.30am I was […]