Day 1 in New Zealand

My wife and I left LAX Saturday night for a trip to New Zealand on Air New Zealand. Not the greatest flight of my life. Lots of turbulence, economy-class seats too close together leaving very little leg room, mediocre food and not hot towel.

We arrived in Auckland after a 12-and-a-half-hour flight and then a one-hour flight to Wellington. Our room was not available at the Wellington Intercontinental when we arrived at 11 a.m. Monday. We lost a day crossing the International Dateline. The time difference from Southern California is 21 hours. The room wasn’t available until after 2 p.m. Great — shower, shave, brushed my teeth and changed into casual business attire.

We attended a cocktail reception from 7 to 10 p.m. Wine was good, food a mixed bag. Looking forward to tomorrow (Tuesday in New Zealand) and a trip to the Shire and land of the Hobbits, which Peter Jackson is turning into a 2012-release movie after his successful “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

I’ll have some photos available in my next report.

— Stan Wawer