First and foremost I would like to offer my utmost thanks to the United Airlines employee who made this fare possible and was probably fired after this debacle! I would also like to thank all those at Flyertalk (especially the MCI BBQ DO II crew) who helped share information about the fare, including information about changes, stopovers, upgrades, and travel tips!! Traveling to New Zealand and Australia has always been a dream of mine and what better way to go than in First Class.

I have uploaded photos from the trip to an online gallery located here http://palcher.smugmug.com/gallery/4537726_vd6mt

36 hours and 7 minutes after I left my hotel in Auckland to begin my journey home I have finally made it home. I will post pictures and a complete trip summary after I get some sleep!!!

No, its not Rice a Roni…its the United International First Class Arrivals lounge. After arriving in SFO I went to this wonderful lounge which in my opinion has the nicest lounge bathroom to shower and freshen up and grab a bite to eat.

The flight from Sydney to San Francisco was spectacular!! The flight crew was the best I have had and the food was quite good. For an appetizer I had a Seafood Skewer which had shrimp and prawns. Then a cup of mushroom soup was served and that was exceptionally delicious! I chose the Filet Mignon with potatoes and asparagus as my main course. As before I had all 3 deserts offered First I had a variety of cheeses with a nice glass of Port. Then I strawberries with yogurt followed by an ice cream sundae with all the toppings! I slept for most of the flight and woke up when we were about 60 minutes from SFO. I was quite impressed with the flight crew, the service had been exceptionally nice throughout the flight but in the morning as soon as I woke up and removed my eye shade I saw the lead flight attendant offering me a variety of juices. For a second I thought I was flying Singapore Airlines (but maybe that was just the jet lag )

They close this lounge at 12:30pm (10 minutes…yikes!) so I will be forced to trek over to the Delta terminal and check in for my 2:00pm flight to ATL. The flight is a 767 but my upgrade is still waitlisted! (Wish me luck!) With my connection in Atlanta and then the drive from Charlotte back to Columbia I won’t be home until 1am!!

Using Katy’s recommendation I went to Darling Harbor to get Kangaroo and Wedges for lunch today. The food was delicious and it was nice to walk around the harbor and soak in the last few rays of the summer sun.

Back at the Sydney airport I bought a large case on Tim Tams (Duty Free) and proceeded to the Koru Club.  It saddens me the United First Departures lounge at Sydney closed but it really was quite crappy. I freshened up with a nice shower (the showers (with dual shower heads) here are soooo much better than the old United Lounge!!) and had a light snack before boarding was announced.

I am sitting in seat 2A on a United 747 awaiting departure to San Francisco. Pictured below is my home for the next 14 hours!

See everyone in 14 hours!!

Well I woke up a bit late this morning (no surprise there!) only to find the airport shuttle pulling off as I am running toward it. Being so late I grabbed a cab and paid $12 for the 3km ride to the airport (granted my driver hauled ass so wellk worth the $12).

Luckily Air New Zealand has a dedicated check in room for Business Class and Star Gold passengers so I was available to skip the general airport chaos. However the check in agent decided to pick on me and weigh my carryon rollerboard (which is limited at 7kg). My bag weighed in at 14kgs!! So he made me repack everything. However I really needed everything in my carryon so I stuffed everything in my backpack (which was already well overweight–thank god he didn’t weigh that….it had to be close to 28kgs). By the time I got through all that checkin was closed and I was the last passenger to check in for NZ103 to Sydney.

I had to skip the Koru Club (and my shower) and go straight to the gate for boarding. I now sit in 2K on a 767 bound for Sydney sipping a Mimosa attempting to relax for the long journey home.

I will have several hours to kill in Sydney so I will either head to Darling Harbor or Circular Quay for lunch.

Will post more updated (with pictures) on my stay in Fiji later! (It was really great!!! )

I arrived in Fiji yesterday. I had rented a car but to my surprise I was given a car with manual transmission. While I can drive manual it is a whole new challenge shifting gears with my left hand as in Fiji they drive on the left.

Fiji is a beautiful country with lush green mountains and small quaint villges everywhere. Many Fijans set up roadside stands along the main coastal road from Nadi to Suva to sell food or hand made items. You see cattle and other animals wondering around the side of the road and sometimes even laying down in the middle of the road!

The resort I am staying at is just lovely. It is on the southwestern corner on Fiji about 1 hour by car from Nadi. The beach is located in a cove where there is a break in the reef allowing for easy swimming. The water is probably 85+ degrees There are only 11 suites and this is the slow time of the year so at times I have the beach all to myself. Quite awesome!!

No pictures yet since I am using the hotel computer to update this. (No Wi-Fi)

 Today I plan on driving to the town of Sigatoka to do some shopping at the local market and later tonight one of the hotel workers is going to take me and two other couples staying at the resort to his village.

Today I left Cairns and flew back to Auckland where I will spend the night before departing to Nadi, Fiji in the morning.

There was virtually no line at the Cairns airport but for some reason Air New Zealand was not able to see my Star Gold status (Hey–I wanted that priority baggage handling to get ahead of everyone in the customs line in Auckland) I showed my (expired) US Airways Chairmans card to the agent hoping she wouldn’t notice the expiration date had passed (Thanks US Airways for sending me a new card on time :rolleyes The agent did not notice the expiration date and I got my priority tags. (Yes!!)

On the flight I had a nice conversation with a young girl from Berlin who was on a workers permit in New Zealand. She said it was very easy to obtain and she did not have to find or arrange a job before coming to New Zealand. That is something I just may have to consider after graduation!!

I am now at the Kiwi Airport Hotel where I will be getting a few hours of sleep before returning to the airport at 5am!
On a side note there seems to be several cats living in the parking lot. I had the balcony door open and heard an awful screeching growling sound. I looked outside to find two of the cats fighting in the middle on the parking lot!!

Well the highlight of today was I got to hold a Koala!!

The day started with a train ride to the Kuranda Rainforest. The train we rode on was 95 years old but perfectly restored. Along the way there was information given about the construction of the line and all the problems faced. There was so much beautiful scenery along the way including two spectacular waterfalls.

Upon arrival in the village of Kuranda I headed straight for the Koala Gardens where I was able to hold a Koala and have my photo taken. (They are sooooo soft — I want one!!!) After my photo op with the Koala I explored the rest of the Koala gardens, which was more of a petting zoo, and I got to pet and feed Kangaroos and Wallabies. Ironically for lunch I had the Kangaroo Burger….it was simply delicious!

After lunch I proceeded to the Skyway terminal for a ride over the Rain Forest in a Gondola. The entire trip took about 45 minutes and it was a really incredible view the entire way!

After the Gondola ride I headed over to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Center. That was a really great experience. There was a small group of Aboriginals who performed traditional dances, educated us on traditional foods, medicines, and music, taught us how to throw a boomerang & a spear, and showed 2 films on the history of Aboriginals.

Tonight in my last night in Cairns so I will probably rest down at the pool for a bit and then get ready to go out. I will have tomorrow morning to explore downtown Cairns before catching a flight back to Auckland in the afternoon.

Today I went diving on the Great Barrier Reef!! Not only did I find Nemo but he was with his Dad. I also saw Dorry who my guide called Dolly. Luckily I did not see any squishys. I was able to make 3 dives and it was really an unbelievable experience!! My instructor said I did a great job and i should definitely get my certification! We are on the boat heading back to Cairns now.

I have finally arrived at the Cairns Hilton just 50 hours and 42 minutes after I left my apartment in Columbia on Friday morning.

I was put in an Executive Level room overlooking the water. Can’t see much now since its almost 11pm. Time for bed, tomorrow I am going diving on the Great Barrier Reef to try to find Nemo!!!

Oh and surprisingly enough my checked bag was waiting for me upon my arrival in Cairns!! Very impressed with Emirates level of service!!