The journey continued.

Travel is a surreal thing, I pondered, repeatedly, throughout my very strange and long journey here. You find yourself sitting 20 000 feet above the earth wondering what's taking them so long with the drinks cart already rather than what hubris it is to attempt hurtling through the air this far above your rightful place. Stop overs are also strange, just spending time in a country for it's airport, wading amongst the New Zealand souvenirs despite not really visiting the country. I did enjoy my reminder of just how good Speights' ale is on tap, and how entertaining the NZ news broadcast. Although not the reminder of how expensive are the carved jade pendants. After these brief wanderings it was back on to an aircraft for the longest
flight of the trip, and I have to say that Air NZ are excellent; I'm sure you get more space on their 747s than you get on QANTAS and they have excellent ice cream and very generous pouring arms.

The trip was the usual tedium and discomfort associated with such a long time in a confined space; the TVs were working though, so that was a nice change from my previous encounter with that journey. I watched 'Once' which is excellent, although I would like to listen to the soundtrack to more fully appreciate the music as the headphones weren't so good. Then I watched "No Reservations" which is a romcom about a chef; and a less realistic presentation of a chef I have never seen - taking off an apron as crisply white at the end of the shift as at the beginning. Leaving the restaurant immaculately made up and wearing heels after twelve hours in kitchen. Apparently able to flounce out of the kitchen in the middle of service for whatever ruffles your emotions. Having hands and forearms unmarked by scars. The romantic comedy bit is fine though, and the dvd will get you through that basket of ironing.

Then we landed in LA, before we had left NZ, and the Thursday that wouldn't end just kept on going. I had to transfer to a domestic flight at LAX and my word if there is an airport more poorly signposted it would be a surprise. If you ever need to do that make sure you need to know which terminal you need to find and where it is because there is nothing that will tell you
that in the airport. Security and customs took awhile, but not ridiculously so, and I was able to check in to my next flight without any further dramas. Which meant that I could fly across the world and then the USA without any problems, but it was getting more than a couple of k away from my home that posed the difficulties of this journey. So I went and found my gate, bought
a copy of the NY Times and a coffee from Starbucks and grinned smugly to myself that I was back in the US of A. Starbucks is definitely better here. And I read an hilarious article in the Times about how New York interior designers have decided that Jewellery for your FURNITURE is the latest thing. Because people want to "personalise" their furniture as they do their appearance they should buy jewellery for their FURNITURE. The picture depicted an enormous CHARM BRACELET draped ever so insouciantly over the back of a chair. Because just buying a chair can't be expressing one's self, other people might have that same chair. So one should buy jewellery to put on it. Or you could just skip a step and wrap a straightjacket around the back of the chair, should indicate your personality just as clearly.

The next flight took me to Atlanta, I got on the plane, sat down and conked into sleep. I came dimly awake to wonder what was taking so long to take off and realised that I'd slept through take-off I was so tired. So I missed that enjoyable "we'reallgoingtodie" moment that my gut sends forth when an aircraft really puts its shoulder into it. The flight to Atlanta took about
four hours, and then there was an hour wandering around the airport there - during which I realised that I had no real idea of where Atlanta actually is, another strange aspect of bouncing across the globe and having odd none-encounters with geography - then the two hour flight to Philadelphia. Airtrans is quite a good airline, should you ever need. They give you lots
of pretzels. While boarding the final flight I had the sudden thought that even despite my extremely lagged state, and the endless tedium of embarking and disembarking aircraft, I still really, really love travelling.

The flight arrived on time at Philadelphia, at one in the morning, I took the longest walk between plane and luggage carousel that I have ever encountered, eventually someone else did that with my bag, so I was able to leave and find my hotel. Which turns out to be ensconced between the Delaware River and a six lane freeway which sends a nice reverberating drone
through the whole building, but is otherwise fine. I had a shower for which I was yearning as though for the promised land. And then I went to bed! 37 hours after leaving my own... ! And couldn't sleep.