Eighteen minutes left at the Internet Cafe...

The "International" part of this love affair has commenced, and not without the proper precautions being taken. To appease the spirits of transglobal romance and to guard against crying babies on the plane, Kate and I poured out two 40s of Pabst for good luck (pictured right). I departed that day for Los Angeles, and stayed for three days at the beautiful Exit 38 Courtyard Marriott in sunny Torrance, CA. It was a quiet, boring layover for the most part, and exactly what I needed to get my head together and be comfortable with leaving Kate before I took on parts wholly unknown.

I flew overnight on the 20th to Auckland, and slept a good portion thanks to some fabulous tranquilzers (thanks for the tip, Ellen). I arrived at dawn and writhed my way through passport and customs lines until I found myself outside and totally comfortable in a t-shirt. I took a bus into the city and landed at the cutest hostel on the cutest street in all of Auckland. The city is magnificent so far, with winding streets, a cool cafe culture, and the most incredible hills and parks you've ever seen. I spent yesterday wayfinding downtown and at the campus, then took in pub night for international students. So far, the only thing I've found difficult is a lack of bagels.

Now I am sitting in an internet cafe in the morning (pictured left with crazy hair), scanning ads for apartments and sipping my third cup of tea for the day. I've got plenty to do, plenty of new places to see, and plenty of bagels to find (I hope). There's a lot of people I already miss, especially the lady who lets me use her blogspot account, and her little dog, too. But, before you know it, this love affair will once again be strictly just national. So far, the nation is fantastic.

Cheers,

Benji