The last leg of the trip is here. I was getting comfortable in New York, too comfortable for a man with out a bed of his own to sleep on. There are lots of great things to say about that wonderful town, but no matter, I do not live there. It is time to get back to my place.

Good start here at my current location. It is almost like home. My thought today is that New Zealand is to Australia as Scotland is to England. While both here down under are nice and summery, this smaller island comes with a stronger accent, bigger mountains, many many more sheep, and lots more rain.

It is a very pretty place here. I have been driving past bits and pieces of the land of Tolken today, and let me tell you that this place is just as amazing as it is in the theater. Tomorrow, we are off to climb a glacier. Not often you see glaciers, especially so close to sea level. I am excited to see this amazing bit of nature. And who know how much longer they are going to be around. Twenty years is my guess.

This is the first time in our trip where Christy and I have been backpacking in the first world sense of the word. Take away the touts and beggars, and the whole idea of communal living is much more tolerable. This has put me out of sorts, I must admit. After avoiding the meeting of strangers for so long, I'm really just not in the right mindframe to start up talking to fellow backpackers as to where they are going next. I would rather finish up my book with Christy by my side reading hers.

My time is short on this terminal. I leave you now, but I'll return with more stories of adventure.