After more than a year of planning, it’s finally time for the Hubbards to head to New Zealand! On June 2, 2025, we left our house a little after 11 AM and drove to Dulles. We were all packed. It was Lydie’s and Cassie’s 20th Birthday. Morale was high.

From Dulles, we flew across the US to LA, where we landed on a sunny, summer afternoon. We grabbed an overpriced airport dinner before boarding our 13-hour overnight flight to Auckland. The flight was comfy, and we all got some sleep.

Along the way, we crossed the international date line, so that our June 3 was just a few hours. Indeed, we all slept through the entire “day.” Just before 6 AM local time, we landed in a rainy Auckland.

New Zealand is made up of two large islands, with Auckland being near the northern end of the North Island. Our plan is to start our trip at the southern end of the South Island and then work our way back to Auckland over the next two months. As a result, at 9:30 AM we boarded a flight to Queenstown, which is near the southern end of the South Island.

During our flight, clouds covered most of the country, so we couldn’t see much of New Zealand. As we descended, we started to see mountains. Indeed, Queenstown is surrounded by them. Our approach wove down a valley filled with fog, weaving above a glacial river.  The higher parts of the mountains were dusted with snow, while fog clung to the sides. Soon, we were flying lower than the mountains.

 I thought to myself that I sure was glad that the pilot knew the approach. The mountain sides loomed outside of the windows, and we at times had zero visibility as we passed through the clouds.  Seconds later, the engines roared to life, and the plane shifted from a gliding approach to a steep climb. The pilot soon came on the to tell us that the winds and fog had prevented us from making our initial landing. The pilot explained that we’re going to wait for another plane to land and then “have a go.” Flight attendant then came on to apologize for the delay and reiterated that’d we’d try for a different runway and keep our fingers and toes crossed. Frankly, I found their low-key humor about our aborted landing delightful.

Naturally, the pilot nailed it the second time. Soon, we were deplaned and picking up our bags. All in, our trip took us 33 hours, but it had been a resounding success! We checked in to our hotel, and took a quick pic. We’re keeping track of how many places we stay, by the way, hence the gang signs.

Next, we walked to a nearby restaurant for a late lunch. The girls then went back to the hotel, while Julie and I scoped out the area. We did some of our usual travel reconnaissance.

By 7pm local time, everyone was asleep. Our New Zealand adventure is off to a great start!

-Will