nz day one!

• i'm off seeing the world now . . . first time ever in the southern hemisphere. the flights weren't bad - i slept through the majority of the long one - and my lovely hosts kitty & tim were waiting for me when i exited customs. none of the customs people seemed in the least bit surprised that i was accompanied by a harp - they didn't even want to open the box! i guess that's what x-ray machines are for.
• so far as i can tell, my new camera is vastly superior to the old one. i can't seem to get my sd-hc card in the card reader on this pc, but i'll give you a little summary of my day and hopefully upload some photos later.

• this morning, after my 6.00 am arrival, we went to downtown auckland and mt eden to look around - beautiful views of the harbor and city. it was hot and humid but felt terrific after a long chilly chicago winter. after lunch (which included a delicious tomato-feta salad - yes, alyson, my first meal in nz was cheese-based) i took a nap and then kitty dropped me off in devonport for the afternoon. i walked by the harbor, watched the sailboats, visited the naval museum (dad, you'd love this town) and got takeaway fish & chips for dinner, which i ate on top of mt victoria while enjoying spectacular views. all of auckland is built on a bunch of volcanoes - makes for interesting and varied terrain. this photo is of auckland from the harbor in devonport.
• now all i have to do is stay awake until a decent hour . . . and try to sleep through the night. day one of my adventures has been lovely.