Were not in the US anymore, Andrew...

It didn't take long after taking off from LA to know that we weren't going to be in the US any longer. Just until the wheels were taken up and stowed into the aircraft after takeoff ... when the pilots turned off the seatbelt sign. Guess the lawers for Air New Zealand aren't as worried as the ones from US carriers.... ;)

Oh ... also when someone had to lure a "local dog"off the runway in Papeete with a bone so that we could taxi to the terminal.

And finally, when we had to figure out how to slow down to Island Time. A luxurious thing to complain about, I know. But it makes you realize how much stock we put into "becoming"what we do for a living. Being just you and then figuring out who you are is a different question. And hopefully life is bigger than just a job. At least, I hope I'll have a positive answer to that in just a little while.

And we're off...

First leg of the trip - DONE! Here's a picture of our very first airplane of the trip (forgive me ... I admit to being a nerd)

OK ... not so much the longest leg of the trip, but who's complaining, especially when you get bumped to first class. They even fed us dinner! Tuscan wraps with chicken and sundried tomatoes, with marinara sauce to dip it in. Plus a warm cookie and Starbucks coffee liquor and milk to dip it in for dessert. Maybe we should have taken a picture of that. ;)

I can't complain about being pampered ... especially at the beginning. It helped a bit with the anxiety level, too. It's wierd packing up the house and leaving for 3 1/2 months ... you kinda wonder what you've gotten yourself into. Unless you count moving to college (and I'm not), I've never been gone for that long.

We decided the best way (other than pampering) to combat trip anxiety is to think about each leg as the only one. So, currently we're on a short trip to Orange County and the Cook Islands. Just a couple days to warm up and get the stress out of our bodies. We'll see if we're ready to go somewhere else after that.

Ready to Go!

... well, almost.

Andrew and I leave on our RTW trip tomorrow evening. Last night, we looked at our to-do list ... everything but 2 items checked off. And - even better - it all fits in the suitcase. With extra room, even! Who ever thought you could put everything you thought you'd need for 3 1/2 months into a large backpack and it would FIT!!! Here's hoping it really is everything we'll want or need. ;)

For those of you who don't know ... this trip we're about to leave on includes the following destinations:

• Los Angeles
• Rarotunga, Cook Islands
• Aukland, New Zealand
• South Island, New Zealand
• THE ROCK, Oz
• Driving up the middle of Australia
• Sydney, Australia
• Gold Coast, Australia
• Cairns/Innisfail, Australia
• Bangkok, Thailand
• Chiang Mai, Thailand
• Phuket, Thailand
• Johannesburg, South Africa
• Safari, Tanzania
• More South Afria, inlcuding Cape Town
• near Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Tallin, Estonia
• Warsaw, Poland
• Bulgaia to Czech Republic in just over a week
• Home...

Makes me want to giggle like crazy. I'm so excited!