Our journey to B'ond: Rugby World Cup

Way back when, Tyson came up with a brilliant idea to take Dad to the 3 vs 4 playoff for the Rugby World Cup in Auckland. He bought four tickets, and He and Maddie, Dad and I flew to Auckland to watch the game. It was a celebration for his 70^th birthday, and a great surprise for him. Prior to getting away, I had a few minor things to deal with – such as getting a passport! I hadn’t had one for a couple of years as travel hasn’t been that high on my agenda. We also had MacK’s christening planned for the following weekend in Canberra so had to work around that too.

I flew to Brisbane on the afternoon of Thursday 20 Oct, and stayed with Mark and Tiff in North Lakes. Dad was right in the holiday spirit, and was acquainting himself with a bottle of Canadian Club to great success. Tyson came in from out west late at night, and we ended up getting to bed at about 0100. We had to be up at 0500 to make sure we could catch flights, and Dad was up and about by about 0430. He should have been poorly, but if he was, he didn’t show it.

I had forgotten how long the queues can be at international airports, and Brisbane was no exception. We eventually got through customs and made our way to the gate. We flew Emirates and had a new 777. There was plenty of space, and each seat has an entertainment suite with more than 120 movies, games and TV shows. Brilliant. We had a three course breakfast, and a couple of breakfast Budweisers.

Dad trying to blend in with the locals on our way in to Auckland

The welcome at Auckland Airport

New Zealand was interesting. I hadn’t been back since 2003, and I couldn’t get over just how green the place is. Most of the homes had silver fern/All Black flags flying, and everybody was dressed in black. The bus driver taking us into town stopped by the side of the highway, telling us he would be back in a couple of minutes. He disappeared for about 15 minutes into the ether, either attending to the needs of his stomach or a call of nature! We stayed in Fort Street in downtown Auckland, in what used to be the red light area (shows how long it is since I travelled to NZ). The whole area has been gentrified, and looks rather posh these days. The strip clubs are still there, but these days are interspersed with fancy cafes and designer shops. I did think that the Velvet Burger might have been a quirky name for a strip joint, but it actually is a burger restaurant – and a very good one too!

I bought MacK a buzzy-bee, and we sampled a couple of Lion Reds for old time’s sake. I tell you, some things should be left in the past!!! We went to the game, played between Wales and Australia and Dad had a great time at Eden Park. The atmosphere was magic, and it was really quite funny to see Quade Cooper being booed every time he touched the ball. We were lucky enough to catch a nearly empty bus back to the city after the game so we could continue our celebrations with a minimum absence.

Ready for the big game!

Dad at Eden Park. Great seats!

Dad and his boys

The Welsh team warm up

The view from our seats

I was amazed though – I was at an ATM when I was approached by a bloke who asked me if I used to play rugby for Te Kawau (Palmerston North). It turned out this was Rodney Field, who I played rugby with and last saw in 1990. Quite incredible. It just goes to show how small a place New Zealand really is. Later that night, we were in a pub when Matt Pedersen, who I did stage work in Palmerston North with up until 2000 spotted me. Huge coincidence, and good to catch up.

The morning after, I caught up with Tonya, another long term friend (was about to say old friend, but that is a touchy subject these days!) for breakfast. Tonya teaches hospitality these days, so it was probably a bit tough on the restaurant staff to have the two of us as customers! Really good to catch up though.

Two old hookers...

Dad and the Faiinga Twins

Dad, Maddie and Tys flew back to Brisbane, and I went direct to Sydney to meet up with Jane and the boy in Canberra. It was a good fun trip, but not long enough. Next time I will definitely take Jane over to show her where I grew up!