it really does feel liking coming home!

Since we started this trip we didn’t had too many days that we could sleep in, but now that we didn’t had a program to follow, that is just what we did, we slept in and it was great. By the time that we finally came out of bed, it was almost 9 AM. I know that some people don’t exactly call that sleeping in, but for the two of us, it was a bliss.

However, when we opened the curtains, we noticed that the weather wasn’t all that good. Dark clouds were hovering around us and since we didn’t had enough time yesterday evening to have a more decent look inside the botanical gardens, we were planning of doing that later this afternoon, but now with the threat of rain, we weren’t that sure anymore. We were contemplating about it and in the end we just wanted to go for it, after all, we had some rain jackets, which we knew by now where more than rainproof.

After checking out, we walked all the way back to the centre of the city, to be more precise, New Regent Street. This place looked so nice with the Spanish style houses and yesterday evening, we also noticed a few small bakeries which to us seemed like the perfect place to have breakfast.

Dark clouds were still hanging above us and by the time that we were almost near the cathedral, it started to rain as well. It seemed that our last day here in New Zealand was going to be a wet one, I so hoped it could be the other way around, but unfortunately the weather gods aren’t agreeing with us.

As we reached our eatery, we had our eye on yesterday, it was already raining heavily but once inside this didn’t matter too much and together with a chai latte and a bagel with cream cheese the world looked a little bit better. Unfortunately it was but for a short time, so we needed a cookie of Mrs. Higgens as well, just to lift up our spirit. I don’t really know that it helped much, but the cookie itself was more than delicious.

Still raining cats and dogs, we decided to go and have a look at the shopping mall build out of containers. Now that the weather was still shitty, there was no way we were going to walk through it and this meant that the gardens just had to wait till later today.

Upon our arrival at the mall, most shops were open, so we just went from one to another to kill time. Had we known that it was going to be like this half a year ago, we probably had booked an earlier flight to Australia, but those are the downsides of traveling coz you don’t really have control of the weather. After walking in and out the containers for a while, it started to look a bit better and suddenly we had hope again that we could visit the gardens.

It was almost lunch time as well and now that we were in the mall, we wanted to try out the Greek food stall which according to our guide Helen was more than yummy. Despite the weather, it was one of the few food thingies opened, so we gave the chicken souvlaki a try and although there was not much to say about the food, the weather however changed on us again and we had to take shelter closely near the entrance of one of the containers. I am not really a big fan of eating while I am standing, but doing this in the rain, that’s even worse! Unfortunately we had to go with the flow and since none of the benches were dry, this was the only way to go.

As soon as we finished our souvlaki, it was time to go back to the hotel. It was still raining and although not really in the mood, there wasn't even time anymore for a quick visit the gardens. We just wanted to go back to the hotel and await our shuttle bus to the airport, but at the moment we wanted to leave, it started to rain even harder. The one thing we could do is to wait it out, but unfortunately it didn’t stop raining, so we had to take our chances.

With only our rain jackets on, we ran out in the rain but it came down on us so fast that by the time that we were back at the hotel we were just soaking wet. I had never been so wet and the worse part about it all was the fact that we couldn’t change into another pair of clothes, there wasn’t any time left so instead we just went into the ladies bathroom and pulled a Mr. Bean (for the once who saw the movie). Not that it helped much, but at least our shoes and jackets were a bit drier and by now we definitely know there is a limit on how much rain a jacket can handle.

Our shuttle bus to the airport was a bit early, so with wet pants and feeling cold as hell, we left towards the airport and waved New Zealand goodbye. It really is a lovely country with beautiful nature, but sadly enough the only thing I am never going to forget is how much rain we had to endure, no matter how many beautiful days we had.

I don’t know if there is ever going to be a possibility that I am visiting this country again. Maybe I will, maybe I won't, the only thing holding me back is the weather to be honest, it is just so fickle. Call me old fashioned, but I like to know what is coming and the surprises we had on this trip weren’t all that memorable, but I can't complain all the time of course and I do have to remember the good days, the fun we had and of course all the exciting things we experienced.

The one thing that was on my mind when we arrived at the airport was saying goodbye. It was a nice trip but for now it was G’bye NZ and G’day Oz, but by the time we arrived in Sydney it was already pretty late. Due to some problems on the runway we had to circle into the air for almost an hour so by the time that we landed, got through customs, got our bag, found our hotel and got into our room, it was almost midnight.

Needless to say, the only thing that I did was taking a long hot bath and jumped into my roller bed with a smile on my face. I was completely knackered, but somehow I was glad to be back in Sydney again. I really missed this city and from the moment I set foot in this country I felt like I was home again. It is a strange feeling actually, but to me it felt a bit like coming home and I don’t often get this feeling. I can only hope that it will last for a very long time.