On my way!

I am on my way! On my way to New Zealand, for my well-deserved vacation and a dream come true. Even when I woke up this morning, I found it hard to believe after years of waiting for it, I was finally on my way to New Zealand! It was with some excitement that the thought rose to my mind that when I woke up today, that I'd be going, not to the bus stop to catch the 8:10am bus to Dell, but to Austin Bergstrom International Airport to make my way to New Zealand!
And here I am now, in LAX -- Los Angeles International Airport. I've already checked in, and gotten my boarding passes ready to go all the way to Dunedin, and I'm waiting now at Gate 27 of Terminal 2, where Air New Zealand operates its flights from. I hope it's on time! I don't have a lot of connection time in Auckland, and after Customs and Immigration, I hope there's adequate time left to grab my connecting flight to Dunedin.
One of the things I was nervous about, when I planned this trip, was whether I'd be able to understand the New Zealand accent. I guess it's overexaggerated in movies, but I didn't know for sure. Of course, I've listened to plenty of Kiwi commentators during cricket matches, and never had a problem understanding what they were saying, but still. However, I needn't have worried. If the accents of the Kiwi family of 5 standing in front of me in the line was anything to go by, I'll be having no problems whatsoever. It's just a drawling version of the English accent, so I don't anticipate any major problems.
The family of 5 in front of me consisted of the two parents and their three children (I presume) -- two girls, who looked enough like each other to pass off as twins, and a boy. It was the boy who made me stare, for he bore a startling resemblance to the New Zealand wicketkeeper, Brendon McCullum. He had the same messy blond hair, the same jawline, even the same height (from what I can tell from TV). It was amazing -- I felt compelled to ask him for his autograph! But logic and reason told me that the vice captain of the New Zealand cricket team would not be gallivanting around in Los Angeles when there's an international series in progress against West Indies in New Zealand.
It's been an interesting day so far. I've come from the freezing weather in Austin (how hilarious does that sound?!) to the (relatively) mild weather of Los Angeles. I could actually manage in LA in just 3 layers of clothing, whereas Austin currently requires at least 4 -- one of which is a thick woollen coat. I lucked out in carrying tiny pieces of luggage -- I've been able to carry on my stuff in every flight so far. That saves a TON of time at baggage claim!
Well, I guess I'll end this post here. I'm running out of battery, and I don't really want my laptop to die out on me. I hope my cellphone finishes recharging before my laptop dies. This is it then! I'm off to Dunedin!