In the plane

Duration: 11.5 hours from Auckland to Seoul

stopover in Seoul for 16 hours

Duration: 11.5 hours from Seoul to Amsterdam

Tuesday 28th August
We are on our way to Holland !
We are half way between NZ and Seoul and we are lucky the plane is not full so there is some space to move around.
This morning we flew from Onerahi to Auckland with Air New Zealand . The flight was delayed with 30 min. and that made us have to run to catch the Korean Air flight . We were among the last 5 passengers to board.

The kids are excited by all the new experiences and are doing well. It is long for them though, we can already see that their patience will be quite stretched by this trip. We'll make the best of it, but will be happy to set foot on Schiphol airport in the Netherlands !

After 4 hours of flying we see New Caladonia and the Solomon Islands, they look quite beautiful from the air. Some islands are perfectly round-shaped with a white ring of sand around them followed by the brightblue water.

The first leg of the flight the kids constantly move around. It is probably all the excitement coming out, we are very lucky to have two extra chairs to sit on, they really need them.

Joren is looking forward to dinner and lunchtime on the plane, and he is not disappointed. Meatballs and spaghetti and lots of chocolate and sweet stuff.

When we arrive in Seoul after 12 hours of flying the kids have been sleeping for three hours. We have to wake them and Joren walks all the way thru customs and to the bus. Kes sits in her stroller and stays awake. Waiting in the entrance hall for the bus in a completely foreign place in the middle of the night the kids do wonderfully well. The bus brings us to the Hyatt hotel in 5 minutes. We spread out over 3 beds and fall asleep for 6 hours.

The kids have a long bath and we go down to have a great breakfast. So many things to choose from and all fresh, quite a treat. After breakfast we ride the long escalator five times up and down and go back to our room. And then another bath of couse. Looking out of our window we see Incheon airport. To us it looks like a spaceship has landed on top.  Later Gert and the kids go to explore the hotel and find a swimming pool. An hour before we have to leave for the airport they strip down quickly to their briefs and go for a swim. Luckily Gert is wearing a new pair!

Back to the airport and in to the plane after that for the final part of the journey. Joren keeps saying ‘I hope this plane is a really fast one!'

The plane is absolutely filled to the max and we have a middle row for ourselves. It's a good thing the kids have settled down a bit already after the first flight and seem more resigned to stay on their chairs.

Still it is a long trip and there are times where we think how are we going to do this for another 7-6-5… hours. Food, the laptop with Encarta, books are a diversion and we manage.

When we arrive in Holland at Schiphol airport it is 5.30 local time and when we go through customs family is waiting. (oma Joke, Yolan, Cees, Annelies and Julia and Lily) So good to see them and we have a drink on a sunny terrace outside the airport. Joren and Kes go and play with their cousins Lily (3) and Julia (7) and they seem to get along instantly. They put boats from sunflower leaves in the pond. And then tried to sink them with rocks! They are happy to be able to move around freely and inhale some fresh air.