3. The First Night in NZ

I booked my flight three months in advance thinking the price would be cheaper. However, I later found out that booking two months or a month and a half in advance would have still gotten me this price. I arrived at Auckland Airport in New Zealand around 10 PM. While I was answering questions from the immigration officer and walking out, a female officer with a large dog walked up to me. I thought the dog might want to greet a foreigner, or maybe I looked like a good transporter.

After that, I walked out of the airport alone, feeling confused. Everything seemed strange and unfamiliar. The weather outside was cold enough to be called chilly, but I felt sluggish since I was still confused. So, what should I do next? Before the trip, I had booked a backpacker hostel online in the city center and learned that there was a bus service at the airport to transport passengers into the city, available 24 hours. I walked to buy a ticket and received a city map. It indicated the bus stops, but where should I get off to be close to the hotel I booked? I didn't have internet on my phone, and I didn't even have a local SIM card. So, I asked someone nearby. They recommended getting off at stop number 5. I thought, okay, I'll go with that. Whatever they said, I would follow.

When I reached the point to get off, I awkwardly grabbed my bag and put it on my back because it was so heavy, weighing 20 kg. The airline's quota was generous, so I took full advantage of it without holding back. The burden fell on my back. I hope you can see this as a lesson, but since I had never done it before, I packed everything just in case. When I got off the car with the heavy bag and an additional shoulder bag, I found that it was drizzling outside. People were walking around, and if I were to compare this street, it would be like the area around Siam, with glass-fronted shops all along the way, still bustling even late at night.

The atmosphere was not good. It was drizzling on a chilly night, with a heavy suitcase and confusion about which route to take to the hotel I had booked. I was looking puzzled when I locked eyes with a man walking by with an umbrella. I told him that I needed to go to the backpackers at this point on the map. This young man was really kind and said to me, "I think I know where this hotel is. I'll take you there." I replied, "Ok, thank you very much." As we started walking, he asked me what I liked about NZ. I jokingly replied, "I don't know yet, I just got here and don't really know much. "I asked him back, "So where are you heading to?" He said he was just taking a walk, which is one of his forms of exercise. I thought to myself that it was nice to meet someone who was out for a walk to guide me. I then asked him what he did for work in NZ. He said (to the best of my understanding, because during my time there, not just at the beginning but even towards the end, I didn't understand 100%) I feel that the accent of the people there is different from the American accent we are usually familiar with in various media. He worked in some kind of transport office, maybe as a vehicle inspector, and he was not originally from NZ either. He mentioned the name of his home country, but I couldn't remember it.

After walking for almost five minutes or maybe a bit longer, I started to wonder if that hotel was really this far from the city center. It didn't seem that far on the map. I began to feel a bit suspicious, but on the other hand, I thought, "Whatever, let's just go with it." Maybe I'm just overthinking it. But this guy led me through various paths, and we started to reach areas with fewer people. Still, I pretended to be brave and followed him. Eventually, he brought me to my destination (I told you I was overthinking it; on the first night, when everything is uncertain, you tend to think a lot, right?). This guy even used his umbrella handle to call the staff inside to come out and open the door for me since the door used a keycard system. Before parting ways, I told him, "Earlier, you asked me what I liked about NZ, right? What I can say now is that I like the people in NZ. Thank you very much," with a somewhat flustered but sincere expression. But I really felt that way. Just to clarify, I just like to express my feelings to those who help me without holding back.