25 January - Amsterdam - 2 degrees Celcius

It was cold and dark when I left the house and caught a taxi out to Schiphol. Everything went smoothly on both the flight to Singapore and from there to New Zealand. I was far more entertained than I expected on the flight and didn't experience the boredom I normally do on long haul.

I was drilled by customs coming into New Zealand wanting to know why I was there for only two days and how I could afford to go. The laxity of Heathrow has never been more attractive.