Off and Upwards

       It was a little scary heading off to Auckland knowing I might not even get on the plane.  My daughter had helped me through the process of 'booking' (and paying) for my 'staff travel' Qatar Airlines flights Auckland to Doha and then Doha to Copenhagen, but of course, being the Mum of a flight attendant doesn't get you necessarily on.  It's still a matter of whether there is a seat available for you.
But, the good news was, I did get on both flights.  I staggered off the plane at Copenhagen almost exactly 25 hours after I had sat down in the seat of the first one. It was about 7am on a quiet Saturday day morning and there seemed to be no-one around except my flight-mates.  Even the customs officers were absent, which was uncanny.
A rather gorgeous Scandinavian university professor, a couple of giggling Asian women and I found ourselves sharing the metro carriage into the city.  He inquired had we noticed the absence of the usual customs personnel, suggesting with a twinkling smile it was because they were all tired out from watching the buildup to the FIFA World Cup soccer game between Denmark and Peru that was on today.
 He then asked us what we were planning to do and see while in Denmark.  The women giggled together again and said they were going to the nearest information centre and would learn there what to visit.  When he turned his beautiful blue eyes on me I said 'Sleep. And then visit the University Horticultural Gardens when I am rested'.  'Oh, but that is where my Science Faculty is located!' he exclaimed. 'Right in the middle of the gardens'. And so it was.