WRGingell

You've no doubt noticed that my post is late this week. You've almost certainly been hankering for the golden words and deliciously witty phraseology that are usually to be found on The WR(ite) Blog weekly. The light has gone out of your life, the glitter from the internet, the sparkle from your-

Okay, I'm probably laying it on just a bit too thick.

If you did happen to notice that my blog post was a little (okay, a LOT) late, the reason is as follows: I'M ON HOLIDAY! That's right, I'm on holiday in the land of the Hobbit, aka, New Zealand. I have not thus far seen a hobbit (must remember to complain to management about that) but I have seen an awful lot of utterly gorgeous scenery that could have come from anywhere in Middle Earth. I don't think I've ever fallen in love with a place as quickly as this. I would move here if I had the money. Heck, I'd probably move without it.

We've spent our first two days at the Heritage Hotel in Auckland: a lovely experience that has honestly thrown me a little. This is mainly because I've never stayed at a place with room service and concierge parking and a little man who offers politely but firmly to carry your baggage and does indeed carry your baggage for you because YOU ARE A GUEST, MA'AM. It's delightful and rather terrifying. The room itself is quite lovely, too: large enough to be comfortable and elegant, and small enough not to lose ourselves in.

Ostensibly, this trip is because the Hubby and I have been married for eight years. It's our anniversary today (which both of us remembered this year - hooray!) and aside from quarreling in the car and driving the poor SatNav lady burko, we've been doing an immense amount of driving. We were both very surprised to find that once we left Auckland (in fact, immediately upon leaving Auckland) we were in Middle Earth. I'm not even kidding. Rolling green hills, beautiful scrub land, country fences that you could see Samwise and Frodo clambering over in their quest for the ring. All equally wonderful and accessible. The problem was knowing when to turn around and head back, because we didn't want to stop driving.

We've also done a fair bit of walking around Auckland, which has a thriving nightlife and some really very interesting drunks. The stores are all open to ridiculously late hours, so we never felt unsafe, and almost everything was well lit. There are roughly 50 places we could choose to eat tonight, all within a block or two radius of this hotel. In fact, the hotel even has it's own restaurant. So where do you think we're eating tonight? Give you three guesses (HINT: it's room service).

Tomorrow we'll head off toward Hobbiton (or at least the Northern half of it) for a tour, and from thence to Rotorua, where we'll spend two days hiking and mud-bathing and driving out to explore the Taupo National Forest. I'm determined to end up with a hobbit sword. Okay, maybe all I can afford is a pint of something at the Green Dragon. BUT I'LL STILL BE IN HOBBITON, SO THERE.

So far, the only thing I haven't done is write. I have not written a word of Blackfoot, my new WIP.

Shame on me. Shame on my goat. Shame on the corners of my house.

SIGH.

I guess I better get some words down before room service comes along with my scotch fillet. I'm thinking of trying a slightly different approach with this WIP (more planning, scary!) a la Patricia Wrede's Post It Notes Method. Wish me luck!

And if you don't hear from me so much on the Twitter and the Facebook, it's not cos I don't love you, it's cos I love New Zealand more. Posts should be more or less regular as of next week, for those who really were pining (sorry, mum!).