Can't believe it's November already with just days left until the trip. My cousin, of the same name, will be coming along as well. We have been assigned rooms 819 and 823. We tried to get two side by side suites but I guess the ship is full up, particularly Category's D through H.

He will be arriving in Auckland on the first and I on the 2nd. We do plan to join the LCT'ers for dinner at Orbit's on the 2nd.

Starting to think about packing - can you believe it? I normally pack "on the way to the airport", but this trip is so much longer than most and my regular philosophy of "You can buy whatever you need when you get there, now just go!", doesn't seem to work as well in addressing formal nights on a cruise ship. Should be fun!

John