There is nothing as boring as a 17-hour layover. If I weren’t so tired, I might have rented a car and spent the time driving around beautiful New Zealand. But instead, I’m sitting in a cheap motel processing photos and watching episodes of Deep Space 9 (yes, a geek to the end).

Tonight? A flight to Tonga. And then another early-morning layover before yet another flight.

Also, I just discovered that there is a flight from LAX to Tonga, with a short stopover in Fiji. AMEX Travel really screwed this one up! In addition to getting a crappy connection and layover, Air New Zealand didn’t have any information about me other than my name, when I arrived — no destination, nothing. Oh, and AMEX sent my ticket receipt to the wrong address. I’m going to have to seriously reconsider using them again.