Day 4: Family Re-union

The only thing worse than having to get up at 4am for an early morning flight is getting to the airport and having to stand in a queue that isn't moving.

We were told we had to be at Honolulu International at 4.40am for a 6.40am start. This is kind of pointless when nobody starts work until 5am.

First we had to deal with the Department of Agriculture, than then Department of Homeland Security, followed by the Department of Aimless Dithering and the Department of Stern Looks. It wasn't too heinous, although Emma saw a few people taken aside for a total empty-everything-you've-got inspection.

We had about 40 minutes before boarding, 35 of which were taken up trying to order a coffee in the slowest Starbucks in the Northern Hemisphere. And despite all the time they still got the order wrong. Slow they may have been, but in true Hawaiian style they were still polite about it.

The flight was totally uneventful, and I slept most of it until hitting LA. LA International is looking much nicer since we were last there, when it was in the middle of renovations. It was worth the effort.

The flight to Boise gave us great late-afternoon views of southern California and Nevada. It's quite striking terrain, but not the kind of country you want to get lost in. I doubt they take American Express in most of it, and mobile phone coverage is likely to be spotty.

Idaho is most famous for potatoes. It's a bit of a cliché, and I'm sure the locals are tired of it, but it's not going to go away when you catch a plane to Boise and see a woman marking student assignments on potatoes. My favourite was "osmosis in potatoes".

My family was waiting for us as we exited the terminal at Boise. We havent seen them since our wedding seven years ago. There are reports that I may have teared up a bit, but without photographic evidence these should be considered unfounded rumours.

(From left to right: Mark (my sister's husband), my sister Robin, Derek (my niece Alycia's boyfriend), Alycia (said niece), Emma, Jamie (the younger niece), Mike (my eldest brother - like a true Idahoan wearing shorts despite the 40F/4C temperature).

I couldn't believe how much the girls had grown up. The last time we saw them was at our wedding. It's one thing to know it's been seven years, but it never hits home until you see them. It feels like they went from little girls to young women in a week.

That aside, it was great seeing them all.

The parking fees at the airport were - amusing. All of 75 cents. Compared to Sydney parking fees, which would be around $15 (why Sydney Airport parking attendants don't wear ski masks is a mystery) I'm not sure why they bother.

The highlight after getting to my sister's house was when Jamie and Alycia tried to find a kitten they heard out in the bushes. They succeeded.

Mark and Robin insisted there was absolutely no way they were keeping the cat. That resolution barely survived the night. The kitten is hideously cute.

Here's Emma using her uncanny animal magick on the cat (I suggested they call her "Emma" so they'd always remember how she did her -and my - best to manipulate Mark and Robin into keeping her).

Then we slept for 12 hours. Again.