Our last day in New Zealand was St Patrick’s Day. It also coincided with the New Zealand port of call for the Volvo Ocean Race. We spent a lot of time walking around the pier and checking out the pavilions. There was live music, shopping, and loads of interactive activities for kids and adults alike. It definitely wasn’t a bad way to spend our last night in the City of Sails.
Random events that happen during vacation always seem to make the trip even more memorable, don’t you think?
~j
Devonport is an historical village a short (approx. 15 minutes) ferry ride just across the harbour from Auckland. Fazh and I spend the better part of the day wandering around the Island. We climbed to the top of Mount Victoria and checked out Fort Victoria. The cemetery we stumbled upon was fascinating. Some of the dead had almost reached 100 years old, 100 years ago. I don’t imagine making it to 100 in NZ that long ago would have been an easy feat! We wandered around, sight-seeing, as we made our way back to the wharf and shoreline.
There were loads of tourists out and about as Devonport is a popular destination for cruise ship passengers making a stop in Auckland. We were able to chat with one elderly couple who had rented a fancy moto-trike tour for the afternoon. There were also scooters, Segways, mini-busses, and even horse and carriage options. We opted for none of the above, and stuck to walking.
Lunch in Devonport was our first experience with the New Zealand coffee options. As previously mentioned, Fazh is a coffee addict. No, he’s not addicted to high quality or even freshly brewed coffee, he just likes coffee. He quite frequently will brew a pot of drip/filter coffee, and then microwave the old coffee for the rest of the day. (GROSS!) In New Zealand, trying to find drip/filter coffee is like trying to find a family of unicorns. Let’s just say there is a “dedicated coffee culture” in NZ, and Fazh was initiated rather quickly.
The coffee menu was confusing. Here’s a typical offering. (Thanks www.newzealand.com for the info. And, you know it’s intense when the COFFEE options are posted on a tourism site!)
Even though I’m not a regular coffee drinker, I do know the basics–Americano, espresso, cappuccino, latte, mochaccino etc. But these three? Short Black, Long Black and Flat White?!?
Short Black: basically espresso in a regular demi-tasse
Long Black: espresso with the same amount of hot water served on the side – usually in a squat mug
Flat White: one part espresso, to parts steamed milk, with or without froth
Fazh decided to order Long Black. And, that became his drink of choice–several of them a day! I’ve never heard an Americano called a Long Black. Now I know.
Whenever I mentioned this little trip prior to departure, people probably thought I was off my rocker for actually traveling with my 62 year old father. Think about it–you probably can’t imagine spending 2 weeks straight with either of your parents, or purposefully including 16-20hr flights in that time period. Now, imagine traveling with someone who has a very rigid diet and a horrible caffeine addiction. We managed just fine though.
The flight from Vancouver to Auckland went smoothly. Air New Zealand had super friendly flight staff, and the economy seats were actually roomy. I could reach my arm straight out, and wasn’t even flat palmed on the seat back in front of me. Even the safety video was more fun than normal.
We stayed in the central business district, just up from the Britomart transport centre which is the last stop for the Airport Shuttle. We were just up from the ferry terminal, and only short distances from most major sights. So, we were close to everything we wanted to see and were able to travel on foot.
One of the first things we did was go to the top of the Sky Tower. This tower dominates the Auckland City skyline. At 328 meters high, it is the tallest man-made structure in New Zealand, and from the top, you can see up to 80km in every direction. Pretty easy way to figure out where you want to go in the city–get above the roadways and map it out yourself!
Auckland Harbour Bridge built 1959
Auckland Museum – Tamaki Paenga Hira
One Tree Hill – Maungakiekie
Auckland Town Hall
Auckland Harbour Bridge, built in 1959. For the nerds, it was the last lattice girder bridge built in the world (I only know that from the info at the top of the tower!). One Tree Hill aka Maungakiekie. Maungakiekie is one of the largest Maori settlement complexes in New Zealand. The original Totara tree was cut down for firewood by early settlers. They replaced it with a Pine tree that was cut down in 2000 because it was dead. Now there is an obelisk at the summit for Sir John Logan Campbell. Maybe the name should be changed to One Obelisk Hill, because I didn’t notice a tree. We didn’t visit One Tree Hill.
We did visit the Auckland War Memorial Museum aka Tamaki Paenga Hira. We walked to the museum from Sky Tower. There are some very pretty trails through the trees on the museum grounds. The museum was first of many war memorials we saw in New Zealand. More on that later.
We’ve been traveling for a few days now. We made our way from Auckland to Otorohanga and Waitomo yesterday, and ended up spending the night in Hamilton. Today we traveled to Rotorua where we’ll be for the next couple days. So far we have seen some really amazing things, and met some really nice people.
A few things that are a little crazy…the price of food, that no where has normal brewed coffee, and that tips are refused like the money is contaminated.
Stay tuned for another update when internet is available again.
Adventures of a couple seeing the world 2 weeks at a time.
Devonport is an historical village a short (approx. 15 minutes) ferry ride just across the harbour from Auckland. Fazh and I spend the better part of the day wandering around the Island. We climbed to the top of Mount Victoria and checked out Fort Victoria. The cemetery we stumbled upon was fascinating. Some of the dead had almost reached 100 years old, 100 years ago. I don’t imagine making it to 100 in NZ that long ago would have been an easy feat! We wandered around, sight-seeing, as we made our way back to the wharf and shoreline.
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