Second Day in Auckland, New Zealand

Since I had a bit of a cold AND it was a rainy morning, I chose to sleep late and take the Waitakere Rainforest and black sand beaches tour with Bush and Beach Tours in the afternoon. Since it appeared that we would need to provide our own lunch, I asked at the desk at my B&B to recommend a good place to get a sandwich to take along for the afternoon... Subway was the desk clerk's recommendation because, he said, "it is healthy and other places do not give you healthy food." So I've come half-way around the globe to be told to eat at Subway! (took his advice and on the way to Subway, found the delightful O'Connell Street Bistro and made a reservation for 7:45 PM dinner meal that turned out to be one of the best dining experiences I've ever had... highly recommend this restaurant if you ever find yourself in Auckland, NZ... it's tiny and I was very lucky to get a table on short notice)

The tour was really wonderful in spite of the rain that seemed to follow (or precede) us from point to point along the way. There was myself, Mohammed (from Abu Dhabi) and Eileen (from Germany) on the tour led by Stan of Bush and Beach Tours. Our first stop was the Arataki Visitor Centre in the Waitakere Rainforest where we had the opportunity to see wonderful vistas looking back toward Auckland, the Wiatemata Harbour, Rangitoto Island and the Pacific Ocean as well as looking the other way toward the Manukau Harbour (Auckland's second harbor) and the Tasman Sea. We also had time to wander through the visitor center and the outdoor boardwalks to learn a bit about the local flora and fauna. I'm personally glad I never saw a weta any closer than I did through the glass at the visitor center! I've had a hard time choosing photos from this tour but what follows are a few representing the wonderful sights we saw and/or the things we did on this four hour tour (snack included!).

Rainbow over the rainforest as seen from the Arataki Visitor Centre in the Waitakere Rainforest, North Island, New Zealand.

Map showing red dot representing Arataki Visitor Centre and where we were when the photo above the map was taken. Our tour continued along a southwesterly course from that spot.

We luckily had a break in the rain for our afternoon snack break which included cookies and a choice of tea, coffee (instant, I had tea!), water and/or juice... all the comforts of home except for brewed coffee.

New Zealand Kauri trees were harvested all over New Zealand for the wood which is durable and beautiful. There are now protected forests where the trees are coming back. This one would have been over one thousand years old at the time it was harvested, perhaps several thousand years old. We saw 'young' trees that were 'only' four to six hundred years old that were about one third the diameter of this tree stump. I asked Mohammed, Eileen and Stan to stand in this photo to give a sense of scale to the tree trunk... Mohammed moved just as I snapped the photo.

This photo was taken from the van while stopped at a traffic light en route back to Auckland at the end of the day's tour.

First full day in Auckland... Touring by Bus and Ferry

Managed a reasonably early start following breakfast at my B&B (simple options of cereals, white and wheat bread for toast, OJ and apple juice, instant coffee (UGH) or tea)... purchased a hop-on/hop-off, all day bus ticket for a bus that takes an hour drive around some of the sites with commentary as to what one might do while waiting for the bus to return in one hour if one hops off at any of the stops. (Note that summer time buses run every half hour which makes for shorter waiting times in between buses.)

As I am somewhat weary of playing tourist at this point (and feel a cold coming on), I opted to stay on for the circuit and then hopped a ferry to Devonport for another bus tour around that lovely little seaside town. After the ferry dropped me off, I had time to shop a bit as well as grab a bite to eat at a local café before hopping on another bus for a ride around the Devonport area with stops at a couple of the higher points of land for photo opportunities.

On my return to Sydney, I walked up Queen Street and turned onto Victoria Street to make my way to the Sky Tower... what an incredible structure from which to view the entire Auckland area as far as the eye can see! Had a lovely chat with a couple from the South Island while having a glass of wine in the Sky Café at the main observation level. We agreed that bungee jumping (which could be done from a level above where we were sitting) was not for us... but managed to catch some jumpers on camera while chatting.

What follows are some photos of today's adventures...

This was taken from somewhere on the bus ride around Auckland.

This is as close as I got to Rangitoto Island, a 600 year old volcanic island guarding Waitemata Harbor. Seems that they are having an aggressive poisoning campaign at the moment in an attempt to rid the island of rats once and for all. Although it was perfectly safe to visit, the notion of them trying to get rid of rats put me off the idea of going there.

The views from Devonport looking back toward Auckland City and its suburbs are quite lovely from various vantage points on our bus ride. (also note ferries coming and going)

No idea what this place is about... the Department of Doing in Devonport seemed to be closed and thus was not doing anything as near as I could tell!

It is quite dizzying to look up at the Sky Tower from down below.

I couldn't figure out what was going on at the observation deck... LOTS of people waiting in front of two of the many observation areas... then WHOOSH... here came a bungee jumper... pausing for photos in front of the viewing area. Seems this gal made at least three jumps while friends watched and waited for her to finish having adrenaline highs.