Day 2: Auckland Museum & Wanderings

After Hobbiton, I still had a fair bit of the day left, so I had Bryan drop me at the Auckland Museum so I could see the huge Waka (war canoe) Uncle Russ had recommended. Definitely worth the visit, along with many of the other exhibits on Maori culture and New Zealand.

I apparently hadn’t had enough hours on my feet afterward, so I walked to the Mount Eden neighborhood (past a very British-looking prison) to hit up a Szechuan restaurant I had learned of. It was like a little corner of Chengdu, right in the Southern Hemisphere. Thankfully, I arrived just before the dinner rush that lined up out the door. (The day after the first case of Coronavirus hit Auckland and all the supermarkets were having their shelves cleared for the ‘imminent’ full-city quarantine. So, I knew it had to be good)Read more