Jan 25 - Exploring Auckland

We were both awake at 6:00 a.m. but lolly gagged in bed until 7:00 a.m. We had yogurt and muesli and grapes for breakfast, and I had a coffee. The hot breakfast buffet here in the hotel would have been $34 each (about $30 CAD). Just a continental breakfast would have been $28 ($24 CAD). Our little repast didn’t cost that much. The tour picks up breakfast on Monday morning so we’ll get to see what $30 CAD gets you. While he ate, Doug watched sports on TV - a lot of North American sports are shown live during the day here. He’s honing his skills at understanding cricket too. I read yesterday’s papers on-line. I see there is more snow coming. So sad for you.....

It’s another warm, clear day with a high of about 24°C forecast. We set out about 9:00 a.m. with our destination being the Auckland Domain, Auckland’s oldest park. The park contains the explosion crater and the surrounding ring of the extinct volcano Pukekawa. Our first stop was the cricket stadium where we watched young lads being timed running 22 yards - the length of the wicket. Apparently, 4 seconds is a good time. There are six cricket fields in the park - what a beehive of activity it must be in the height of cricket season.

From there, we went to the the Auckland War Memorial Museum which sits on the ring of the volcano. The New Zealand War Memorial sits in the courtyard facing the museum. We didn’t tour the museum - we simply admired the spectacular stained glass lead light ceiling in the lobby. It displays the coat of arms of all the British Dominions and Colonies during the First World War. Canada is shown in one coat of arms. Newfoundland is shown in a separate one as it had not joined Canada yet.

Next stop was the Domain Wintergardens - they consist of two lovely, old glass greenhouses - one is a non-heated temperate climate, the other is heated to a tropical climate. In between the two glasshouses there is an ornate courtyard with several neoclassical statues and a sunken pond in the centre. We could have used a garden expert in the greenhouses to help us identify the many colourful plants. We could identify only petunias, geraniums and alyssum.

We found a Subway store and had lunch. That hit the spot. More on the day in the next footprint.Read more