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- Feb 15, 2020, 2:19pm
- ⛅ 23 °C
- Altitude: 19 m
- New ZealandAucklandAuckland AirportAuckland International Airport37°0’23” S 174°46’59” E
Awesome Auckland
February 15, 2020 in New Zealand ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
Sadly disembarked the ship after a wonderful cruise to spend our last two days in Auckland, New Zealand’s biggest city where a third of the country’s population reside. Campbell’s Über app is coming in handy - very quick to arrive and half the price of the usual taxis. Like elsewhere in NZ (and indeed Australia), everyone has been very friendly and helpful - even the local bus drivers - it’s just like being back on the No. 57 😋.
We were booked into the pleasant Quality Hotel in the residential suburb of Parnell. It is a lovely area, with a rose garden nearby and lovely Victorian villas. First stop was a trip up the Sky Tower - the tallest building in Southern Hemisphere. Great views over the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean. This is Pride week with lots of events, so we attended a play called Provocation, based on true stories of murderers who had their sentence reduced because their victim was gay. Great acting and thought provoking.
Next day we took a hop-on hop-off bus tour which which gave us a good overview of the city. Visited the lovely Auckland Zoo which was beautifully laid out, and seems to do a lot of work with endangered species. Our favourites were the cheeky meerkats. We then had a short ferry trip to the seaside resort of Devonport - a welcome relief from the busy city. At night we attended another Pride event - a stand-up comedy night with 8 top NZ comedians - hilarious!
Today, on our last morning in Auckland, we arranged to meet up with my cousin David and his partner Brigitte, who had just flown over for Valentines from Australia. We enjoyed a long leisurely breakfast in their hotel and had a great catch up. Soon it was time to leave for the airport and face a long journey home 😕.Read more
Traveler I'm so going to miss my morning updates. Cant you do it all over again?!
Margaret Morris I've enjoyed every moment of your fantastic trip. Makes me want to see it for myself.........maybe one day! Safe journey home. ❤️
Traveler What an adventure you both have had. A long journey back to Shawlands where you can look forward to blue cloudless skies. I think not! Safe journey home. x