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AUS->NZ
  • Ben M
  • Amy Doyle
August 2023

AUS->NZ

A 27-day adventure by Ben M & Amy Read more
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  • AUS->NZ
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    Ponsonby neighbourhoodIt was tragic Lover's Walk was so dangerousAuckland War MuseumAlbert Park1One of the courses at Ahi - tuna and smoked eel mortadella

    Auckland

    August 28, 2023 in New Zealand ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Explored Auckland more, mostly walking. Auckland is a weird city. It’s pretty quiet. We walked past several major company offices mid-day on a Monday, like Microsoft, Grant Thornton, and Workday, and it was like a ghost town. The country has been very slow to return to the office. We managed to find some highlights and cute neighbourhoods, including Auckland Wintergardens, War Museum, Sky Tower, Wynyard Quarter and Ponsonby.

    We celebrated our final dinner with a spectacular chef’s tasting menu at Ahi, a fantastic New Zealand restaurant. Afterwards we went to Caretaker, a hidden gem bar that the waitress recommended as a local hit. It’s similar to Civil Liberties on Bloor where there’s no menu. Ben had a mind-blowing smokey scotch and ginger drink - far cry from when we were taste testing scotches with Laurie and gagging while watching Survivor. Auckland at night and in these livelier neighborhoods is very cool - improved our impression of the city significantly.    Read more

  • AUS->NZ
    Mt Eden craterView of the city from the summit2"On a scale of 1-10, how annoyed have you been by me on this trip?"The unique cone optionsHokey pokey gelatoOyster Bay is so popular here. Nice to see as it's a fav at homeChilling at the airport lounge

    Haere rā / goodbye

    August 29, 2023 in New Zealand ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    It’s bittersweet, but we’re both ready to head back. It’s been a perfectly crazy and wonderful trip.

    Our flight doesn’t leave until later in the evening so able to squeeze out the better part of a day in Auckland. We were able to get a late check out and spent the morning lounging in robes and relaxing in the gym/pool/sauna/hot tub.

    Hiked towards and up Maungawhau / Mount Eden, a dormant volcano with a 50m deep crater at the top. Nice walk - not nearly as high and steep as in Tauranga. And the views of the city are incredible.

    Giapo - creative and delicious gelato. NZ is known for its Hokey Pokey ice cream, which had a vanilla bean base with toffee and chocolate chunks - excellent!

    Airport lounge - Amy gets a handful of free entries into lounges through her credit card and she scoped out the Auckland one as being top notch - with a shower and all you can eat/drink hot food and alcohol. Was a nice way to spend 3 hours at the airport.

    Amy says she’s really looking forward to sitting on planes for 19 hours to allow for some quiet time to play solitaire and watch her reality tv shows. Not sure how to take that one… Off to Toronto via Houston, pending all goes well.    Read more

    Trip end
    August 29, 2023
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