NZ Adventures #1: Hey! We're in New Zealand!

Ok finally.  Uploading the New Zealand adventure story from my head to your eyes.  It's been about a month and a half since we set off on this adventure, and I'm itching to re-discover and remember all of the details and share them with you.

We have 16 days of adventures to recount, so we're releasing episodes by day or two...  And we're such an exciting couple, I know you're going to want to check back.

Air New Zealand flight, economy class
#becausewe'recheap

And off we go... and apparently we are also purple (because #winningatphotos).  DFW ➔ IAH ➔AUK ⬥ November 12, 2018, 3:50pm arriving November 14, 2018 @ 5:30am.  In reality, delayed departure until ~4:50pm with a mad scuttle in IAH to the international terminal to hop on Air NZ.  Way to go <un-named US airline>, raising our anxiety levels before a really, really long flight that leaves just once daily.

Day 1:  We're in Freakin' New Zealand, Y'all!

We are tired.  We are feeling old, and feeling really tired.

Middle of the night en-route.  I'm looking around and everyone is out like a light.  Expect for me and my achy legs.  How are they sleeping?  They've been sitting for like 10 hours?!  I'm trying not to squirm, but that's not happening.  Tylenol PM is not a win.  Melissa McCarthy, I'm sorry that I only fuzzily remember your really bad outfits and the rendezvous I think you had with a boy who could be your son in Life of the Party.  Probably for the best.

Jayme is uncomfortable because the seat in front of him is practically touching his face.  But he's a trooper and is so much more patient.

Needless to say when we arrive, we are worn out.  But we're in freakin' New Zealand, y'all!  Auckland airport is a manageable-sized airport, so it doesn't take too long to get through customs, get our luggage and find Hertz.  First adventure:  driving!  Well, first adventure is finding our car, while navigating large luggages.  It's a Nissan.  Safe.  And steering on the right, orientation on the left.  Right!  Wait?  Left!

Driving the first couple of days is a group effort.  "Stay to the left," was said frequently.  Jayme is a pro, and city driving was no problemo.

First order of business:  breakfast.  And eating being a priority, we (I) already had a place mapped out.  Don't judge.  Priorities.  The Orchard Juicery and Kitchen.  Just like the regular business crowd stopping in for a bite or a coffee before work... we were not.   We ordered one of everything.  The Stack, a huge chicken sandwich, a smoothie, slices of tasty goodness to go, the largest hot tea they made.  Plane food is not stellar, especially for the vegans in the house.  And waking up to drive (on the left) and not being hangry were priorities two and three.

Did I mention that we were in New Zealand?  While a forever nap sounded great, we had seven hours until check-in and a city to explore.  New Zealand!

Exploring Auckland.  First Stop, Mount Eden

First stop:  Mount Eden.  It's a volcano, y'all.  Vol-ca-no.  And it's really, really beautiful.

Auckland is on an active volcanic field of 53 volcanoes.  Mount Eden (aka Maungawhau #saythattentimesfast in Maori) is the tallest on the mainland at 196 meters and the highest natural point in Auckland.

53!  53 make it lovely and mountainous and green and lush.  It's a rolling kind of mountainous surrounded by blue, blue coastal waters.  So what if they are live volcanoes?  It's the ones that erupted 25,000 years ago that you have to watch out for.  Pompeii anyone?

We wound up a trail, enjoying the fresh air, sunshine, bright blue skies and lovely green grass.  Doesn't it  look like you could roll all around in it?  Maybe perfect for a nap?



The view of the city was grand from this height.  It still hadn't settled in that we're halfway across the globe in a different hemisphere.  And in the future!  We are living in the future!  A trippy thought pretty much the whole adventure.

How does one install a cone on the top branch?

And the trees are tall.  And apparently also hazardous.



















The tippy top of the volcano, also has a name in Maori -- Te Ipu-a-Mataaho.  Named after a diety who is the keeper of the Earth's secrets.

I don't know about secrets, but it looked prime for a nice, soft roll down the hill.  It must be a thing, because signage.

Adjacent to the crater was an old geodetic (#lookitup - we did) survey site.  And a cool copper map showing distances and direction.  We're a long way from home, baby.

We look tired, don't we?  But hey!  We're in New Zealand and we're off to see volcano #2 -- One Tree Hill.

Oh wait, but first, more food.  Grocery store supply run!  Yes, we like grocery stores.  And Jayme especially liked Countdown grocery stores.  So much so that we visited one in most cities.  His Countdown radar was in peak condition.  You always need something from the Countdown.

Water + snackage = priority.  Now we're off to see the volcano.

Second Stop. One Tree Hill

Aka Maungakiekie.  It's a volcano, it's a park, it's a sheep farm!

One Tree Hill is in the midst of a sweet, Hobbitish park in the middle of Auckland.  Rather, I should say it's English-ish, because it is.  It's Cornwall Park and delightful for a stroll.  Except that it's strolling direction is upwards.  And upwards when you're tired is not as fun as it should be.  But explore we did.  

I think my favorite part of the park are the picturesque stone walls framing perfect trees on lush pastoral fields dotted with white sheep.  I never got tired of that scenery as we drove throughout the northern areas of the North Island.  It's peaceful.  It's idyllic.

So we climbed.  Up to the top of One Tree Hill.

There are three volcanic cones, or craters, for this volcano.  And an obelisk.  No trees.  Apparently the one tree was cut down in the 1850s for firewood, and then again in the 1870s and then again in the 1960s.  Currently there's a memorial to the Maori people and a Sir Campbell, one of the first European settlers of NZ.  We saw his house.  Acacia Cottage.  It was small and creaky, but cute.  He pretty much got finances and politics going for NZ Europeans. 

And exploring the park from your car is just fine.  I don't know who told you it had to be via feet.  It's a lie.  We discovered the tree lined path into Cornwall Park as we were wandering around trying to exit.  Lovely.

Oh, and did I mention sheep?  Up close and personal.  They are cute puffs of cotton from afar, but all dirty butts and matted wool up close.

And the trees.  The trees are just cool.  Can't you imagine craggy faces?  I'm starting to see the Tolkien  that Peter Jackson imagined unfolding.  Rolling green slopes dotted with puffy white sheep and boulders.  I can see Hobbit families popping out from behind a tree here or airing laundry by a wooden fence there.

It's about lunch time at this point.  We're snacking on the tidbits we bought from our grocery store run.  Smart, eh?  We've called the hotel and no luck with checking in early.  So by golly, we are going to see the coast.  I prod poor Jayme to drive across the city, on the wrong side of the road, so that we can see Mission Bay.

As we're driving through the city, enjoying the sites, we realize that Auckland looks a whole lot like San Francisco + San Diego + Vancouver.  Same temperature, foliage, coastal views, vibe + modern high rises like Vancouver.  It's uncanny, until we realize it's about the same equatorial situation, just south.  We are brilliant people.  Really.

We pass, then backtrack, then find the speck that is Mission Bay, and weave around looking for parking.  Parking meters everywhere.

Mission Bay, the city, is cute.  Art deco.  The beach is fabulous.  Beautiful, turquoise waters, fine sand.  Still chilly.  But by golly, we walk on it.










Beach or fountain?  I'm looking at this beach and puzzling at the guys acting like fools in the fountain.  Beach vs fountain?

We also discover BurgerFuel in Mission Bay.  It's fast food.  But it's way better than fast food in the States. So much better.

The veggie burger rocks and features beets.  Beets on a burger!  Best food discover this century.  And the fries, man, the fries in NZ.

Evening Adventures

We are finally able to check in to the hotel at 2:00pm, and it's a fight to stay awake.  The hotel is a good pick.  Plenty of room and a place to sit and regroup.  And a washer and dryer.  So why not do our first international load of laundry!

Jayme gets his techy self situated and I lay down for a few minutes.

I decide we should walk to Parnell Village.  Which ends up just being boutique shopping, and 100% upward.  We are beyond hangry and into like sleep deprived-gry, and it wasn't worth the very uphill trek.  But by golly, we saw it because it was on the tourist list! 

Oh and Bladerunner called and said they wanted their building back.

We aren't hungry, so opt for dessert instead.  And checking out the gelato art of Giapo is also on the list. 

Jayme navigates us downtown and we spend the equivalent of dinner to park.  The tasty goodness of Giapo is so worth it.   It's an upscale gelato experience.  Jayme chose the NZ Hokey Pokey and I opted for a hazelnut coffee fabulous something from the vegan menu.  That's right, a vegan menu.  And see that topping?  Rice crispies, dark chocolate and blueberries and in a chocolate dipped cone.  Life is good.  The end.

We ate five days worth of calories in our first day.  But food, it's all about the food.

We head back to the hotel.  It's 8pm-ish and still light as noon outside.  We'll discover that the sun goes down after 9pm.  More importantly, it's bedtime, and we are ready!

Oh wait, laundry.  An then bedtime!

Today's Favorites:

• Jayme's:  mega chicken sandwich at The Orchard + walking around and "seeing all the places"
• Bonnie's:  Giapo + Cornwall Park

Stay tuned for the second installment:  The Endicott's rent a place in Hobbiton