Auckland and Goodbye to New Zealand

Auckland is New Zealand's biggest city, so we were expecting a lot. When we looked at things to do "in" Auckland, it seemed that most suggestions were for things that were technically outside of Auckland. We quickly learned that this was good advice -- central Auckland is just not that exciting. We suspect that has a lot to do with the impact of Covid and a whole bunch of construction, which makes it seem like a bit of a ghost town right now, with many empty storefronts, especially when you get away from the waterfront.

On our first day in Auckland, and our last day with a car until we get to California in February (to my great delight), we drove north and stopped for a walk on a beautiful beach called (of all things) Omaha Beach.

We then visited a place called Sculptureum, which houses the private collection of a New Zealand art collector and his wife. It turned out to be a really nice stop in part because the collectors have a very broad definition of what qualifies as art, and it was fun to see some really famous artists alongside things that can be bought in any glass-blowing studio (for example). The outdoor sculpture gardens were particularly enjoyable.

After the Sculptureum, we grabbed some lunch before heading back to Auckland. While at lunch we witnessed a truly epic rainstorm, which seemed to come a bit out of nowhere. Apparently, such changes in weather are not that uncommon. I was just glad I did not have to drive in it.

Of course, we had to see the couple of museums worth seeing in Auckland. The Art Gallery was fine, but nothing really stood out as spectacular. But, the Auckland War Memorial Museum was impressive. First, the museum sits in the middle of a giant park slightly outside the center of the city. On the walk up to the site, we saw these incredible old trees:

The museum is housed in a very cool building (sorry no photo), but the best part was the collection. Unfortunately, the museum is so huge and has so many sections, that it is really impossible to see everything in a day. We spent a lot of our time in the section on Maori history, which included traditional Maori meeting houses with amazing carvings:

We also were able to fill in a lot of the blanks about the history of New Zealand after the signing of the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi, which is considered the country's founding document. Amazingly, we learned that in the 1850's a British judge declared the treaty "a nullity", but the country has, through a long process, come around to an interpretation of the treaty, which has allowed it to have a better relationship between its indiginous and white settler citizens than most countries colonized by Europeans. We really found this history very interesting.

There is also a large war memorial/museum within the museum. New Zealand was disproportionately involved (based on population) in the British Empire's many wars. Even its Maori population served significantly in the wars of the 20th century.

On our final day in New Zealand, we once again got out of the city by taking a ferry to Waiheke Island, which is only 40 minutes from Auckland, but felt to us like a mini Hawaii. It is absolutely gorgeous.

Auckland looked beautiful from the ferry as we left.

Once on the island, we rented e-bikes, which we had never used before, but which were perfect for getting around the hilly island. We saw many beautiful beaches, stopped for brunch in a little cafe and later made it around to a couple of wineries for tastings. 

The wine was really good so it was helpful that we knew we couldn't buy any right before our departure from New Zealand. We ended the day with some gelato, and returned the bikes while barely breaking a sweat (literally). I am definitely an e-bike convert, especially when the terrain requires that little boost of power.

That wraps up our 26 days in New Zealand. We loved it! If you visit New Zealand, we recommend focusing on its natural beauty and things to do in nature, as the cities definitely deserve less of your time. Also, we have to say that we found the Kiwis to be genuinely friendly and helpful, and they definitely add to the many reasons to visit. We hope we will be returning very soon.

Now, on to Vietnam.

This will be our last post of 2022. We have been very fortunate in our travels this year and are looking forward to exploring new places in 2023. We wish you all good health, joy and adventure in the new year.

Ciao,

Jeff and Shana