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Kia Ora New Zealand!

Auckland Travel Blog › entry 1 of 17 › view all entries

Kia Ora! I've had the best of times these 2 weeks, met interesting people, saw new places and whilst I couldn't learn a Kiwi accent but I most definitely enjoyed eating 'fesh and cheps'! Hope you enjoy my travelogue as much as I enjoyed my trip.

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Kia Ora New Zealand!

November 13, 2005

The Ferry Station at the end of Queen Street

Wahey! Here I am at last. Seems like I've been planning this trip forever.

My flight out of LAX was peaceful. Qantas is one of the best airlines I've flown on. I'm very happy with the service. I got a nightpack, eye mask, socks and toothbrush and paste. Food was filling, and they served wine as well! I got really good sleep on the plane as both seats next to mine were empty.

'Sunrise' came a little late, infact just 1 hr before the landing (at 6am) which was a good thing. More dark, more sleep! It was Sun morning local time as we flew over Auckland. I've always maintained that the sights I see during landing give me a pretty good idea of what to expect on my holiday, it sure didn't disappoint here! The landing reminded me so much of landing over England.

Viaduct Harbour

Greenery everywhere. Only this time, there were hills, small green islands and not flat like English plains. The airport is by the sea so you land parallel to a water lagoon.

Immigration was cool, no questions asked. One of the security men infact said "Namaste" to me! Padaki called, he said he'd be there by 8am. I shopped around for a SIM card for me mobile in the meantime, no luck as Vodafone kept asking for a code, whatever that is! Anyways Padaki arrived by that time, and we headed off to his hotel.

My first impression of Auckland driving from the airport to his Grand Chancellor hotel (near the airport) was that it's very English. I had breakfast at the hotel, showered and we both left for the city.

The city is good, again like some of the smaller cities in England I thought, greenery being a big similarity.

Auckland Harbour cruise

But also the way roads and houses are designed and located. We got off at Queen's Street which is located at city centre. Like any other city, it was filled with all the American chains - Starbucks, McDs, etc. We walked around, bought a few souvenirs and went to the Viaduct Harbour. I'm so far not impressed with the harbour that much. It's nice, but not exotic or picturesque by any length of the imagination. We went on the Harbour cruise but nothing that big. Late lunch at B.K, false camera scare and a long drive back to the hotel was pretty much rest of the agenda for the evening.

I spent a good hour at Padaki's hotel catching up on all the latest goss from Arlington. Now that was fun! Real fun! Caught the shuttle back to the airport.

Auckland city centre including Skyline tower

The domestic terminal is tiny, and security check was a breeze. It overlooks the international terminal so I spent 1 hr looking at all the Air New Zealand jumbos moving back from the gates and departing into the sunset. My flight as such was peaceful. Sat next to a nice couple from Christchurch who gave me tips on places to see and visit whilst there.

It was raining when we landed in C'Ch. I went with the same couple I sat next to, and a Kannada couple (!!) in a shuttle to the City Central YHA. I settled in by 11pm that night. Nice place, and I was glad I finally got a bed to lie on! My roommates were all asleep by the time I got in - 1 Japanese, 1 Brit and 1 Aussie.