The World Around Us

Welcome to New Zealand!

Country: New Zealand by Lisette

03-02-2005

75-AucklandW

View from Sky Tower.

Just arrived in Auckland, New Zealand’s economic hub on the Northern Island. As this hilly city is sprawled out, it’s apparently the fourth largest city of the world, I got to see a fair bit of town and grow some serious leg muscle!

The city itself is nothing special. But its surroundings,.. Well that gives me hope for the next two months I am traveling here! I am sure it will help me with adjusting after spending five months in Australia.

I haven’t been up to much interesting blogging stuff. I went to the Sky Tower, Toronto’s CN Tower and Paris’ Eiffel Tower equivalent, and was not exactly impressed. Auckland is a city, like so many others in the world. Then again, can such an impression be true when I’ve been here for just 2 days?

The iconic 328 meters high Sky Tower is a telecommunications tower and tourist attraction with an observation deck, a casino and a revolving restaurant. As befitting a country that seems obsessed with offering tourists crazy jumps, you can “SkyJump” here from 192 meters, reaching 85km an hour.

I am actually writing this blog based on my original email sent out to family and friends in 2005 in Mozambique (in 2013!), but my mind keeps wandering off to the CN Tower’s new EdgeWalk. In 2011 Toronto’s main tourist attraction introduced “the highest full circle hands-free walk on a 1,5 meter wide ledge encircling the top of the Tower’s main pod” (356 meters high!).

How on earth can anyone undertake these grilling exercises? I am not suggesting it is grilling for a person’s body, but more for a person’s mind. There are things in life I will never understand and this is one of them!

Oponini.

Oponini.

 

But okay, let’s return from hot Maputo back to hilly Auckland. I loved the parks the city had to offer, and even more so Waiheke Island. I took the ferry for a day out and had a wonderful time. My advice is to take your time and walk (or cycle) around the island, taste the wine, enjoy some history and veg out on the beach.

My first few days here are marked with some research. How am I going around the island? There are a couple of options and I chose lazily for “the Magic bus”. This hop-on-and-op-off tourist bus runs every day, following a standard route on both islands. The driver is a guide as well and you’re often being dropped in front of your hostel. I figured it is easy to get around and meet people.