Auckland
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Auckland |
Auckland City
Walks up any of the hills in Auckland provide a constant reminder that New Zealand
is a volcanic area. There are 43 volcanic cones in the immediate vicinity of
Auckland many of them used historically as a "pa" (fortified village) by the
Maori, and now used as parks. Two of the best in Auckland are Mount Eden
and One Tree Hill in Cornwall Park.
In the last 25 years, there have been a great number of Samoan and Tongan
immigrants to New Zealand which has resulted in Auckland now having the largest
Polynesian population in the world.
The Auckland War Memorial (Museum) is located
atop a hill (of course) surrounded by an extensive domain. Both the museum and
the gardens are worthwhile.
The Maori section of the museum contains extensive explanations of the Maori "genealogy"
of nature - i.e., the ecology of plants and animals. The following example explains
the relationship between "Pipi and the Mussels" (the Pipi/cockles, tuatua and
tohora are sand-burrowing clams; Mussels/kuku grow attached to rocks).
"Long ago the shellfish children of Hine-Moana (Ocean Maid) were taken to
Rakahora (rocks) who sheltered them beneath their kinfolk Nga rimu (seaweeds).
One day a fierce quarrel arose between the kuku (mussels) tribe and the pipi
(cockle) tribe.
And so the pipi fled to the beaches where they dug themselves in.
When the kuku attacked and thrust out their tongues in the haka, they were filled
with sand and forced to retreat to the rocks.
Their fighting was observed by the whales and sharks who said to each other,
"let's attack the pipi tribe and scoop them up when they poke out their heads."
But when the pipi saw them coming, they burrowed deep into the sand and so the
whales were stranded on the beach.
And that is why the kuku still cling to the rocks and the tuatua and
tohora are found buried in the sand, and the greatest creatures of the sea
still strand themselves chasing the children of Hine-Moana."
Auckland has every kind of festival and activity that you can think of including
some that you might not - such as base-jumping from the Sky Centre. The Sky Centre is the
needle that dominates the Auckland skyline in most pictures.
Auckland is called "The City of Sails" with reason - on weekends and holidays
the Harbour and Hauraki Gulf teems with sailboats of all sizes. To have a quick
tour of the waterfront area, preferably take a ferry to Devonport and Waiheke Island.
At the very least, take the ferry from Auckland to Devonport for the day.
A cheap alternative to a commercial harbour tour is to take the Auckland to
Bucklands ferry. All the local bus drivers that we met were also happy to answer our
tourist questions and point us in the right way.
Racing yachts - Viaduct Basin |
"Pride" at Viaduct Basin |
Elvis is alive in Auckland! |
Viaduct Basin
Central Auckland's waterfront renewal project focuses on everything and anything
to do with yacht racing, in general, and the America's Cup in particular. In
the photo, the 15-storey high mast on the 1988 Americas Cup "Big Boat", KZ1,
dwarfs surrounding buildings and the newer Americas Cup boat "NZL 40" and modern
'Round the World racer, "Assa Abloy."
This is also the location of the Maritime Museum, a must see for boaters or
history buffs. Viaduct Basin is a real people place and stage for a lot of
community events. For example, while in Auckland on four different occassions in our
three months, we watched the arrival and departure of the Volvo Ocean Race ('round the
world), the Grand Prix International Match Racing Championships,
club races, dinghy races, an outrageous gay pride festival coinciding with and
adjacent to the Grand Prix race festivities, and bands, dancing and miscellaneous
other happy events. It really is 'action central' for the downtown area.
Devonport
Located on the North side of Auckland Harbour, Devonport apperas to be an upscale suburb
with many pleasant waterfront boutiques. For great views back to Auckland and across the
Hauraki Gulf, walk up Mount Victoria (yep, another volcano). The nicest way to travel to
Devonport for the day is by ferry from downtown Auckland. You can also get there by public
transit across the harbour bridge.
Hauraki Gulf
The Huaraki Gulf, New Zealand site of the Americas Cup, contains a number of
islands, some, like Waiheke, with considerable populations. The Hauraki skyline
seaward of Auckland is dominated by the dormant Rangitoto Island volcano.
Called the City of Sails, the immediate Auckland area has some
50 yacht / cruising / boating clubs (ref. Auckland Yacht and Boating Association).
There are also another three dozen boating, canoe/kayak and rowing associations.
Rangitoto Island - Hauraki Gulf |
The Auckland Anniversary weekend is a land and sea festival not to be missed.
There is a massive music concert in the park at the Domain - take a bus, bring
chairs and a supper picnic and arrive early with thousands and thousands of others.
The Anniversary Regatta sees almost anything that floats involved in a race
in the ponds or harbour or Hauraki Gulf. We went on a long yacht race with friends to
Mahurangi. This involved sailing past Rangitoto volcanoe which was quite neat.
Because of its perfect volcanoe symmetry, it looks the same from all directions,
so you do not have the perception of the view changing as you circle past it.
On the return, we were bracketed by the Team New Zealand America's Cup boats
out training and then sailed past a group of nearly 200 dinghies being
sailed by youngsters in another race. The intensity of those youngsters was a
good indicator of the reason for New Zealand domination of so much of the world's
adult sailing competitions.
160 dinghies - youth in Anniversary Regatta |
Waiheke Island
Waiheke Island is an easy ferry ride from Auckland. Probably the most gentrified
of the islands, and undergoing a real estate boom, it has a good assortment of
beaches, boutiques, festivals, and the best fish and chips that we found in New
Zealand. Accommodation is impossible and the roads are jammed for festival
weekends. We recommend that you specifically enquire about festival schedules
some time in advance if planning to visit Waiheke Island. The core area of the
island has decent bus service; rental bikes and cars (expensive) are available.
We walked nearly everywhere that we wanted to go in the short time that we were
there.
Onera and Little Onera Beaches and Palm Beach on Waiheke Island are nice and
relatively easily accessible. Little Palm Beach is a nude beach immediately
adjacent to Palm. The border between the two is as invisible as the non-existent
bathing suits.
Auckland - from Devonport |
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