SPLORE MUSIC + ARTS FESTIVAL
Note the Drone flying above the synchronized swimmers (!)
Early morning sausages out the back of the van.
A bunch of us from work got free tickets to the Splore Music and Arts festival and had a solid weekend of camping, sausage sizzles, art exhibitions and live music (The Cat Empire was my favorite) in Tapapakanga Park.
BITS AROUND AUCKLAND
Downtown Auckland (and Devonport in front) from Rangitoto.
Windy day at Bethells Beach.
Record selection at Conch.
Lava caves, Rangitoto.
Locals.
RUM RACES
One night after work, a few of us hopped on a giant sailboat to join in on the Rum Races in Auckland harbor.
Tor and myself at the helm.
Kirsty and Scott manning beverage duty.
Captain Wes danced for a passing cruise ship...
...and got a good reaction from on-lookers!
Fun was had by all AND our boat, the Ta'Aroa won the race!
HARVEY BENGE
Every last hostel in Auckland was booked one random Friday night, so I reserved a room for the weekend at a house on Airbnb. Harvey Benge hosted me in his Ponsonby bungalow and after re-acclimating to luxuries such as not sharing a bathroom with 30 other people, I stretched the weekend into a week and half in his quiet and colorful home.
After retiring from running a major ad agency in Auckland, Harvey turned his creativity to photography and has published over forty art photo books. Over bowls of breakfast muesli, I was delighted to hear about his photography process and how he splits his time between Auckland and Paris.
His immaculate house was filled with books, art and all the inspiring details that hint at a full and creative life.
If you'd like to see more, Harvey's website features his observational photographs revolving around the anthropology of city life. In particular, his photos of 1970's Auckland suburbia are mighty cool well as his blog. Definitely take a peek and stay a his place if you ever find yourself in Auckland. His company is even better than the fresh figs from the backyard.
MOUNT EDEN
Mount Eden is a dormant volcano high up above Auckland.
In American-speak: 8,821 miles from New York.
It's good for a hike to the top for a bit of a workout and nice sunset views of the city. You might even find a fellow American up there who will be single serving friend for the afternoon, where you'll bond over the odd need to come to this funny little country that was never even mentioned in either of your 16 years of education.
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND
Full disclosure: I kind of hated Auckland when I first arrived. Downtown Auckland seemed like a gray hodge podge of bad architecture. The hostels were rough. Nothing was charming and everything was expensive. I still haven't done the liters to gallons calculation for the price of gas to provide a helpful comparison, but know that a burrito costs $16 and that's just obscene.
After a week in rainy Auckland, I caught a ferry to the island of Waiheke which proved to be a little slice of Hawaiian-y heaven, then escaped to lovely Te Puna with my friend Amanda. Soon after that, I was off on the road trip with Sandy all over New Zealand. Returning from that, I knew I loved New Zealand but still wasn't entirely sure about the city of Auckland.
Aotearoa = Maori word for "New Zealand". Literally meaning, "land of the long white cloud" because of the shape of the 2 islands. Bit of a mixed message from this graffiti...
During the road trip, I lined up interviews at an Auckland production company for a contract Content Director gig. Turns out LinkedIn is actually useful and from posting that I was looking for production work in NZ, I found myself on a Skype interview at the beach while still living out of a van. Long story short, I later got the job and decided to stick around Auckland for at least a few months...
...and I'm happy I did, because while my fondness for Auckland has been more of a slow burn than love at first sight -- it's truly won me over. I still maintain that despite it's killer sunglass deals, downtown Queen Street is a place where dreams go to die...but the further you go out from the the center of the city, the lovelier Auckland is.
Silo Park
Good One Cafe in Ponsonby
Shaky Isles cafe in Britomart
Part of the reason Auckland lacks a certain feel is because it's a very young city. While the U.S.A. is like a teenager compared to the history of some European countries, New Zealand is even younger. It didn't become a British colony until 1840 and most of it's culture is derived from it's Maori roots and early British settlers and now (more and more with immigration) from India and Asia. NZ is a bit like a tween, still growing and figuring out it's cultural identity. They're actually voting on changing the flag at the moment too.
The ever expanding city of Auckland may not have a super distinct culture quite yet but MY favorite part is the cafe culture. Massive chain cafes aren't as common, so each cafe is thoughtfully designed, has delicious espresso and creative, fresh menus. My favorites include:
Good One: looks like Wes Anderson did the interior decorating.
William Souter Espresso: Best Muesli in Auckland (and I've become a bit of a Muesli aficionado/addict). Muesli = sort of healthier granola. Many long and lingering Saturday brunches have been had here.
Shaky Isles: cute cartoons on the wall and REAL good pastries and cappuccinos.
Food trucks are also alive and well in Auckland, especially at Silo Park on Friday nights where they project outdoor movies.
175th Anniversary of Auckland was this year. And the celebrations haven't stopped since January.
Cute shops and boutiques line K-Road and Ponsonby Road.
Auckland Art Gallery.
It was only a matter of time before I found the pretty neighborhoods, summer weather kicked in and I made enough money to afford the burritos. Auckland's also proved to be wonderful because while it's a concrete jungle of a city, 30-60 minutes outside of it you'll find rugged beaches, waterfalls, volcanoes, tropical islands and rural green countryside. Waiheke, Rangitoto (a volcanic island) and Devonport (a historic village by the sea) are must-visits which I keep going back to.
Kite surfers in Devonport.
Rangitoto (volcanic island) off in the distance.
Waiheke, where apparently Wu Tang represent.
Vineyards in Waiheke.
Kiwi's tend to use the phase "she'll be right mate" as slang to explain "whatever is wrong shall right itself with time" and Auckland has done just that for me in the past 5 months of living here. This big city in a small corner of the world has been quite a pleasure to reside in.
END OF THE ROAD (TRIP)
After Christchurch, we made our way up the South Island, rode the ferry back to Wellington and drove back up through the North Island. With a few coffee breaks, seal watching stops and beach time we made our way back for one last afternoon at Piha Beach and one more night in Auckland.
Sandy, back at at Piha.
Sandy glowing, from a healthy mix of sunshine, red wine and steak.
Covering two islands in three weeks with only one speeding ticket, we celebrated a successful road trip with dinner and drinks at Chapel in Ponsonby. It was such an adventurous but also relaxing journey and it was so, so nice to kick off my time in NZ with one of my best homegirls. The next morning we returned our beloved campervan and I hugged Sandy goodbye as she hopped in a cab to catch her flight back to Boston.
This whole round-the-world trip of mine was purposefully unplanned but I did have 3 things planned when I left Boston in September:
1) a flight from Boston to London
2) a flight from London to Auckland (both from frequent flyer mile points!)
3) a road-trip with Sandy in New Zealand
Now that the last was complete... I'll admit that there was a moment of panic as I laid on the top bunk in a terrible hostel in Auckland, realizing that I needed to start a life here now, from scratch.
Before I could get too melodramatic, I perked up remembering the words of a wise woman "...every few years one needs to shake ones life through a sieve, like a miner in the Yukon. The gold nuggets remain. The rest falls through like the soft earth that it is."
With that in mind... I called my Mum, bought a cappuccino and got to work on a starting a new little life in the Southern Hemisphere.