A Day and a Half in Auckland

Hello! Before anything else, I would like to thank you all for your support on my first post. The response was completely unexpected and immensely encouraging for me to continue, so I send you a heartfelt thank you.

Here is Day 1 of our one month family road trip in New Zealand.

We woke up to a bustling Auckland on a sunny yet cold Wednesday morning. After a long journey and several flights getting to New Zealand from the Philippines, we were all exhausted, yet excited. Christmas was in a few days. Downing a cup of instant black coffee, I braved opening the sliding door to the hotel room's balcony and hopped out, as one would under a cold shower. "Brrr.." It was 18 degrees Celsius, unusually cold for a bright summer day.

We spent the morning on foot walking from our hotel apartment to the city center. The Sky Tower pulled us. Christmas was in a few days with shop windows teeming with decorations and holiday sale signs.

Sky Tower

The iconic 328 meter high Sky Tower at SKYCITY is a touristy must do. It is located at the corner of Victoria and Federal Streets. We enjoyed its Main Observation deck tour ten years prior.

There is a dining revolving restaurant- Orbit 360, The Sugar Club - a luxurious cocktail bar and Sky Cafe with great views of the city.

SkyWalk - For the not so faint hearted, enjoy the 360 degree panoramic sights 192 meters high up strapped to a harness by walking along the edge of the tower's pergola.

If that doesn't satisfy your adrenaline rush cravings, dare and try the SkyJump.

Lunch at a Kebab Joint

Despite living in the Middle East for more than a decade, the best kebab we have ever had was here in New Zealand. This is due to the tender and tastiest lamb that we remember having and the cheapest take away meal you can ever have in the country.

We found an affordable kebab sandwich or kebab on rice that comes with a free drink here at Kebabs on Queen along Queen Street.

New Zealand is an expensive country so this kind of meal is hard to come by. Here, you can choose different sauces for your kebab.

Stroll around the city

We spent the early afternoon exploring the city center on foot. Later, we met with old friends from Dubai whom we last met in New Zealand 10 years ago. They took us to Auckland Domain for a quick tour of the garden while chatting away with loads of catching up.

The first time we visited them they took us to a volcanic peak, Mt. Eden in Eden Park as well as a beach whose name I can't recall.

With the limited time we had, we decided to spend the late afternoon at the Viaduct Harbour/ Wynyard Quarter instead.

Restaurants and bars all exuded a festive vibe, with locals geared up to start the holidays catching up with friends and colleagues for a last meet up before they leave for their planned Christmas/ Summer Trip(s).

We got to experience the Auckland Rush Hour Traffic (which is nothing compared to Manila by the way) on our way to dinner.

Our first day ended with an excellent Italian gourmet pizza dinner over great conversations at Farina on Ponsonby Road and a quick night drive around the surrounding areas.

Driving and Navigation

The following day, we were still jet lagged. **We spent Day 2 picking up our rental car from the airport office of Easy Rent Cars (Qeeq.com) and planning for our first major drive. **

It was quite tricky driving within Auckland due to one-way streets, strict rules against driving along bus and bike lanes. Don't worry, the traffic signs are well indicated as well as the maximum and recommended speed limit.

It was difficult to find a parking space during the high season. However, there are private car parks charged by the hour throughout the city.

We weren't able to get a GPS in our rental car. So we heavily relied on Google Maps during the entire trip.

We went back to the airport and got ourselves a Spark SIM Card with a good data package. Internet is generally fast in NZ. There are Free Spark Wifi Hotspots throughout the city. This allowed us to download maps in advance to avoid getting lost, in case we drive through a location with poor signal.

We also used the good old map to find our way along major roads whenever the phone's navigation system was lost :)

If you have another day to spare, catch a ferry and explore the Hauraki Gulf and Islands surrounding Auckland such as Waiheke Island, Rangitoto Island and etc.

If you enjoyed this post, the next one will be about our Day 3 adventure driving from Auckland to Rotorua.

To be continued...

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