Wine and Dine - Waiheke Island

You're going to Hawaii?

Unfortunately, No. But Waiheke (Not to be confused with Waikeke) Island in New Zealand was pretty stunning in its own right. And it was just determined to be the Number 5 Region to Travel to in 2016! So how bout that?

Sand, Sun, Surf, and Cam

Cam had to be in Auckland for the day on Thursday so we decided to make a weekend out of it and I flew up to meet him Friday afternoon. After flying by myself and paying for an $80 taxi ride (ugh. thank god you don't have to tip here) I met Cam in our DREAM apartment. Cam has a very distinctive style in apartments and I didn't quite realize what I was letting him do when I gave him permission to pick the Auckland Airbnb. When I showed up, I realized that he had found his dream home. I'm lucky I ever got him to leave. On top of having tons of natural light, it had a surf board on the stairs and the book he was currently reading on the bookshelf. And did I mention the location? On a quiet side road, just downhill from Ponsonby (the suburb), and just uphill from an adorable cafe. Hey, I said his taste was disinctive - definitely not bad.

I got a little photo happy when I realized that this is my last time flying to the north island

Bottom of North Island

Flying in to Auckland

We were excited to be in Auckland. So we headed up the hill to town to check out the local fare. After a couple drinks alone, we met up with one of Cam's longest friends and had a quick dinner with him and his girlfriend before they had another party to attend. Busy city people! I swear going back to New York is going to be SUCH an adjustment. After dinner, we took a walk down town, cabbed back once I realized I was exhausted, got a lolly mixture (because we're sugar-oholics), and called it a night.

And the next morning, before we got on the ferry to go to Waiheke Island, I made sure we went to that cute cafe down the hill for some of that world-famous-in-new-zealand avocado toast. We got a donut to go, because #yolo, and headed off to the ferry.

About an hour later, we were there.We dropped off our stuff at the Airbnb that I booked (a perfect bungalo for two of course), headed in to town to the Oyster Inn, almost got scammed on bikes, walked to a vineyard, drank some wine, went home for a nap, and went back to another vineyard for dinner.

Honest reviews?

Oyster Inn - 5 Stars. Holy Moly. Oysters were incredible. The host told me since winter just passed it's prime oyster season. Speaking of the host, he was the sweetest man - I wish he was somehow a part of my family (hopefully that's not strange) - and we had lemonade mint tea. I died. Should've actually died there - that was the best part.

So Good.

What is this photo? This is me being excited and taking photos of everything.

Man scamming us on bikes - He was the worst. He wanted $20 per hour (definitely a made up on the spot rate) or $60/day even though the day was 12 hours long and we only wanted them for 2 hours. Also the vineyards were walking distance, so walking there and taking a taxi back  (I'm noticing a trend) cost us a total $10. Sorry dude.

Walk views weren't too shabby at all.

Mudbrick Vineyard - Beautiful Scenery. As far as atmosphere, I really just wish they had explained their process a bit more. When my mom and I went wine tasting in Nelson, the typical practice was to taste 3-5 wines at the front desk before sitting at a table for lunch, a cheese plate, another bottle wine, etc. I thought we would do that at Mudbrick, but their process is actually quite different. At Mudbrick, they offer a tasting for $10 - $20 (depending on how nice the wines are) and you're meant to have them pour you one, then sit down, enjoy the taste, then go back for the next one. After 3 tastings at the counter it was getting awkward and we finally figured out the system. I felt bad for not knowing that and it kind of tarnished my time. But hey, BEAUTIFUL SCENERY, which is what they're selling, so 5 stars for that. 2(.5?) for atmosphere and honestly the wine wasn't fantastic or really even local... anyway.

Welcome to the good life.

Nap - Naptime was great. I slept. And teased Cam for using the phrase "hey maybe when we're taking a nap I'll look up such and such on the iPad." That's not how you nap.

Home, Sweet, Home

Cable Bay Vineyards - We headed here for dinner upon lots (literally every article I read) of internet reviews that also recommended Oyster Inn. We were one of three groups there in a really forced-fancy atmosphere. I won't go on much more, except to say, I ordered the raviolo expecting some variation on Ravioli and realized that the only variation is that raviolo is the singular form of ravioli. It was one piece of pasta. Cam had a similar experience with the lamb. Well, hey I guess we're trying to eat less meat anyway, right? We had already ordered a bottle of wine, so we drank that, had the $40 bite of food on our plate, and laughed about it the whole way home.

Dinner views tho

The next morning we were up at 5 am to watch the All Blacks beat the Aussies in the World Cup Rugby Finals. First country to win three world cups and first country to win two world cups back to back!!! Tbh I slept through some of the second half but I really did watch the first half. and the end. :)

Also if you're not in New Zealand and probably haven't seen the Air NZ All Blacks Safety Video.. please watch it. When American Airlines/Quantas announced last week that they're starting nonstops from Auckland to LA to create a competitive market (yesss cheap flights), the American Airlines CEO literally said "The only thing we can't do just as well is that safety video... but I'm sure we'll come up with something"

Then we slept in, took a walk down the beach, grabbed our stuff, and headed to the ferry for the long commute back to Christchurch. It felt so good to be home :)

Bye Waiheke!

Just trying to avoid that sunburn on top of a boat.

Til next time Waiheke!

Exploring the North

While I still have a number of places I want to go on the South Island, Cam and I spent the last two weekends exploring the North Island. Cam's from the North Island so not too much was new for him, but aside from a short trip to Auckland last year, these trips were all uncharted territory for me.

Wellington

For New Zealand's four-day Easter Weekend, Cam and I headed up to Wellington. Wellington is known for its craft-beer-and-cafe culture (two things I love), so I was excited to see it for myself.

We spent our first morning walking by the water front and exploring the national Te Papa museum. The museum has everything from a giant squid to the Treaty of Waitangi, so we kept ourselves entertained for a pretty long time.

Signing the guestbook at the Te Papa museum

The next part of the trip was a little treat from Cam. After watching some cricket while New Zealand was hosting the Cricket World Cup,  I decided I wanted to learn a bit about rugby. I had told Cam this, and two days before the trip, I got a text from an unknown number saying "Click here to download your tickets for the Hurricanes match on April 3rd." Followed quickly by, "Surprise! :)" from Cam. Cam had purchased tickets to go with two of his friends to a Wellington Hurricanes rugby game! So after a bit more exploring of Wellington and grabbing a beer with our friends, we went to the game.

Win for the Hurricanes!

Saturday morning, we went to Zealandia. Zealandia is a nature reserve on the hills around Wellington, surrounded by a fence that prevents all predators from coming in to the area. This way the animals who are native to New Zealand can live the way they did before the British settlers and other groups brought over predators. As a result, you can see many animals that are extinct on the mainland just by walking along the pathways here.

Casual pukeko spotting - endangered except at Zealandia!

We had a really fun time walking around and seeing all the animals. To list a few highlights:
- I saw a lizard dating back to the age of the dinosaurs
- I got really scared of a "monster chicken" - more commonly known as a Pukeko
- I learned what the song of the Tui sounds like

Sunday was Easter - the day devoted to eating chocolate and other sweet things. Cam had the idea to go to Sweet Mama's kitchen, where they make chicken waffles and DELICIOUS milkshakes - so that's exactly what we got.

We also went to the grocery store to buy eachother Kiwi easter treats. I made sure we got Reeses pieces :D

We were feeling good and full with just enough time to go to church. After church and a call to the US to wish my parents a happy Easter we took the cable car to the top of the hills over Wellington.

We got so lucky with warm and low wind weather so we walked around the botanical gardens and basked in the sunlight.

After heading down the hill, we had time to relax by the water for a bit - and then it was time to fly home.

Not a bad place to end the weekend.

Hamilton and Auckland

This last weekend wasn't a three day weekend, but to celebrate Cam's birthday we decided to make it one. We decided to go to Hamilton for Saturday and Sunday to see Cam's dad and then spend Monday in Auckland to celebrate his birthday.

Cam and his step mom's pup

Hamilton is the 4th biggest city in the country after Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. It also happens to be very close to Matamata, the home of Hobbiton and the wee little town where my favorite kiwi grew up.

We flew to Hamilton on Sautrday and we were so lucky because the weather was BEAUTIFUL. We spent the afternoon eating lunch in the backyard, walking the path along the Waikato river, and exploring the Hamilton Botanical Gardens, voted the 2014 Garden of the Year (an international award!). The gardens were centered around a circular area with openings in to each garden. It's impossible to see through the opening to the garden ahead until you're directly in front of the ideal view, which makes each garden surprising and wonderful. They had a Japanese garden, Indian garden, Italian Renaissance garden, and even an Alice in Wonderland garden.

Italian Renaissance Garden

Alice in Wonderland?

We finished the day with a delicious dinner with Cam's parents and a few cocktails on our own. As Cam told me, contrary to popular opinion, Hamilton is a real city and it had a good selection is really interesting bars - almost on par with Wellington ;)

On Monday we hopped on an early bus to Auckland and started our next adventure.

Pretty Pretty Auckland

I think I must be getting used to New Zealand because my reaction to Auckland last time was extremely different to the one I had this weekend. This weekend, Auckland was a bustling city and Cam and I were both commenting on how many things there were to look at in the big city --- lord help me when I land in New York City in two weeks. We really enjoyed the food in Auckland and between sudden downpours, we really enjoyed the waterfront.

Obviously I loved the bridges

Since Cam's birthday was Tuesday and we wouldn't be together past 7 am, we celebrated Monday night. Unfortunately the restaurant he wanted to go to recently had a fire and was closed.. so we wandered to the  Sky Tower and discovered that admission to the bar on the 53rd floor was free.

View from the bottom

We took an elevator up to the highest floor of any building in New Zealand and took in the views over a couple glasses of wine.

Cam needs to work on his selfie abilities. 

That's better. Sleepy Cam

And unfortunately Tuesday morning, it was time for me to go home.

Snow on the Southern Alps on my way home. Winter is here.

It was an amazing two weekends on the North Island and I'm so grateful my favorite Kiwi showed me the lay of the land up there. I'm heading back this weekend for a hike with my coworkers and hopefully Cam and I will be going back a few more times before I leave this beautiful country. Thank you so much and happy birthday, Cammy!

Very Far From The Rest Of The World: Auckland

"Take an atlas.

Don't be afraid, this isn't a geography lesson. Really and truly, it's the only improving piece in the whole book. But mother said I should let you know where we live, and this is the best way to set about it. 

Now turn to the map of the world. Tucked away down in the south, separated from Australia and America by mile upon mile of blue sea water, you'll see three funny crinkly islands which look as if the waves have been nibbling, mouselike, at their coasts for countless centuries. These three comprise the Dominion of New Zealand, and that is where we live, and where I am going to take you for a while.

Very far from the rest of the world? Yes, but the boys and girls here are very much like the boys and girls anywhere else, father says."

- Six Little New Zealanders, from 1917, my first ever book from a used bookstore

When you're "very far from the rest of the world" you have to rely on friends of friends to get around and connect back to home. This weekend I went to Auckland to see a high school friend of Lindsay (my college friend and running buddy). Though he now lives in Auckland, he spent the first 10 years of his life in England and the next 10 in Cleveland, Ohio (of all places). 

Auckland is the biggest city in New Zealand and nearly 1/3 of the population of the country lives there - I guess that answers my question about where all the people are in Christchurch.

For as large of a city as Auckland is, it still so serene. Most of Auckland is made up of neighborhoods spread out far from the city center, each with a Main Street and a slightly different feel.

Suburbs from the top of One Tree Hill, Auckland

The lifestyle feels quiet and laid back, and the color of the harbor is a brilliant blue. It's hard to realize you're in a major city when you see the color of that water. Across the harbor, are several islands, which are actually sleeping volcanoes. Some of them are northern suburbs, such as Devonport, where we went, and others, such as Rangi Toto, are barren with only hiking trails on them. 

The City of Auckland from Devonport

The city actually reminded me of a south-pacific Honolulu, Hawaii. From the harbour, you can see PWC (thought of you Caitlin!), Deloitte, and various other American companies.

PWC Building for Caitlin Marcoux!

Looking out across the harbor you can see the entire kiwi navy (consisting of two ships - they don't have many enemies). And around the side of the harbor, there are the most beautiful beaches full of people paddle boarding, playing volleyball, and soaking up the sun. Where else can you find a major navy base, a Deloitte office, and beautiful beaches? Honolulu.

Honolulu or Auckland: Where you'd rather be.

But Auckland has a ton of it's very own history, and loves to show its historic side. On my first day, after a delicious meal on Devonport, we went to the Auckland Art Museum.  It had some interesting light show exhibits going on, but somehow we ended up going to the room with art featuring the Maori culture. Maori are one of the native groups in New Zealand. In 1840 the British and the Maori set up the Treaty of Waitangi to give Maori the right of British colonists, as long as they accepted British sovereignty. Since the time of the treaty, the British have violated the treaty, and as a penalty have had to return many land rights to the Maori people. As a results, much of the land in Auckland is currently owned by the Maori people, and a mutual respect seems to be present between the two cultural groups.

After a little bit of history, we got back to the fun stuff - shopping and eating. I saw the main shopping areas, the main department store (which was already decorated for Christmas), and a shopping road called Karangahape road where I bought my used book. Before leaving the city for the day, I asked to stop by a little bakery I saw online. It was an adorable milk and cookie bar called Moustache. It was the cutest little bakery where all you could really get was milk, cookies, or coffee. The milk was meant for dunking, and so we got a couple different kinds of cookies and had a fantastic time dunking them in milk. I can't remember the last time I did that. 

Milk and Cookie Combo,  Please

Milk made for dunking :)

At night I got to meet some of Nick's friends, and they were so fun to hang out with. I'm not a huge fan of the Kiwi accent, but one of Nick's friends was named Charlotte, and the way they said her name was just perfect. "I believe in you, CHA-lit!". We went to a few bars around Auckland, and had a ton of fun. Coincidentally, one of the bars we went to was a sister bar of one of my favorite places in Sydney.

Tea pot cocktails! Look familiar, Steph and Skye?

We spend my last day shopping, eating fish and chips on the beach, and wandering around the botancial gardens, and before I knew it, it was time to head back to Christchurch.

Mission Bay, Auckland

It was really nice getting way for the weekend, and seeing another city in New Zealand, but I have to admit, a part of me felt right at home when I got back to quiet little Christchurch. It might be the nice spring weather we've had the last few days, but something about this place is certainly growing on me :) It's not like any other place else I've been in the world, but its becoming my little place, and I'll always remember the two months I got to live "very far from the rest of the world".

Evening run in Hagley Park, Christchurch