I bought this spinner suitcase last year in San Francisco, haven't used it much and thought -- wrongly, it would appear! -- that this would be good for my New Zealand trip. I experience the zipper malfunction above shortly before leaving for the airport. After many expletives and a hurried repack into an old, salt-stained red suitcase, I hopped on Canada Line and met Estelle and her partner Leenane at the airport.
The flight was pleasantly uneventful and while I didn't get much sleep, I did get to watch my favourite New Zealand film "Boy" again as well as pieces of "Bridesmaids", between catnaps. We arrived at Auckland International Airport about 20 minutes ahead of schedule, which was just before dawn on Good Friday. After clearing customs (one question for me, zero for Estelle) I bought a new SIM card for the cheap Nokia phone I bought in Wellington back in 2010.
I had been in touch with friends of friend to stay over the weekend in Auckland before flying to Christchurch. It was still awfully early when we touched down so E & I took a bus into downtown Auckland to wander about a bit. Not much to see as it was early on Good Friday, so we found an Esquires (chain of coffee shops similar to Blenz or Second Cup) and tried to Skype Leenane back in Burnaby. Welcome to the molasses-like broadband speeds of Aotearoa!
Around 9am we jumped in a cab to our hosts in Onehunga (southern suburb). Keg and Mary are a wonderful American ex-pat couple with two children. I'd met them thought my friend Jaime in Bremerton, who went to grad school with Keg. They've been so kind and generous and we're appreciating their hospitality and a place to regroup before hitting the road.
Mid-afternoon we headed out for a drive to Muriwai Beach, a black-sand beach on the West Coast near Auckland, and site of a gannet colony. Sun was shining, it was about 20deg.C, and we had a delightful little walk down to the beach which was fairly busy with walkers and surfers. I insisted that Estelle dip her toe into the Tasman Sea as a welcome to New Zealand. I wasn't far behind, but got caught in what I call a "rogue wave" (not that serious) and somehow managed to get soaked up to my waist. Doh! Embarrassing, but not that bothersome. Glad I was able to provide a good laugh for all.
We walked back up to the car and headed for a nifty little brewpub and enjoyed a sample flight of beers, handily labelled 1 though 4 (plus a bonus glass of cider), plus risotto balls and pork belly. I apologised to the server for the wet spot I left on the wooden bench. (see previous para.)
Back in Onehunga we had a wonderful evening of hanging out, drinking wine, and an early night. Estelle was down for the count by about 7:30pm (local time) and I lasted until about 9:30. Took melatonin just before bed and had a really good sleep.
Today we're up early and looking forward to a hike on Rangitoto Island, a (dormant) volcano about 25 min. ferry ride from downtown Auckland.
Here's a couple of pictures from yesterday.
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