AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

North Island

Auckland is a delightful city with friendly people, lots of parks and immaculately clean and litter free.. Auckland is known as the city of sail, because there are so many boats. The largest  of  the  6-7 marinas in the city houses 2000 boats and there are many boat garages that house 200 boats. In greater Auckland there  are an estimated 70,000 boats, both motor and sail. New Zealanders are physically active and sport oriented. There are 102 beaches within an hour drive of the city.

Mountain ranges and hilly terrain dominate the landscape. A massive mountain range, known as the Southern Alps, extends 2300 kilometers and has 223 named peaks. Mt. Eden, at 643 feet above sea level is the city’s highest point. It provided  a marvelous 360° view of the city. On a clear day one can see Tasmania on the horizon. The Tasman Sea is the body of water separating New Zealand from Australia.

            We learned that in the tenth century Polynesians arrived from Hawaii. There was abundant food supplies and fertile soils and by the twelfth century there were established settlements in most of the country. Dutch navigator Abel Tasman discovered the area in 1642 and gave it its name. In 1769, Captain James Cook and his crew were the first Europeans to set foot on New Zealand soil.

All native trees are evergreen, and there are many varieties. They provide a lush greenness all year. All the deciduous trees have been imported and planted. The native pokutukawa tree is known as the Christmas tree because it has a mass of red color in December. There are many active volcanic craters in the country and earthquakes of varying degrees are fairly common.

            The city has many lovely parks. When I asked the driver if there was a floral clock in town he dove out of his way to a large park to show me the clock. Now that is friendly!

The sunken gardens along the waterfront at the Savage memorial monument provided a marvelous view of the harbor. The gardens were spectacular. Michael Savage was New Zealand’s first labor prime minister and was attributed with the major influences that pulled New Zealand out of the depression. He died in 1940. 

The flowers were outstanding everywhere, and  at the  Conservatory and Botanical Gardens I saw many plants I’d never seen before.

As a respite from sightseeing and for a little exercise we stopped at a swinging suspension bridge which was lots of fun to walk. Fine wire on the sides and overhead pretty much covered the bridge for safety reasons. It was a long way down to the bottom, and the bridge did swing! The only casualty was a hat blown off into the ravine.

There is much to see and do in Auckland and individual adventures will be covered separately in other posts.