Kingsgate Hotel Parnell Auckland

... the winter gardens: a beautiful set of green houses as well as a fernery: a cool garden of native plants of New Zealand. It was a great day visiting the city on foot and bus, wandering through parks and visiting restaurants.<br><br>Tomorrow ,we will visit the Auckland Museum, after we have a light breakfast (when in New Zealand do as the Kiwis) and visit another car market. With any luck and fortitude, we will be the owners ...

... so many dolphins all jumping and playing around the boat, it was amazing but unfortunately because they had babies amongst them we weren&#8217;t allowed to swim with them. We then headed further north to Cape Reinga where we drove along 90 mile beach and did some sand boarding. Unfortunately the weather wasn&#8217;t great but it made it quite eerie being surrounded by rolling fog.<br><br>After spending another couple of days in Auckland I jumped on the bus ...

Two hours south of Auckland finds you at the Firth of Thames. Beautiful protected waters that attract migrating shorebirds on their way down from Alaska and other northern climes. We were a bit early but the local bird watchers told us that in a few weeks they will number in the tens of thousands. Some will have flown non stop from the Arctic Ocean. We did see a number of early arrivals including a Greater White Heron. According to the folks this was a ...

... and functions ranging from indoor and outdoor exhibition.<br><br>Here's your chance to fly a Jet Airliner Simulator! Here's an opportunity that doesn't come your way every day - the chance to fly the world's most popular airliner. Based on the 737 this experience is completely. At City Florist "we make it unique. . ." We have freshly cut roses and a huge range of flowers, gift baskets, corporate flowers, helium balloons &amp; bouquets for all occasions. Gifts, Weddings ...

... feet from the valley floors. The brooks have pure fresh water, which I drank quite often. So good! The cruise around the sound was amazing. Saw dolphins in the sound at the foot of Mitre Peak. I was really glad I came here, as I originally wasn't because it seemed to touristy. Well, it was worth it.<br><br>Back up North<br><br>After my time in Queensland and reaching my furthest point south in Te Anua, I made my way north. I spent a night on ...

... So Jess and i headed off, first stop Rotarua, where we headed off to a secluded lake in the middle of a forrest for a picnic. The lake (something like Lake Okinawa) was stunning... i mean picture perfect blue with dense forest all around and only about 5 other people to share the beach (which is a common theme in NZ). We relaxed, drank a little bit of bubbly then headed to Hell´s Gate which is all the hot bubbling mud reaches the surface and creates spectacular scenes ...

... amount of alcohol consumed, caused the delay in producing my latest Pulitzer Prize winner. I therefore humbly apologise. NEW ZEALAND The flight from Papeete to Auckland was with Air New Zealand; we had an all male crew but they seemed very nice (!) They wore smart grey suits but they looked scruffy, as none of them wore ties. The immigration officers, however, gave us a thorough going over, inspecting tickets & itineraries to check we ...

... erupt every 2-3 days. When it finished we took a walk around all the mud pools, geysers and craters which was lovely apart from the sulpher smell. We drove to Napier next, via Taupo, where we spent days and nights looking at the wonderful Art Deco buildings. We took the historic guided tour and learnt about the earthquake that destroyed the city in 1931 and about the rebuilding, taking millions of photos along ...

... the Sky Tower and had great views across the city on a warm, clear morning. Went to the main observation deck, which in sections the floor was clear so you could see past your feet directly down to the ground - 60 floors or so. Jen's fascination for heights isn't as strong as mine!! Watched a couple of people jump off the building - there was even a countdown so you could watch the jumps. Went to the upper deck which at only a few floors further up didn't look much different ...

... just like the good old days, and really good<br>airplane food. At one point, I started playing the Flight of the<br>Conchords album on my TV, and looked over to find Lu watching the<br>episode "Sally", that I had just heard "Most beautiful Girl in the<br>Room" on my unit myself, we're so predictable.<br><br><br>