A Day on the Water

Woke up this morning feeling remarkably fresh considering this was always going to be a ‘jet lag’ day. After breakfast we set out for the harbour front and took a boat to Devonport the seat of the New Zealand navy. Auckland harbour is absolutely lovely. It is beautifully situated amongst lots of peninsulas of land and volcanic islands. There is loads of activity on the water – yachts, ferries and some larger vessels. The weather changed from being quite cloudy to being clear and sunny and we really enjoyed our time on the water and at Devonport. We took a little tourist bus around and got a feeling for where we were, as well as stopping at a couple of beauty spots for photo opportunities! There were some lovely wooden bungalows; there is also a disappearing gun, which had been placed on a hill overlooking the harbour after much effort and labour. It only fired once after which the residents complained, that was it, never again!! An early case of consumer power?
We came back and mooched around the harbour area for a while and then set off on a cruise around some of the peninsulas and islands in the harbour, as well as seeing many magnificent - and hugely expensive - yachts at close quarters. The harbour cruise was fascinating. There is a lot of low density housing all around and golden- sanded beaches all set off by magnificent vegetation. Many of the plants that grow wild are things that we might have one or two of in an English garden. However the down town area of Auckland, although fairly compact, looks modern with its high rise buildings housing the usual suspects – HSBC, Price Waterhouse Cooper, Deloittes etc.etc.
An interesting question, the tour guide said that New Zealand was one of only three countries with no snakes, why? I take the parallel with Britain which is an island but still has snakes. He also said that many of the birds are flightless because there were no predators until they were introduced by foreigners.
The city looks a lovely to place to live with all the water activity and a good climate. Some nice looking beaches near the town centre. It also has a very relaxed feel, for instance there are very few emergency sirens and downtown in the evening feels very safe.
This evening we went to a restaurant on a terrace overlooking the harbour. It was lovely to sit outside and watch the commercial and pleasure boats come and go. Marion gave me an invaluable lesson on the use of spinnakers. Marion also chose the wine an excellent Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. The fish was great, particularly a good chowder.
Now to bed after a full day, I hope we sleep as well as last night. Quote of a the day seen on a tee shirt in the All Blacks shop. Rugby players don’t cry……unless they are Australian. Also described the iconic black shirt as a portal through which only a few entered……
We might be off the air for two days as we are heading for the more rural east and there may not be internet connections.