More of Week 2

1/20/12
Today I ventured in a different direction to see the Auckland Museum. I am quickly discovering that everything is within walking distance depending on how far you are willing to walk. The Museum is situated in Auckland Domain, the city’s oldest park. 185 acres – hills, cricket fields, amphitheatre for concerts, old trees, open spaces – beautiful. The museum had a major display of the Maori culture as well natural history area, Weird and Wonderful children’s area and a tribute to New Zealand war veterans. I spent almost three hours in the museum, had lunch on beautiful grassy noll looking out at the harbor, then on to the Wintergarden where I thought of my friends who love unusual plants and flowers. This place was Franklin Park Conservatory on steroids. I’m going to take Terry to this park for a concert or free movie – its beautiful and within 20 minutes walk from our apartment.

1/21/12
It’s Saturday so Terry and I ventured out to explore Rangitoto Island. I found Super Saver fares on the internet and booked a tour. One mile walk downhill to the ferry, then a 25 minute ferry ride to the island, then a three hour tour on a tram pulled by a 4wd tractor. The island is the most recently-erupted volcano in NZ – 600 years old. There is lava rock everywhere. NZ is seriously expecting volcanic action any time. No one lives on the island and there are very few vehicles – we saw two while we were there and one was the tour tractor. We were able to climb to the summit and also did a 6 mile round trip hike to Islington Bay Wharf where we had our lunch. Beautiful aqua colored water – such a lovely setting. We caught a ferry back to Auckland, another mile walk up-hill to our apartment – what an enjoyable day. We were tuckered.

1/22/12
We went to church today at The Tab (Auckland Baptist Tabernacle.) The sermon was about Re-Discovering God in Need. God is teaching me about trusting him more and more. He has put me in a new place where I can’t rely on my usual ways, my usual activities, my usual friends. Life as I know it here in NZ is totally different. One thing that was memorable was the big cups they used for communion. They were glass (not plastic) juice glasses. They reminded me that our God is a big God and He wants us to feast with him.

Week 2 of our adventures

Views from our apartment ...

1/17/12
It’s Monday here and Terry’s first day of going into the lab at University of Auckland. That means I will have the whole day to myself. Actually I’m at a bit of a loss, not used to being by myself the entire day and not really having any tasks that need to be done. Well, that’s not entirely true. I do have to run a load of dishes in the little tiny dishwasher. And I do have a load of clothes to put in the wash. Our life here is rather simple. We only have four settings of dishes so I do dishes every other day. We have a washer the plays a little song when the clothes are done. No dryer but I have a drying rack and a heated towel rack. I venture out to catch a tour at the Auckland Art Gallery and then head to the library for free wi-hi.

1/18/12
Today I am going to take a ferry to Devonport to see what there is to see. A 12 minute ferry ride across the harbor lands me at a delightful seaside city. I have packed a book, camera, sunscreen, map and a few odds and ends in my new Camelback backpack. I’m looking forward to the day. When it started raining around 11:30 I decided it was time for lunch. I chose the nearest restaurant and ended up at a breakfast place where I had toasted bagel with salmon and avocado and a cup of tea for $14! Devonport is a charming city with quaint seaside lodging, all with lush gardens. I climbed to the top of the volcanic cone giving me wonderful views of the harbor as well as nice

benches for me to sit and read my book. Too bad I forgot to recharge the camera’s battery. Oh well, this is one place I definitely want to come back to.