First Day Report

Saturday, 13th January, 2007
Auckland, New Zealand
9:38 PM NZST

It just got dark. At 9 PM. It was light at 6 AM when we left the airport. If my calculations are correct, that means Auckland got 15 hours of daylight today.

Here's the rest of today's story, starting as we went to kill the four hours until we would be able to check into the hostel:

We discovered that Auckland doesn't properly wake up until about 10:30 in the morning. We walked down to Auckland Harbor and all along the wharf early this morning, and the only people we saw were a few runners, and the crews of a tall ship and a Greenpeace boat working on their vessels. As we came back up Queen Street, which is the main shopping thoroughfare of central Auckland and the street on which our hostel stands, we had to wait for stores to open at 10. The business day is short here- usually 10 till 5, sometimes 4. Then all the restaurants get going for dinner around 8 or 9 PM.

Auckland is a beautiful city. It's a really neat combination of San Francisco (hills and climate), England (architecture and landscape), South Pacific (decor) and generally American cities (Starbucks, Burger King, and many other all-too-familiar stores). The attitude here is beautiful too- everyone is extremely friendly, I think i've had an actual coversation with every vendor/employee I've interacted with today. Also, everyone here is gorgeous. I have seen one obese person today. Every person in this city is fit, well-dressed, friendly, tan, and generally beautiful. Must say, I'm happy to be surrounded by loads of handsome guys my age, all with fantastic accents. They're everywhere, and they talk to me voluntarily! Hurrah for the legendary Kiwi hospitality.

I haven't actually noticed many other Americans here. i'm sure they're around, but the other people in our dorm that I've met are from the UK and New Zealand. Something of note: New Zealanders travel New Zealand just like everyone else does. They put on backpacks, go to a different city, stay in a hostel, and do all the things that outside tourists do. I don't know if this is because it so incredibly far to go anywhere besides their home country, because they realize that New Zealand is beautiful and that every corner of it needs to be explored, or a combination of all three. Americans don't do this-- we dont' have the hostel thing going on in every single town, and no adequate cheap fast transportation between all towns. It takes much more effort to travel in the U.S., I think.

Provo and I checked into the hostel (Auckland Central Backpackers, if you're interested in looking it up) at 11 and promptly crashed for a 3-hour nap. After some sleep, a shower, and fresh clothes, we were much refreshed and commenced furthering our knowledge of the city. We explored Albert Park, which is fantastically beautiful, ate sushi near the waterfront, and walked through the University of Auckland campus, which is an amazing combination of different types of buildings and vegetation, like the rest of the city. Then we hiked up to the Auckland Domain, which is a MASSIVE park at the "top" of Auckland. It was quite a trek, but well worth it. We went in via a little trail that went through a tropical jungle with a canopy so thick it blocked out most daylight. The palms, ferns, hibiscus, and birds of paradise all make it feel like a prehistoric environment. At the very top of the Domain sits the Museum of Auckland, which is a huge imposing romanesque building, looking out over the city and the harbour. The museum was closed this afternoon, but we knew it ahead of time and had planned on just sitting up there to journal and write some postcards, but we were struck by rain and winds, so we decided to head for more sheltered climes. However, we plan to head back up tomorrow to check out the Wintergarden, Tropical House, and Fernery. Alas, on the way back we (meaning me) miscalculated where we were on the map and we ended up putting in an hour of walking to get back to Queen Street. We were soaked but luckily it's been about 70 degrees or more (Farenheit) all day, so that wasn't too much of an issue. I stand by my belief that getting lost in a new city is the best way to get to know it.

Auckland is unlike any city I've known. The stores are familiar to me because they are mostly those in America and Britain, but the attitude of the city is something I haven't really seen before- everyone is happy, friendly, and loud, not at all reserved but totally outgoing. And it is great to see how New Zealand, though it was a European colony at one time, has embraced the Maori culture and made it a deeply integral part of the country as a whole. Nearly everything has two names, one in English and one in Maori. It is interesting for me to see such a mixed population, of Pakeha (New Zealanders of European descent), Maori (to be honest, I had never before actually seen a Maori person besides in pictures. They are all gorgeous, in a really unexpected and striking way) and a large Asian population. You see the influences of each everywhere- like a fish and chips shop beside a sushi joint beside a shell jewelry store.

It is hard to believe I've only been here a day. It feels like ages, since we've already got the lay of the land and met a number of new friends. With so much daylight, a nap in the middle of the day, a massive time change, and the surreality that is a trans-oceanic flight, I can't quite comprehend that it was only this morning that Provo and I touched down in Auckland. We have another full day here before heading off surfing, so tomorrow our possible endeavours include taking a boat tour of Auckland Harbour, going up the SkyTower (tallest building in the southern hemisphere) if it's clear out, and revisiting the Domain (hopefully without getting so spectacularly lost and wet this time).