New Zealand at last

Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024

Auckland, New Zealand

We are enjoying the afterglow of our memorable anniversary onboard and arriving at New Zealand after a seven day stretch seeing no land, no other vessels or even sea life. Good to get on land but our balance systems and time pieces are confused.

Auckland is a beautiful city, clean and modern sprinkled with classic old buildings and a scenic harbor surrounded by green lands. Lots of shopping opportunities!

A day before we marched off on a walking tour at lovely Bay of Islands, New Zealand. Lots of steps —- what exactly is the calculation of KM to miles? We don’t understand the murky history of the indigenous tribes of Māori and the Europeans, but we were at Waitangi treaty signing area where the country was created by agreement with some Maori leaders and the British settlers. We’re told that the treaty was not exactly fair to the indigenous people. Hmm.

Not sure about the meaning of these colorful sculptures, but there seems to be an abundance of testosterone and some dominance issues! Was this the inspiration for the Grinch?