August 8, 2005
No jet lag whatsoever. That's right! The timing of our first day in New Zealand was so perfect that we slept a full eight hours and were up getting ready at 6 a.m. When we went for breakfast at 7:30 a.m., we saw our host clipping flowers from his yard for our breakfast table. 
And what a treat breakfast was! Delicious granola, homemade yoghurt to go perfectly with the Weet-a-Bix, fresh fruit, pressed coffee, fresh squeezed orange juice, and some of the most delicious, heartiest toast I've ever eaten, accompanied by homemade plum preserves. Simple things, but absolutely the best.
After receiving directions and some suggestions for sites to visit, we said farewell to Steve... It was a bit like saying farewell to a friend after visiting them. We headed off first to Rawene, a small town sheltered in a bay cove. The drive was 
beautiful- the scenery was miles and miles of lush, dazzling green hills bespeckled by fluffy white sheep. I half expected to see Frodo and Samwise out frolicking about! There was some rain on and off again, but we weren't too worried. The drizzle created a sort of romantic serenity during the drive.
Once we arrived in Rawene, we headed straight for the Boatshed, which Steve had recommended, for a bit of coffee and a break. The quaint and cozy little cafe, which is perched on stilts directly over the water of the bay, makes all of its baked goods on the premises, and even as we were sitting there, the owner was busy making pizza dough and foccacia (to the tune of an Arrested Development CD). We took along with us two fantastic slices of salami and olive pizza, to be savored later in the car.
A small armada of birds poses for Jack.
The plan for today was to get back to Auckland before rush hour. Along the way, we stopped first at Opononi, which is located at the opening of the bay to the ocean. That, of course, means that the views were ridiculous.
In the distance, we could see spectacular views of waves crashing at the juncture where the ocean meets the bay.
We stopped off at a lookout point near Omapare, another suggestion of Steve's, and were rewarded with an unbelievable 270 degree view of water! To the West and the North, we were surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, and the small bay by Omapare sparkled to our East.
Our next stop was supposed to be at the giant kauri tree in the Waipoua Forest, known also as the "Lord of the Forest." Supposedly, it would take 25 people
To make up for missing the big tree, we stopped over at the Kai Iwi Lakes, a trio of lakes on the western side of the North Island. We took a quick stroll down to the shores of the first lake, which had a distinct aroma of wild mushrooms. I'm not really sure where that came from -- we didn't spot any mushrooms anywhere. It's funny how many incredible scenes of water there are here. Some type of lake or bay view is literally around every corner.
There are parts of this section of New Zealand that remind me a lot of California in the spring time, when the
Since I was getting a bit tired, Lav offered to try driving for the first time. She looked a
A few hours later, we finally spotted Auckland in the distance, marked quite pointedly by the Sky Tower, a structure similar
The views were truly amazing, with flashes of pink and orange reflecting off of the shifting waters in Auckland Harbor. The city shrugs off a vibe of quiet sophistication while being incredibly diverse and cosmopolitan.
We decided to take a walk around the Viaduct Basin, an area by the waterfront that is described in our guidebook as being an area jumping with nightlife, but we actually found it to be pretty quiet,
Our dinner for the evening took place at Ottos, After dinner, I conked out back at our hostel, while Jack made his way to an internet cafe to set up this lovely travel diary. Thanks Jack!
Steve had told us to expect to see "something" at Opononi, but refused to disclose this surprise, so we kept our eyes open. At first, we thought that maybe he meant the views of the ocean, but when we read the description of Opononi in our guide book, we learned that the town was named after a dolphin who used to entertain the locals by doing tricks and swimming with the children. And lo and behold, there was an adorable stone statue of Opo the dolphin right next to our car when we parked.
hand in hand to wrap their arms around the entire trunk. But we sorta missed it. Must have driven right by it! Once upon a time, there were forests of these large beautiful trees, but they have mostly been cut down.
rains turn everything green with life. A lot of the farms here also look mildly similar to the rolling hills to the south of the Bay Area, past Gilroy. One big difference is the number of free roaming cattle and sheep. They're all over the place, and they look rather content. I think the New Zealand cows would really give the "happy" cows of California a run for their money.
bit nervous driving on the wrong side of the road in the beginning, but I think she's got the hang of it now. Piece of cake. Actually, as it turned out, she didn't like it very much at all and shortly, I was back behind the wheel.
to the Space Needle in Seattle. One of the big things to do at the Sky Tower is to bungy jump- it boasts to having the world's highest tower structure bungy jump- 192 meters- that's a 16 second 
freefall!!!! Egads! No way! Instead, we played it safe and took the elevator to the top observation deck to check out the sunset over Auckland. Even though we were separated from the elements by glass, steel and concrete, looking over the edge at such a height immediately made Jack queasy. He even talked of skipping our plans for bungy in Queenstown! Stay tuned for day 11 to see if he chickens out! Or if I chicken out.
being a winter Monday night, so we enjoyed our peaceful walk.
an elegant restaurant located near the Auckland Art Gallery. We enjoyed a delicious meal of classic New Zealand fare, including ostrich tataki, John Dory, miso grilled prawns, duck breast medallions, and a mild, fleshy fish called Hamuki? from the waters of the South Pacific. We had some yummy local wines to go along with it all, which made Jack quite excited about our wine trail drives in the days ahead.
