Enter Auckland

We touched down in Auckland yesterday. From the moment we stepped into the Air New Zealand terminal at LAX, we were reminded that we were heading on a middle-earth adventure. Everyone knows The Lord of the Rings trilogy and upcoming Hobbit movies were filmed here. What people may not know is how intrenched those movies are in the tourism industry here, at least from outside the borders of the country. Stepping up to the ticketing booth, the floor is painted with thick green Shire-grass and Hobbit feet. On the plane, the security announcement is delivered via a video starting a cast of a fake Aragorn, Legolas, orcs, elves, hobbits, and golems, and a very real Peter Jackson (ok, enough geeking out for now). Arriving in Auckland, the walls are lined with gorgeous photo-murals of fairy tale mountains, lakes, and forests - they are all real New Zealand, but the effect is that, with some imagination, you yourself feel like a Hobbit on the cusp of adventure (strong work, New Zealand tourism industry).

The funny thing is, when you step out of the airport and into the Auckland surroundings, it looks more like a quaint American suburb than anything else. Auckland, the largest and most cosmopolitan of the cities in New Zealand is far from the postcard middle-earth-inspiring setting. It is a nice, clean city, with some interesting features. Auckland sits atop a large Volcanic field that is "active", which basically means that in last 1000 years there has been some activity, but you wouldn't know it except for the countless number of hills. Auckland also lies on an isthmus of land that is surrounded by water on most sides. The climate and look of Auckland resemble San Francisco and the Pacific Northwest. It is mild in temperature, and at least on the day we arrived, overcast, rainy, and windy - they don't call it the "City of Sails" for nothing.

We arrived in the morning, having had a few hours of sleep on the plane (Vivi more than me - I was too busy watching the awesome selection of in flight TV/movies). We checked into our motel - it is on the outskirts of Auckland in a nice suburb, right next to the Eden Park Rugby Field (unfortunately no matches were being held). We strapped on our hiking boots and hit the city. We first walked to the top of Mt. Eden, one of the cities many "volcanic" peaks - I use quotes because it's not what you imagine a volcanic peak to look like - it is essentially a hill covered with grass and foliage, with a crater at the top. We stopped to get coffee along the way - coffee culture is apparently huge here and there are tons of these nice coffee shops everywhere. We then walked into the city center and to the wharf, stopping to have "Auckland's Best Fish and Chips" (according to the chalkboard outside the restaurant). We continued walking through the area of Ponsonby, a strip lined with interesting bars, restaurants, and hippie/hipster shops, and finally made it back to our motel, a round trip of around 8 miles for the day. For dinner we had Thai food - another thing we are starting to realize is that there seems to be know distinct New Zealand cuisine - which makes sense, as it is a relatively young island nation of largely European immigrants mixed with the native Maori and others.