Day 46: At Sea / Auckland, New Zealand

Tuesday, 21 February 2017
Queen’s Wharf — Auckland CBD

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No matter where you go, there you are.
~ Buckaroo Banzi ~

If I didn’t know any better, I could easily be fooled into thinking that I am sitting on the balcony of a high-rise building watching the city life go by.  But no, I am on the veranda — no fumes since Insignia is docked — enjoying the Auckland skyline as I write this.  My feet appreciate the rest I am giving them after walking so much today.  Good thing we didn’t do much as I’m too tired to do much writing.

Auckland Skyline from our veranda as we approach our berth.

Our day started at sea.  Having lost another hour last night to put us on New Zealand Daylight Saving Time, we actually slept in until 7:00a.  By the time breakfast was over and we were dressed for the day, the pilot was onboard.  Around 9:45a the Auckland skyline appeared on the distant horizon.  We enjoyed a very scenic sail-in, and an hour later, Insignia was alongside at its berth at Queen’s Wharf, in the heart of the city’s central business district.

Our day in Auckland was a mix of sightseeing and errands.  We started off by joining Sonia and Boris for a 12-minute ferry ride (NZD $12/person) across the bay to Devonport, described to us as a charming village.  To be honest, we didn’t see much of the village — meaning we didn’t visit the shops and restaurants that seem to be the primary attraction for making the trip across from downtown Auckland.  Instead, on the recommendation of a cyclist we met on the ferry, we walked along the King Edward Parade [promenade] to the Torpedo Bay Navy Museum.  None of us had an interest in the museum, but we figured the walk would do us all good.  The temperature was comfortable, the sun was bright, the sky was blue, and a light breeze kept us comfy.  Perfect for spending time outdoors — we even squeezed in an al fresco lunch at the museum’s café before making the trek back to the ferry terminal.  Along the way, Mui and I detoured to a barbershop where we both got our hair cut — one errand down, more still on the list.

Back in Auckland, we headed up Queen Street to take care of a few other logistics matters.  Back to the ship to drop off our bags, and then off again to walk around for a while.  We have a long walk planned for tomorrow, so we intended to keep things easy this afternoon, but somehow we wandered around longer than we intended to, making it to Victoria Park before our feet blew the whistle on us.  We had every intention of dining off the ship, but by this time we were too tired to feel hungry, so we scrapped those plans.

We plan to be off the ship early tomorrow morning, so I am calling it a night.  I know this post doesn’t have an interesting story to tell, but it makes the blog whole.  Too tired to process photos tonight — like I said, a dry story.

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