New Zealand 2023: Day 12 Wandering Auckland

By the numbers

1 K-pop band

15.55 kms

19,580 steps

I kind of slept in and I was basically waiting for the  time that the cafe said it would be open even though the website said something different. I walk out of the room, look outside and walk back as I thought it looked cold out there as people were wearing jumpers. I had my bag too as I was going to leave right from the time I ate something. I was heading to a tour at the Auckland version of Weta studios and I was looking forward to doing so. On the way to Sky tower, I ended up with another coffee as I needed something to wake me up. I had to laugh at the size the coffee shop gave to their coffees. There was WTF for large and Lol for the small. I stood outside of Weta to have a drink before going inside expecting it to be closed still. The shop was open and there was so many things there that I could buy, but I had no space for anything of the figurine sizes. One guy liked my shirt and I spoke the name, Babymetal. Another guy walks in and instantly knows who the band is.

 

The tour took us through three different types of movies from horror, fantasy to sci fi and showed what they had done like the animatronics, props and how they went about creating everything for the films. One of them looked like the Weta film Black Sheep with a weresheep instead of a werewolf. Right on our heels were a group of kids from another tour. We were made interns and to get us to ‘work’ there, we had to count boxes, not that I did, but there was a door behind one of the props. I liked the fantasy set as it was all about dinosaurs that had evolved into groups and had battles and everything else.  It is interesting what they use to make the props and the makeup as they have to do casts of your face so that can design everything to fit you. There are even story boards that tell you when they want the design and how long it should take to make, including mention of a certain movie with a Hobbit. I am not sure if those movies would actually be made or not. There are plenty of differences between Weta in Wellington and these guys, but they seem to be able to work anywhere. They do have some of the props from Weta in Wellington that are now in Auckland like Ghost in the shell. At the end I was let loose in the gift shop, but none of the shirts were in my size and none out the back. I might be able to order online, but we shall see what happens there. One I was replacing as it is now getting old, so needs a replacement.

 

It wasn’t too late  as it was just after 12pm and I wanted to head to Parnell, where I get to see the heritage roses.  I havnt been out that way for a very long time and that was always something I get to checkout. I ended up going there via a comic book shop cafe as I had found it the night before and wanted a look. It was a good rest stop and to browse books before moving on, and I had coffee of course. From there I ended up near the stadium and knew where I was especially when the road became busy near the port. That port was really busy and it was like the cranes never stopped moving. I wasn’t the only one at the heritage garden and when I sat down it started getting chilly as there was cloud cover. I had my jumper around my waist and needed the sit down especially when you walk up a hill and cooling down, though not sweaty hot. I wasn’t the only one who had ideas about visiting the roses and I could see there were workers there keeping them tidy, which was good. I also wanted to see Judges Bay as St Stephens cemetery. This was an early cemetery, but also because the constitution for the Anglican church was signed here. Not sure if its for the global church or just New Zealand. First burials started in 1844 and they no longer have burials there.

 

Instead of walking all the way back to the city, I was going to catch the train, but had to walk to  Parnell station in the little suburb. This meant for some of the walk, I was going up hill and it was steep in parts, but I wasn’t too puffed luckily. The biggest problem I found was I had to turn around and walk the long way round as I didn’t have access to the other platform. I had to walk to an underpass that would have taken me to Auckland Domain and the museum. It was a different type of long way round journey, but as soon as I walked in, I was basically boarding a train to Britomart. My plan was to go get something to eat as I had to pack since I was leaving the next day for my next destination. Upon leaving the station, I came across a guy on stilts walking around and what looked to be someone making music videos, unless they were doing stunts for social media. I googled one of the songs and found they were a bunch of girls from Korea, also known as Kpop, which is a brand of music. I wasn’t stalking much, only watching them. Writing that just makes things much worse. I actually found their CD when I walked into JBHIFI and the website got confused over which country it was in. The city seemed to be a touch busy in the afternoon and I was trying to make my way to get something to eat and that place was something I wanted to see what they were like and that was Denny’s a 24 hour restaurant, although I have no idea how that even works, but I managed to find a little steak that came with chips and a salad, so I was happy for that one. It was across from the bus station and two streets away from where I am staying, so that was a good thing. Once I returned, I would sort out my gear and hope it would all fit in my bag as I need some scales to check, as I think I am close to the limit.

 

New Zealand 2023: Day 11 Archiving Auckland

By the numbers

17.41 kms

22,289 steps

 

The pod bed was interesting for the night although it is good when the main light is left on and you can just close your sliding door and very little light gets in once you turn your own light off. Though I wasn’t sleeping deeply as I was going to get up early in the morning to get to the archives. Luckily I had looked up before going to sleep about the train time table. Turnds out the Onehunga train doesn’t go to Britomart at the moment due to line work. It ends up at Penrose, 3 stations from Onehunga, so I got to get a train to Penrose and change there. The time it takes is around half hour, but the alternative is a bus from near the Civic centre / town hall area that takes at least an hour. I chose the train method. Pretty much lucky I checked that one out or else I would have been lost.

 

I woke up early and got ready quietly, although I was ready before from when I went to bed as I didn’t want to make noise. It was like doing the walk of shame out of my room with boots in my hands. I had woken up earlier than my alarm and decided to head out. I was walking towards Britomart basically on the water front and I was close to the main streets to do that. Along the way I picked up breakfast and coffee at two different places, which wasn’t too bad and I didn’t spill the coffee over my hands like I did in Ohakune. I made it to the train at the time I wanted and then again to Onehunga. It was pretty interesting with all the train works they are doing upgrading lines and closed stations.. The bus to the Archives arrived right on time as well. That takes you out towards the airport via Mangare Town shopping centre. I once used to walk from there, but discovered the bus was easier to get there. All I had was a short walk to the Archives without any dramas.

 

I had around a half hour wait at the archives before they opened and I tried walking in with people 1 min before the place opened. I was kicked out again as they were part of a conference. I started laughing once I was allowed in and the guy apologized to me. One of the other office guys said he had seen me waiting out there. I was able to get the records I ordered and got the archivist to order the rest on my list, although I knew I would have a hard time going through them. They were all ready for me to pick up once I returned the records. Some of them were pretty thick and I knew it would be a struggle. By the time 1pm closing time came around I had one record and a half that I would leave for next time and I wouldn’t be back the next day unfortunately. I was happy with the haul I got and I have no idea how many records as in pages I photographed. I would say I am satisfied with what I got and will have to look at the records on a bigger screen to see how they turned out.

 

I walked to catch the bus and within a minute of me arriving at the stop, I was picked up by the bus. Now that was lucky. I was the last person on the bus when I was dropped off in Onehunga. By this time I was hungry as I hadn’t eaten anything since earlier that morning and it was not after 1pm. I stopped in a bakery and got a pie with a coffee. The eftpos didn’t have tap, my car wouldn’t swipe and the machine didn’t like the chip. I had to use cash that I have on me. Some things like books and several meals I have used cash, but I havnt been charged an exchange fee unlike my credit card, which does. That is interesting and I quite like not using the credit card for anything. Unless I really have to like I did in Palmerston North. I ended up drinking my coffee while wandering around the local Catholic church’s cemetery. No one asked what I was doing. I wandered around Onehunga for a little bit and looked through a Factory outlet centre, which didn’t interest me.

 

I had several ideas on what I wanted to do when I returned to the city. First was to get the train to Parnel as I wanted to see the Rose gardens, but then decided less walking would be to visit Wynyard as it was a short walk back to where I am staying and I can have food.. My data was a lifesaver as I could check the train timetable from Penrose as the signs were not telling us what time the next train was to Britomart. I walked along the foreshore and even got to see a cruise ship had docked, I made sure I didn’t get too close to the people boarding as I would have been stuck and on a cruiser. I could end up anywhere. I walked along where all the yachts happen to be and I was beginning to worry about the weather as it started raining for a short bit. The whole area used to be industrial and there was never any access to the public, but that has changed now. I was looking at the food prices  and I kept on walking. I couldn’t have a $50 steak too many times and fish and chips were just as bad.. I did see a Sunday roast somewhere, but that was a Sunday only. In that particular area of Wynyard, I came across a building to do with the New Zealand Americas Cup. I think that is their official NZ base. I walked out the back as the gate was open, took pictures, and went around the building. It wasn’t a tourist Mecca or anything. The wandering around was good, but I didn’t actually see a tram. I seen the tracks, but no tram. It was starting to get late anyway, so I walked up the hill as thats what the high part of Auckland seems to be when you are near Sky tower. It wasn’t too bad getting up as I found where I was staying pretty quickly. I ordered Fish and Chips with a Coke. The guy gave me a Tiger beer instead. That was close enough I guess, but that was my first beer in the country.

 

The last day in Auckland, I hope will be pretty slow as I will be doing a tour in the morning and go from there. I still have no idea on the weight of my bag, but I think that will have to wait as I had around 6 kilos I could load up with and I am far under that.

 

New Zealand 2023 Day 10 Off to Auckland

By the numbers

10 kms

12,399 steps

1 bus

Todays journey was going to be to Auckland, where I am staying for the next couple of days. For some reason the night before I began finding lollies in my bag and it wasn’t something I had put in there. I was happy that I hadn’t been searched as I didn’t know they were there, it would have been shocking as I never declared them. Stuff happens though and I should have checked properly. I woke up at 6am for some reason and found I had an offer of a lift north from Hamilton. Though I thanked the offer giver and said that I had a bus booked to take me that way. I didn’t say that I had that booked at least 6 months ago as I was totally organised With that I went back to sleep for an hour or so. I wasn’t sure what the weather was going to be and I went out walking to look for some breakfast. Once I got something to eat and a coffee, I was ready to check out of the room. On the way to the bus terminal, I had to visit a bookshop that I always visit when I am in Hamilton. I did find two interesting books and I may or may not have bought them. I havnt been to the shop since before the pandemic so it has been a while.

 

The wait wasn’t too long at the Hamilton bus terminal as I had a coffee while I was there. I thought he driver was doing something new when they started calling the names of passengers, but I think it was a premium part of the service as I had to line up and tell them my name instead. I loaded my bag as it would have been too heavy for the lady to load into the bag bay, but it stayed there until I reached Auckland. It was only a 2 hour journey to Auckland, but we were going via the airport so I would get to see the changes that were happening there. So many places seem to have experienced change as we stopped in Pokeno for a pit stop and the toilets are now a shipping container with doors and cubicles. I had never stopped at the bus station at Manukau before and that place is huge and looks modern especially to go with the train station too as its a transport hub. The airport itself is getting work done and lots of building going on there too. Should be interesting when I am going through there too.

 

It wasn’t that far to Auckland from the airport and I was happy to be getting off as I was at my limit as I wanted off the bus. I wanted to explore Auckland, but I wanted to see Parnell for the rose garden and all that. Heaps I would have wanted to do, but biting off more than I could chew.. I went to the hostel, where I am staying and was able to self check into my room. Everything was electronic and I took a picture of my room, even loaded my own keycard as its just a credit card made of plywood. The rooms are good. There are 4 beds that are totally private and you are allocated one on check in. It has a light and storage and there is even a locker that your card then locks as well so its pretty much secure. The washing machine and the dryer are $5 each for a token, and I think I will wait until my next destination before doing the washing. I went for a wander around Auckland afterwards and there is plenty of changes happening there too including the music shop moving, and other buildings on Queen street vanishing to be rebuilt. The music shop wanted my bag as I guess people steal and I was after some music. The lady told me to put my bag into any hole and I cracked up and said thats what she said. I think the lady heard, but has heard it before. I had to ask for the wifi password as I wanted to use the website to search for CDs as I couldn’t remember if they had what I was looking for. I ended up only going to the music shop, and into Smith and Caughey department store. That place has shorts for nearly $200 and same with shirts that include the Smurfs. I had found an Irish pub that had a Tuesday special for steak being $18 and I wanted that. When I seen some for $38 to $50 in restaurants, I thought this was a better deal. I thought it might be best to have an early night and sort out my stuff as I have others in the room too, and they might not like it if I get up early to head off into the wilderness tomorrow. I have the archives sorted, but I will have only 4 hours before I go elsewhere, so I can think of places to visit in the morning once I am done.

 

I do have to get used to being in a hostel dorm again as I havnt done this for a long time basically ever since I got sent home in 2020. Its not too bad though and I will quickly get used to it after a couple of days. It just means that my trip is slowly coming to an end.

 

New Zealand 2023: Day 9 Leaving Ohakune

 

By the numbers

1 bus

8.14kms

10,495 steps

 

The day was meant to be really nice and sunny, so when I got up and looked out the window, I thought it was going to rain again as it was overcast and I wasn’t sure if it was going to be cold or not. I took the risk by going to get breakfast as I wanted to get something to eat before checking out. On the way back I went to the library to check to see if it was alright if I stayed in there for a couple of hours. The library also doubled as the council offices. The lady I spoke to had no problem with me doing so. Once I handed my key back the manager mentioned I flew under the radar as they never seen me. I said yup I got food in town and the guy was happy I had spent money in the town.

 

Once in the library I soon learnt they were also the council offices as customers were coming in to pay rates and make inquiries about council services. I was happy to sit in the bright light of the library and do some reading and organise some stuff like records for when I am in Auckland at the Archives. I had around 3 hours before the bus came and I was actually thinking it would be late again, but I knew if I didn’t get there on time then I would actually miss it. After several hours in the library doing my thing, I moved on to get a coffee before waiting for the bus. With around 40 mins and a good view of the mountain as the clouds started clearing I soon found the bus was bang on time.

 

The driver looked at me when I mentioned I was going to Hamilton and told me ‘Lucky you’. Yeah Hamilton has a reputation it seems as a dodgy place and it comes across like it. The bus would be taking me up over National Park, Taumarunui for lunch, through Te Kuiti and then up through Otorohunga and then Hamilton so I got to see a range of towns along the way and they all seemed to have changed since I was last here. I think Hamilton has changed a little as there are shops that are no longer here and rebuilding going on. One lady told me the bus left her behind after she got off to use the loo and when she came back it was gone. The driver did make that threat, once the door has been closed that he will not open it again if you are chasing the bus down once its reversing out. Somehow I think that is a fair warning, and a good reason why I am having a night in Hamilton as the info centre was closed and there was only two public loos with a line up.

 

I found my way around Hamilton alright as I was going to spend a night in a hotel before I end up in Auckland tomorrow. I am making sure I can sleep in and get to visit a book store along the way after checking out. I ended up with a burger from the shop next to the hotel as I couldn’t find anything I wanted nearby. As it was around 6pm everything was basically closed for the night. Not that it worried me too much.

New Zealand 2023: Day 8 Wandering ohakune

By the numbers

20.62kms

26,720 steps

 

The weather today was meant to be a little wet with it clearing up and once I was outside it turned out to be pretty much dry with cloud. I had slept in so that I could get going a little bit later as I was going to spend most of the day out. My plan was to do one of the walks and then head out to the train museum that was down the other end of the town. I hadn’t been down that end of Ohakune yet as I would have a 30 min walk at least. Basically the place I was staying at is the halfway point. The food places are at the entry to town side that I know of.

 

I sorted myself out with breakfast before having a look in the information centre as I hadn’t been there yet and it didn’t give me any good ideas. I decided it was time to head towards the train station and the museum. I planned on a short walk on a trail that was nearby after the museum. I found the train station and a few shops, although there were not many of them and others that were closed. From what I was looking at the night before this was the most expensive area. The guy I had spoken to who had seen me yesterday after walking my bike was right when he said there was nothing over there. I walked through the railway station and there was a dog outside the coffee shop. A little further on was the museum, and the problem that I came across. The museum was shut until the 12^th of December, so it would be open later just not when I am there. I ended up back at the train station for a coffee with a plan to walk towards Mount Ruapehu even though it was covered in cloud.

 

The new plan was to do the bushwalk that would take around an hour that would take me to a DOC camp, that I soon found out that you could only book a site online. The hour long round trip was Mangawhero trail that takes you across the Ohakune mountain road that takes you up to Ruapehu that I still couldn’t see due to cloud, but it seemed to have warmed up I could have hired a bike again just to go down the road as its apparently a good trip from up that way. I know there are some waterfalls that are just a little too far for me one way. A oneway walk that is 3 hours might be overdoing it a touch The road I had thought was a country style trail looked more like a main road. It was good that I didn’t need to go back the way I came as the trail takes you back out to the main carpark besides the DOC office for Ohakune. I never checked to see if they were open though. I ended up walking back to the motel as I thought it would be nice to start pottering around my room and start organising my bag for leaving the next day.

 

After a couple of hours I ended up getting some food and on the way back I noticed the cloud was clearing around the mountains and I could see a little bit of Ruapehu. I ate and waited half hour so that I could check to see if the cloud had moved and it had as I could see the top. Around 5 mins down the road I had a great view, but I thought he train station would have a better view. It actually didn’t as it was hidden behind the trees, so I had basically walked that way for nothing. Still it showed me how quiet that part of town was except for the Contiki bus that was at a nearby restaurant. At least I got a view of the mountain with snow on top before I left the next day, although I would likely get better shots from near the main road. I don’t leave until 1pm, so I have some time to kill before heading off, so you never know what I can get up before heading to Hamilton.

The reason for Hamilton is that I will break up the trip a little, but after how late the bus was the other day, I think that was a wise choice as I will be in Hamilton before dark and settled in too.