Last week Brian traveled to Auckland for work for Wednesday through Friday. We decided to extend his time over the weekend and the girls and I flew out to meet him. We weren't sure how much we could see in two days but we figured it was worth a try. We read up, asked around for advice and decided on how to segment our time. Auckland sits in spectacular location surrounded by water on all sides. To our amazement we could see wild and amazing places without traveling more than an hour from the city center.
For our first day we opted to travel a scenic forty minutes by ferry to Waiheke Island. This swanky suburb boasts several excellent vineyards and many rambling walks but we focused on the many lovely quiet beaches.
We started by exploring the area closest to where the ferry let off. Here we collected shells, watched ducks and generally took in the views.
Next we took a guided bus tour around the island. Brian and I enjoyed hearing some of the context and getting up high to see some views.
The girls had little patience for the guided tour and began to look a little car sick so we got out at the second stop, built some sand castles and then retired out of the sun for a lovely meal of fish and chips.
The girls spent an hour or two gathering favorite shells and arranged them on top of piles of sand. This gave Brian and me the chance to go in and actually swim.
We took a late ferry home and arrived back at the hotel in time for a quick pizza dinner sitting cross legged on the floor. Tess told me this morning that the "picnic" in the hotel room stood out as one of her highlights of the trip.
At night at the hotel we washed and organized the shells. Tess cried before bed because she missed her sand castle so much. I think she would've brought the whole beach home if we'd let her. All in all, it was a great first day in New Zealand and made for a beautiful and surprisingly relaxing Saturday.
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