Auckland

Our first stop in New Zealand was Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand which is found on the northern island.


Auckland facts:
1 in 5 people own a boat.
Auckland contains the largest marina in the southern hemisphere.
1 in 8 Aucklanders are of Asian descent.



We stayed at Sky City Hotel while in Auckland. Sky City Hotel is actually the base of SkyTower, the tallest tower in the southern hemisphere at 328m tall. We enjoyed an exotic meal of fresh fruit, duck, and seafood from the tower restaurant 192m in the air with a beautiful view of the city and harbor! P.S. We actually like duck!

Auckland Museum/Winter Gardens:
We walked downtown a few miles and took in the city sights. The museum is actually in the middle of a beautiful park also containing the Winter Gardens. In the museum there were 3 floors – 1st Maori Cultural history and artifacts displays, 2nd Natural History, 3rd New Zealand’s Country & Wartime history. Interestingly, many Maori’s are Christians and much of their artwork displays their faith. Many of their carvings though appear to be scary in terms of the facial expressions and somewhat distorted people. We’re told, however, that these carvings were around them in an effort to intimidate or scare away intruders and others who might want to harm them.

I’m including a picture of an interesting insect we learned about in the Natural History section (This is especially for Parker). It’s called the Giant Weta and can weigh up to 70 grams. This is New Zealand’s largest insect and one of the heaviest insects in the world.



We also learned about a flightless bird that is now extinct, but years ago lived only in NZ. It was called the Moa and is an ancestor of the Ostrich. This bird was approximately 3 meters in height. Check out the picture of Eric standing next to the model.



One last interesting thing at the museum was this gigantic black marlin. I had to take this picture just for you dad. Do you think you could catch this one? I certainly know mom wouldn’t want this one on the living room wall!



The Winter Gardens were absolutely spectacular. Thousands of native and exotic flowers and plants could be found in the two green houses and in the fernery.





Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter:


Stone Fish

What a beautiful display of marine life! We first took an arctic cat ride down to see the King Penguins. These penguins are beautiful and large! They are native to Antarctica. We then took a tour along aquariums to see many interesting marine creatures. A few of our favorites included: humungous stingrays, sea turtles, stonefish, lionfish, and the giant packhorse crawfish lobster.


King Penguins

Mount Eden - dormant volcano cone:

We took a long windy road to the top of Mount Eden where a volcano was once active. All that remains now is the cone, which looks like a giant crater. The view of the city from this spot was amazing! In the distance you will be able to see the Skytower where we stayed.