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New Zealand’s green environment
An initial and lasting impression from my visit to New Zealand is the pleasant green environment to be found in towns and suburbs as well as in the countryside.
The Airporter bus from Auckland airport to Onehunga starts by winding through landscaped freight and business parks with vegetation and grass verges, a contrast from the concrete and brick surroundings of London’s Heathrow airport where my journey had started two days earlier, on 16 March, 2017.
The next bus to Auckland dropped me at the top of Queen Street and to reach Greys Avenue, I took the path and steps through the inclines of Myers Park.
With its grass lawns and a variety of trees this pleasant urban green space was uncrowded on a Saturday afternoon.
On the next day (Sunday), my walking tour led to Auckland Domain via Grafton Bridge after an unintended loop along Karangahape Road, Newton Road and Upper Queen Street.
Where Newton Road crosses over the motorway I took a photo (above) showing the island of green trees and bush underneath the bridge.
A drinking station, like the one on Upper Queen Street, is a useful facility, allowing water bottles to be refilled, on a hot day. The photo also shows trees providing shade on the pavement of Ian McKinnon Drive beyond.
Grafton Bridge also crosses a motorway at a high level and again islands of green trees and bush relieve the visual impact of the road.
A wide expanse of green for lawns and playing fields greet the visitor entering Auckland Domain from Park Road.
I headed for the Domain Wintergardens, with tropical and temperate glasshouses as well as ornamental ponds with water lilies.
Leading from the gardens is the Fernz Fernery which is also free to visit.
The Domain is also home to the Auckland Museum but the weather was too good to visit on this occasion. The lawns below the museum provide fine views and one couple were having a picnic there with no competition for their perfect shady spot!
The City Campus of the University of Auckland includes lawns and trees. On a sloping site, it was pleasant to be able to wander around and see how nature can soften the impact of the various buildings.
The School of Music on Symonds Street is separated from the road by trees that provide some shade. The building was designed by Hill Manning Mitchell Architects in 1986. The building was awarded the Enduring Architecture Award 2013.
Work in progress - to be continued
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New Zealand observations
‘Travel broadens the mind.’ It’s true, you meet different people, taste different food and drink, experience unusual smells and sounds. The streets, buildings, shops, vehicles, vegetation, weather and quality of light are all likely to vary from your ‘home turf’.
The photo above was taken in Auckland (565 Karangahape Rd, Ponsonby. 19-Mar-2017). Some things are the same - Subway and Mobil brands but others are different - palm trees, cheaper petrol and much cheaper diesel than in UK (£1 = $NZ 1.75 approx).
On a visit to Australia in 1986 I remember noticing the covered pavements of shopping streets, to protect against the sun, and so to see the same thing in Auckland (Symonds Street, 18-Mar-2017), on the bus from the airport, was not a surprise to me but might be for someone on a first visit. Auckland retains plenty of characterful, older, buildings in its, often sloping, shopping streets. The street signs on posts are more like signs seen in North America where street signs are designed to be seen by car drivers rather than pedestrians, as in the UK.
The photo above shows the upper reaches of Queen Street, Auckland’s main street (18-Mar-2017) with some corrugated iron covers for the pavement providing some shade.
Auckland is known as the ‘City of Sails’ and Kiwis enjoy all kinds of outdoor activities including mountain bike riding and surfing.
While I was wandering around the Eden Terrace district of Auckland, it was fun to discover that there was a surfboard business on Newton Road! Later, at the Brewers Co-operative craft beer bar in Victoria Street, I noticed that the TV was showing a triathlon event.
Bars in New Zealand may have a blackboard outside listing sporting events being screened inside. These events can be from all over the world to cater for locals and visitors interests.
Work in progress - to be continued!
Tim’s notes section: - Manuka, Sulphur, Pocket Parks, Few trains, Estate agents, dog in back of pickup truck,
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Flat white coffee in New Zealand
My understanding is that the flat white coffee originated in New Zealand so this was a chance to compare and contrast with the equivalent in the UK from eg Costa Coffee or Tutti Frutti (Reading station). The first coffee was from a laid back place that was one of few to open up on a Sunday morning - Little Algiers.
Always tempted by a bargain the flat white coffees at Nando’s in Rotorua for NZD 2.50 were my staple while on a visit there - plenty of milk but slightly lacking in coffee character perhaps.
Back in Auckland, I enjoyed a flat white at the branch of Sierra Coffee in Victoria Road, Devonport - a short ferry trip across the harbour.
The cakes at Sierra looked tempting!
A day later before a visit to Auckland Art Gallery (free entrance) I enjoyed a flat white coffee outside the Albert Park cafe (free wifi!). This was the point when I realised that Tuesday was my last full day in Auckland and I might not be able to do all the things I had hoped to do while back in Auckland.
This was a coffee to savour with fine weather and a view of Albert Park.
Although a flat white in New Zealand was always enjoyable, in my opinion it’s hard to beat a flat white from Costa, the UK coffee shop chain.
As a postscript, while I was staying at a lovely airbnb place in Meadowbank, Auckland, I had a chance to make coffee using ground coffee from Karajoz coffee company.
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New Zealand - some UK car surprises
Spotted some old cars from the UK still running in New Zealand.
The orange Morris Marina was spotted at night, near Meadowbank station in Auckland, so apologies for the poor picture quality.
The Ford Zephyr was on the inside lane of the expressway and I managed to get a photo from my seat on the top floor of the coach on the outside lane when we were in slow traffic approaching Auckland.
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New Zealand supermarkets - home of the trundler
On a trip to New Zealand (March 2017) discovered that Kiwis call supermarket trolleys ‘trundlers’ - see the lime green sign in the photo below for proof!
The supermarkets seem pretty big with wide aisles and tall shelves inside.
Visited Pak’nSave in Rotorua which has a distinctive yellow frontage.
Was a bit disappointed to find that avocados were NZD 2.99 each and not NZD 2.99 per kg - however NZ avocados are delicious!
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Birds
Birds in NZ (North Island, March 2017)
Sign at The Redwoods, Rotorua
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Top - Gowing Drive, Auckland
Bottom - The Redwoods, Rotorua
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