The dash up north

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND - 31st January 2010

I´ve made it to Auckland in pretty good time, after disembarking the interislander ferry at about 5pm in Wellington yesterday afternoon and heading straight up north. I finally reached here at about 11am this morning after a brief stop in Hamilton (where there´s nothing to see, especially not on a rainy day like today). Of interest, however, was my overnight stopover in the township of "National Park" - another wonderfully original bit of naming by the Kiwis. The national park in question is Tongariro - the second oldest national park in the world after Yellowstone in the USA - and I was able to see its showpiece peak - Mount Ruapehu - glowing the beautiful sunset as I drove into the town just after 8.30pm. Unfortunately, of the 3 hostels in the town, the first was full, and the other two had closed their receptions at 8pm. Of prime concern to me was finding a TV to watch the women's final of the Australian Open, and always the opportunist I happily sauntered into lounge room of the last place I tried - Howard's Lodge - and made myself at home on the comfy sofa with Serena Williams vs Justine Henin cracking off on the big screen. As time ticked on and the lounge room emptied out, I ended up screwing formalities and just slept on the sofa - it was big, soft and very comfortable, so I was happy as Larry.

The honest intention of paying whatever board fees were due was there - I even took the trouble of writing a note to this effect and leaving it at reception - but after waking at 6.45am and being ready to leave, I found reception still abandoned. Only one thing for it - the note was shredded, and I was off on the road!

Incidentally, back in Wellington I'd been delighted to be met at the ferry terminal by the same chap I'd dropped the Hyundai off with last week, and sure enough he handed me the same crappy bunch of keys to the 1.5L beast that got me my speeding ticket back all those days ago. No such mares this time round, and better still I had the satisfaction of, while pulled over having a tea time pie on the side of the road in Levin, grabbing a photo of someone else getting caught in exactly the same place I was! He definitely won´t be the last.

The day in Auckland has been spent checking out the big Museum (which has the outrageous policy of being "free", but requiring all visitors to get an admission sticker from the ticketing desk where you are asked how much you are donating - $10 being the recommended amount. They need to learn a thing or two from the British Museum) and driving up to the top of Mount Eden for some impressive, if rather cloudy, views across the city centre, harbour and harbour bridge.

But, short of a long evening and night to pass in the airport (yet another night without a bed!), that pretty much wraps up New Zealand. What I can fairly safely guarantee is that there'll be plenty more to be said once I'm in the airport...