After checking out of our AirBnB, Gimpy and I set off for Auckland. The drive along the west coast of the peninsula in the morning is pretty and served as a great way to spend a New Zealand morning.
The drive to Auckland takes two hours and soon enough we were pulling into the garage of our Auckland AirBnB. After taking some time to settle in and get our bearings, Gimpy and I decide to take a walk around the neighborhood. We were staying in an area called Grafton which is near the New Market and Parnell areas.
Auckland’s Parnell district and Biskit
After walking through the park known as the Auckland domain we arrived in the Parnell area and started to scope out some places to grab a quick lunch. After surveying a few eateries, we settled on a small cafe called Biskit. I ordered fish and chips and it was pretty good!
After lunch, Gimpy and I continue to walk through Parnell before making our way into New Market. Where Parnell feels more “hippsterish”, New Market is more hustle and bustle. There is far more shopping in New Market along with a large modern mall as well. We spent a little time exploring the mall and different shops on the street before making our way back to our AirBnB.
Maungawhau/Mount Eden
In the early evening, Gimpy and I set out to Maungawhau, or better known as Mount Eden. This is an old dormant volcano in the middle of Auckland and a popular attraction for tourists and locals. Its supposed to be the highest point in Auckland and offers some great 360′ views of the entire city and surrounding region.
New Flavours
As the sun set, Gimpy and I’s thoughts turned to dinner. Auckland is home to some amazing food and while there isn’t a lack of choice, Gimpy and I landed on New Flavour. Its an Asian restaurant that specializes in dumplings and I’m a total sucker for dumplings. It’s also a bit of a comfort pick since Gimpy and I had a craving for some home cooking!
The food is good, and totally reminded of home. But I’m going to maintain that unless you’re in Asia, Vancouver is probably home to some of the best Asian food there is!
After dinner, Gimpy and I made a quick stop at the super market before heading back to our AirBnB to turn in since we needed to get up early to return our rental car and make it to the ferry terminal for a
Waiheke Island
After dropping off our rental at the rental company’s downtown office, Gimpy and I take a quick morning stroll along Auckland’s waterfront en route to the Ferry Terminal. For today we booked a food and wine tour on Waiheke Island through Ananda Tours. So first we needed to get to the Island. As part of the tour package, we had return tickets on the ferry and upon arrival our guide was waiting for us and lead us to the bus which would be our home for the day.
Waiheke Island is a larger island near Auckland with around 10000 people living there. It has a very small town but also a very “estately” feel as you drive through.
Kennedy Point Vineyard
Our first stop would be Kennedy Point Vineyard. This is an organic winery that has won multiple awards for its wines over the years. Waiting for us upon our arrival was a beautiful olive oil, bread and cheese plate. Between sampling their rose and white wines, they also served us oysters which is one of the reasons we chose this tour!
Peacock Sky Vineyard
After Kennedy Point, our next stop is Peacock Sky Vineyard. Peacock Sky is looked in the middle of Waiheke Island at the top of one of the many hills. It’s a great little Vineyard and along with wine tastings, they gave us little food pairings for each wines. Of the few vineyards that we visit today, I think Peacock Sky is my favorite. Not only are the wines quite spectacular, I really liked the thought they put into the food pairings. Each one uniquely compliments the notes in the wine and adds more layers to the tasting experience! Highly recommend this one!
Rangihoua Estate
After two wineries, our tour changed pace a little bit and we visit Rangihoua Estate. Instead of wine Rangihoua is responsible for some award winning Olive oils, which were available for tasting when we arrived. Along with the tasting, they also walked us through the olive oil making process which includes an original olive oil press imported from Italy.
Stonyridge Vineyard
Our next stop is also our lunch stop: Stonyridge Vineyard. Waiting for us was a huge charcuterie plate for pairs of us to share. The food was really fresh, delicious and really hit the spot. Along with the food, they also came around with a few of their wines for tasting.
The Oyster Inn
At this point, our tour is taking us back to the ferry terminal to catch the return ride to Auckland. However, Gimpy and I weren’t done exploring Waiheke and wanted to visit a place Gimpy’s friend recommended: The Oyster Inn. Even though we just had lunch, we wanted to stop here and try a few oysters since it came highly recommended. So we did!
While its tough to do, we finally found room to take in all the oysters we ordered! From the Oyster Inn, we hopped on a local bus bound for the ferry terminal, boarded the next ferry to Auckland for our return.
Giapo
After disembarking from the ferry, Gimpy and I did some walking around downtown Auckland. If you’ve followed my previous adventures with Gimpy, you’ll know that she is a bit of an Ice Cream Fiend. And while waiting for Suzy and I to fly into Auckland from Sydney, she already spent some time exploring and discovered Giapo. I can only describe it as the most “complex” ice cream shop I’ve ever been too. The first step in the order process is kind of a tasting platter in which you sample the different flavours they have on offer and make a selection. Next you then select the “style” of ice cream you want and they then prepare it for you. If I remember correctly, I went with the “afghan cookie” and the “broken cone” style which comes in a bowl with everything “smashed” up. Gimpy got the “donut” style cone.
After Giapo, we continued walking around Downtown, but decided to head home after when it started raining.
I’d like to say we had an exciting adventure in the evening, but with the rain and us leaving Auckland the next day, we ended up packing and also going through our leftover food from the past few days. So nothing too exciting, but it was good to get some rest after a long few weeks of travel.
Newbie
Though Gimpy and I had fairly staggered flight times (her being much later than I). We both decided to split the cost of an uber and head to the airport at the same time. But before that, there was time for one last meal in Auckland and we visited Newbie Cafe. Gimpy ordered this amazing “Benedict” type dish (except for the huge tomatoes yuck!) and I ordered the breakfast ramen bowl. I also ordered what I thought would have been a simple juice. However, when it arrived I received a few looks and I really can’t blame them, because it is as flamboyant a drink as I’ve ever seen.
Good Bye Auckland!
After breakfast, Gimpy and I bid farewell to our AirBnb, hop into our Uber and head to the airport. Because Gimpy doesn’t fly for several after I do, I get us both into the Strata Lounge at the airport so she has a more comfortable place to pass the time.
After spending a little time together in the lounge, it was time for Gimpy and I to part ways. While she is flying home, I still have one more trip on this crazy adventure: Taiwan. So after saying our good byes, I make my way to the gate, where a good 24+ hours of travel lay ahead of me, starting with a return flight back to Sydney, then onward to Perth.
I’ll stop the blog here, since I overnight in Perth before flying all day onward to Taiwan.