December 16, 2014
8:30 a.m.
David took this lovely panoramic view of Auckland.
There were remnants of an old bunker and the kids went climbing...
Here they are peeking out the top...This was a covered large caliber cannon, installed during the second world war in case of attack by the Japanese. The gun was actually only fired once, after the war, but it damaged a lot of nearby residents' windows, and was never fired again.
We spent some time hanging around at the top. The kids loved the mushrooms, which are actually vents for a water pumping station which lies below.
We were going to take the bus back from Devonport to Auckland, but arrived at the transport terminus just in time to catch the next ferry back, so we hopped right on.
Love the building off to the left of the Auckland ferry building dock as we are returning.
8:30 a.m.
Rough night of sleep last night. My back isn't doing so well - I hope it isn't due to all of the walking we did. So, I have loaded up on Aleve this morning in hopes that it improves my mood. My poor kids have to deal with crabby mommy when my back hurts.
I got up early this morning and went out on the balcony. It was cloudy, but warm enough to sit out, I am guessing somewhere in the low 60's. The wind has picked up now and it is too chilly for me. It is supposed to be a decent day today, as the rains aren't supposed to hit until later this afternoon. Hopefully we won't get too wet. I brought cute summer dresses to wear, but it keeps raining, and I only have one pair of trousers that dry fairly quickly, so I seem to be wearing the same thing day after day. I am taking a chance and wearing white capris today... could be a mistake, but I am desperate for a change of wardrobe!
We walked down to the Ferry Building to catch the ferry over to Devonport. Our timing was spectacular because we just had enough time to buy the tickets and they started boarding. It was a really quick 8 minute ride across to Devonport. Grabbed a few pics leaving Auckland. It was refreshing sitting outside on the ferry. This is of the Auckland historic ferry building as we are pulling out.
David took this lovely panoramic view of Auckland.
Jason and I were enjoying the view, you can see David taking the pic and the Auckland Sky Tower in the reflection behind us.
As soon as we arrived in Devonport we did a short walking tour that began down by the flag mast. It was incredibly windy there!
Next we found this tree that was besweatered...
This is an old tree called "Old Albert. It is a Morten Bay Fig tree and was planted in 1883. You get a real sense of how large it is with David, Danika, and Jason in the picture!
Love the old post office building, very Art Deco...
Next we walked to the top of Mt. Victoria, which is really a small hill at 285 ft.
This is one of the views on the way up.
You can see Auckland in the distance in this one.
There were remnants of an old bunker and the kids went climbing...
Here they are peeking out the top...This was a covered large caliber cannon, installed during the second world war in case of attack by the Japanese. The gun was actually only fired once, after the war, but it damaged a lot of nearby residents' windows, and was never fired again.
After our walk we stopped at The Patriot pub, famous for its fat chips. It also served a very decent pint of draft Boddingtons!
We were going to take the bus back from Devonport to Auckland, but arrived at the transport terminus just in time to catch the next ferry back, so we hopped right on.
After catching the ferry back, we walked through downtown Auckland on the way back to the apartment. It was so cold and windy that we stopped for a hot chocolate at the Imperial Cafe, where we'd been before without the kids.
Back at the apartment... feeling a bit ill... I think I am bit dehydrated... Must call it a night
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