Auckland

Set down in New Zealand after a reasonable flight where I actually slept! Thats a first..

Weather is kinda like a warm summers day with a constant sea breeze.

After Japan, Auckland was a bit of a shock as it's very western and people could understand us again, which was kinda weird cos we'd got used to them not.

Best things about Auckland are the amazing restaurants (many Japanese) which are reasonably priced and the mad, mega trees which are huuuuge and really odd, like being stuck in Pan's Labyrinth or Jurassic Park. They look like the have had their trunks removed too. Think loads of roots attached straight to the branches spreading out everywhere.

Settled in for a few days at a comfy hotel and have just bought a Toyota Lucida XR Turbo, which sounds really swift until you discover its a people-mover which is just about to have the back seats removed and a bed put in! We bought it at a backpacker car yard after having a look about and then testing driving a couple. Funnily this ones battery died round the corner from the yard and we had to wait for the guy to nip out with his 4x4 to jump start it. A new battery is assured as part of the Warrant of Fitness (NZ MOT Test) we just had done on it. We pick it up tomorrow and can get going up the North Island and then further South later :)

Just got back from Rangitoto which is a volcano just North of Auckland - you can still see Auckland from the volcano. Went on a 5 hour trek up to the crater and into some caves which were mega.