Archive for September, 2007

Reminiscing in and Around Auckland

Today we decided to visit my uncle and aunty in Kelston. Uncle Vic is now 82 and has a heart condition. He is an amazing man, having only just given up running marathons in the last couple of years.  He still works as a gardener and looks after a couple of young children for a family he has known for some years,  getting their breakfast and taking them to and from school. Beryl asked us to wait in the lounge as she wanted to surprise Vic. Well he certainly got a surprise alright and it was just wonderful to see him in…

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Off to Whangarei on a Family Visit

The next morning we set out bright and early to drive to Whangarei to see Val’s nephew. Funnily enough Roy is actually 6 months older than his uncle Val. We stopped for lunch at the Country Kitchen in Wellsford and had really nice fish and chips.  The cafe is neat and clean and the staff are friendly and helpful. The food is tasty and there is a good variety available.  Well worth stopping when you are travelling north from Auckland. It was so exciting when we finally arrived, after taking a few wrong turns and having to phone Kay (Roy’s…

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Evening in Auckland

We went for a walk down to the Viaduct Grill in Quay St and had dinner. Val had roast lamb rump and I had lamb shanks, both meals were well cooked and tasty. We stopped by the old Post Office building where I worked night shift as a young girl and where I stood on many occasions waiting for Val to pick me up after work. Val has never been one to place much store in time so over the years I have spent countless hours waiting for him to pick me up at various times. Outside the post office used…

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More Great Views of Auckland From Sky Tower

It was really exciting looking out over the places where we grew up, where our children were born and went to school.  The memories came flooding back. The Auckland Town Hall The Auckland Town Hall was opened in 1911. In 1997 it had a $33 million restoration that kept the elegance of its original Edwardian Baroque design.  The Town Hall Concert Chamber  has the finest acoustics in the Southern Hemisphere. The Marina at the base of the Auckland Harbour Bridge Looking out towards Mission Bay and Orakei Looking Down the Harbour

Views From the Sky Tower Auckland

The Auckland Harbour Bridge The opening of the Auckland harbour bridge in 1959 opened the North Shore area for residential expansion. Prior to the bridge being constructed the only methods of reaching the North Shore was either by vehicular or passenger ferry or by road through West Auckland, River Head and Albany, a distance of over 40 klms. When it was first constructed the bridge only had 4 lanes which catered to 2 lanes of traffic in each direction. During times of congestion the number of lanes open in a given direction could be changed.  It didn’t take long before the bridge…

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Day 2 Auckland – Sky Tower

Up early and down for breakfast.  At $33.00 I did not feel that the breakfast on offer was value for money so my advice is to go out and eat at one of the nearby cafes for breakfast. Then it was off to the Sky Tower for an impressive 360 degree view of Auckland city. At 328 metres, the Sky Tower is taller than the Eiffel Tower (324 metres) and the Sydney Tower at 304 metres, so it is pretty impressive, we have however been up the Pearl in Shanghai and it measures an impressive 468 metres making it the 3rd highest…

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City Life Auckland Apartment

It was a bit tricky manouvering around the streets to find the entrance to the hotel. Although it fronts onto Queen St (the main street), the place to park is in a side street that is not really easy to reach because of the one way streets etc.  However, eventually we found the right turnoffs after going around the block a few times. The reception area is welcoming and the staff are extremely helpful and friendly. It was a pleasure to just hop out of the car and leave it in the capable hands of the valet. The apartment was…

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Off to New Zealand

Val (hubby) and I arrived back from Tara on the Sunday night and rushed around getting things packed ready to set off to NZ the next day. Our son Jurgon  dropped us off at the airport. The Brisbane International airport has been upgraded since the last time we flew out.  Everything runs very smoothly and the signs make it very easy to see where you need to be.  We quickly went through customs and headed off to change some money and have a coffee before boarding the aircraft. Thought this little display was interesting. Not too sure what it represents as…

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Just Travelling Around – Back in Tara, Queensland

I am currently in Tara, a small rural town in Queensland with a population of approximately 851. Most of the basics of living are available in the township and the larger town of Dalby is only 80kms away for the larger stores such as Woolworths, Target, Coles, KFC, McDonalds etc. We are actually about 13kms out of Tara, and forutunately our property has power and phone lines. So many properties out here don’t have either. Today it is raining and it is cold,  Usually it is pleasant during the day and cold at night. The sandy soil has turned to mush and…

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