Tag: Auckland

Down Under: Auckland Pt. 2

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AUCKLAND DAY 2

Last evening we had a very early bite to eat at the Occidental Belgian Beer Café, a rustic dark wood place with a long bar and lots of low and high tables. The menu had many options for mussels (green-lipped ones very popular here) with a variety of sauces, and of course, Belgian frites with mayonnaise plus a selection of small plates and mains. Being quite zonked by this point, we decided on the mixed olives with feta cubes (deliciously spiced), chicken croquettes, and, of course, a cone of fries, accompanied by some NZ wines.

Our boutique hotel is charming with just 25 rooms and a zippy décor with brightly colored furniture and a carpet with wide bright stripes. The staff is exceedingly pleasant and helpful and our room quiet.

But the wi-fi speed is abysmally slow so we’ve become part of the café culture.

This morning we sat in the lovely, spacious, and quite elegant Gloria Jean’s near the University of Auckland; we returned after lunch for more coffee and tea and more good wi-fi. For the record, we went back to the Occidental for lunch–this time smoked salmon for the Chief Penguin and their Caesar salad with chicken for me.

The Auckland Art Gallery is at the top of a hill near Albert Park and combines a beautiful old building with great detailing with a new sleek contemporary addition. In some ways, seeing the building was as impressive and enjoyable as viewing the art. We checked out the gallery of Maori portraits of tribal chieftains all painted by one man, Charles Frederick Goldie, and found them fascinating,    

We also toured another exhibit, “Paris and the Future of Art” with works by artists from around the world including a couple with Kiwi connections. I particularly liked Duncan Grant’s portrait of a pregnant Vanessa Bell and New Zealand painter Gretchen Albrecht’s “Dervish” in strong red and orange.

John Nixon’s simple bold graphics were the focus of an exhibit in the new building and they were exhibited on walls painted in the deep bright bold colors he employed in his paintings.  

Header photo is of the flower clock in Albert Park.  In 1994 the Chief Penguin’s parents spent 7 week’s in New Zealand and Australia.  His father kept a journal and so we know they looked at this clock too then.

All photos by JWFarrington except The Occidental (from their website)

 

Down Under: Ambling in Auckland

JWF 5 Comments

NEW ZEALAND—DAY 1, AUCKLAND

We lost Monday crossing the International Dateline so it is almost noon here on Tuesday. After checking into our hotel, De Bretts, and getting cleaned up, we spent about an hour and a half wandering around center city Auckland. Our hotel is nicely located in an area of restaurants and shops and not too far from the ferry terminal and St. Patrick’s Cathedral.  

Auckland’s weather today is reminiscent of San Francisco and with its harbor location, it reminds us a little of Halifax, only this is a much larger city. I’m enjoying the architecture which is very pleasing mix of 19th century stone buildings along with contemporary glass and concrete skyscrapers. There’s a lot of construction going on including the addition of several new stops on the subway line.

Our first impressions are that not only is this a coffee city (lots of coffee stands and cafes), but that they do breakfast in a big way. Almost every restaurant we passed or stopped in at had a breakfast menu as well as lunch and dinner and folks were sitting around noshing on croissants or scones or a full egg breakfast.  

The Chief Penguin also thought there were an unusually large number of barber shops—very hair conscious men perhaps.

For our lunch, we went to casual Al’s Deli for a fried chicken sandwich with a side of cole slaw and The Saint, smoked salmon with capers and onions with cream cheese (I nixed this) on a bagel or a brioche roll. Perfectly acceptable, but nothing special. Fries and sangria or the tacos of the day also were in evidence.

After lunch we wandered some more (keep moving to stay awake is our mantra) and visited the New Zealand Maritime Museum. Lots of canoes of various vintages and materials, an exhibit on the America’s Cup, artifacts related to various shipwrecks, ship figureheads, and two other exhibits that bear special mention.  

One is a temporary exhibit on knots of all types called, “Knot Touch.”  Colorful yarns and plastics beads and buoys were strung up utilizing different kinds of knots. You entered through a large hoop and were free to feel and touch and play with any string or knot you wished. Very creative and more like art than history or science.

I also found “The Immigrants” a very informative and rich exploration of individuals who came to New Zealand from the 19th century through the 20th century and why. The depiction of what it was like to cross the Pacific in the 1840’s was particularly graphic. Very good use of diaries and letters and photos of real families who came to settle here.

 

All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved)