Auckland

As we bid adieu to Hong Kong, I loaded my playlist and prepared to knock out for eleven-hour flight to Aotearoa.

Once we landed in Auckland, we were made aware of their strict biosecurity, and I began to mentally review my luggage contents. Confused, I timidly approached a biosecurity agent and informed him of the contents of my luggage. I was expecting to have to dive deep in my luggage and toss away some of the snacks I had procured for friends in South Korea and Hong Kong, but upon further questioning, he informed me that they were fine. I would definitely recommend talking to them instead of risking the large fines, as you may be pleasantly surprised.

Their biosecurity screening was the most intense I had ever seen, with luggages being x-rayed and searched, sniffer dogs all around the baggage claim and immigration area, and endless signs stating the severe fines it carried.

We dropped off our bags and went to grab a late lunch of Japanese food run by Koreans - just like home.





Cornwall Park and One Tree Hill. We spent our walk up guessing which was the designated one tree.




A tree where fairies live, dedicated to a girl who would have been the same age as I.






Unexpected, but it made me very happy regardless.






After finally saying goodbye to all the sheep, we went back into town to begin our souvenir shopping, but it devolved into buying all the snacks I saw on our way to dinner. Gelato not pictured.




We made reservations at the Sky Tower for dinner, as you get to go up for free if you book a table for dinner.






We got a table by the window, and similar to the CN Tower 360, the ever-rotating view of Auckland lay before us.





We bought some essentials before heading back in for the night. As the largest city in New Zealand, I was a little surprised at the small-town feel of Auckland. The city centre was a lot less built up, reminding me of my university city, especially with the new chain stores popping up all around the downtown core.