happy medium

Car ownership is the 2nd highest in the world. Only 2% of people use buses, 1% trains.

Although the number has halved in recent history, there is now 10 sheep to every person. 50% of all sheep-meat in the world comes from New Zealand. It’s also in the top 5 dairy exporters.

Currently prostitution and brothel keeping are legal in New Zealand. This month a Policewoman was reprimanded for moonlighting as a prostitute, but kept her job due to no crime being commited.

Gun ownership is also legal. There are various gunstores dotted around, hunting is popular. Some guy was shot recently for trying to hold up a gunstore with a knife…However, police do not carry arms, unlike Australia.

Wellington is the World’s most southern capital.

Banks charge you to take any money from your account, be it paying for something or cashpoint. There is a monthly service fee. Interest on your account? 0%. And you thought UK banks were crap!

You cannot be sued for causing injury in New Zealand and car insurance is not required by law

With the exception of two species of bat, no indigenous mammals are native to New Zealand. No snakes, although it’s home to the world’s largest insect the giant weta and an ancient reptile with a third eye from the dinosaur era named the Tuatara. Both unique to New Zealand alongside 1500 species of plants.

75% of the population are of British descent, although NZ has the highest population of Pacific Islanders in the world. There are more Cook Islanders living in Auckland than on Cook Island itself…

You can leave school and apply for a driving license at 15.

Smoking is banned in all bars and clubs. This has created a beer garden culture and outdoor heaters are everywhere.

New Zealand is Nuclear free, both power stations and arms are banned. This had lead to issues with the US. NZ was exluded from a defense pact with the Amercians, and reduced to “good friend” from “ally”

Woke up early to watch the sunrise from my balcony and then headed down to the Harbour to catch the ferry to the extinct volcano named Rangitoto which over looks Auckland:

Rangitoto has to be one of the most unique places I’ve been to. It erupted from the sea only 600 years ago, watched by the local Maori people, so in terms of the Earths history it’s only just been born. It’s the largest of the 50 or so volcanos in Auckland, and dominates the harbour. The plantlife here is unique and is even “confused” by the lava island. Alpine plants grow at sea level, trees mosses on the ground, but it’s home to over 200 species of plant and 40 types of fern, and is the largest pohutukawa forest left in the world. The tree has crimson flowers during the summer, and so the whole volcano turns red.

What looks like freshly dug soil, are lava flows which vegetation hasn’t yet developed on:

Still steaming!

The volcano has a pretty busy past despite it being so young. The Maori used it as a look out post, and named it “Te Rangi i totongia a Tamatekapua” – the day the blood of Tamatekapua was shed. Chief Tamatekapua died in battle in 1350, about the time it erupted. It’s known as a “Taonga” or treasure. In 1854 the british paid £15 for it and turned it into a public domain by 1890. It could be argued they did a fair amount of damage to the island, by 1930 many batches or huts had been built, and prisoners had been forced to clear and flatten an area (which can still be seen today) for tennis courts which were never built. A public swimming pool was even built.

During the second world war it was closed to the public and troops were stationed there. Radar buildings and the HQ of coastal defence was based on the volcano, and various fortifications still excist. Auckland then decided to reverse the damage by eradicating possums and wallabies which had been introduced, and refusing to renew leases on any batches left on the island.

It’s now extremely quiet on the island,despite being so close to the city. There is very little bird or insect life because of the comparatively recent vegetation growth. I guess it takes thousands of years for an eco-system to be able to support animal life.

I made sure I was first off the ferry and sraight up the path to the summit. Nearly 300 metres up, and I got these views to myself for about half an hour:

I say by myself, but I was soon joined by these guys:

Named Silvereyes or Waxeyes, they had no fear of landing around me, even on me a couple of times. No doubt they’re there for the food tourists bring up. Apparently they mate for life and use spider webs to make their nests. None of those photos are zoomed in.

Then caught the midday ferry back to downtown, treated myself to some Sushi and headed east along the coast to Mission Bay

The volcano I climbed in the morning dominates the view from the beach, and even some of the local buildings are made from rocks taken from Rangitoto:

Then watched the sunset as I walked back to the city for a meal with friends and a rowdy night out.

As cliched as it sounds I’ll never forget this day…

Finished this week on a high, visting Mt Eden and meeting up with James, Maiko and Bronwyne (seems to be becoming a weekly event). We headed down to a place named Sabato. Gold mine of amazing Italian and French food; olives, pesto, pasta, dark chocolate, coffee, cheeses…

Just after the last photo I was told off by the staff for taking photos…

We then headed over to a cafe named Circus Cirus for lunch

The district is named Mt Eden after the tallest Volcano in Auckland – 196 metres high. It provides stunning 360 degree views of the City, and reminded me just how spread out Auckland actually is. Photos really do not do the view justice I’m afraid

View from the balcony:

Growing up slap bang in the middle of England, harbours and ships are something I’m not used to, so it’s a novelty being able to see the freight ships come and go. 40% of New Zealands freight comes through that dock so it’s fairly busy. We had thick fog the other night, and I could hear the fog-horn sounding every so often, with the ships returning the call.

All four electrical power cables supplying the Central Business District failed on 20 February 1998, causing the 1998 Auckland power crisis. It took five weeks before an emergency overhead cable was completed to restore the power supply to the Central Business District. For much of that time, about 60,000 of the 74,000 people who worked in the area worked from home or from relocated offices in the suburbs. Many of the 6,000 apartment dwellers in the area had to find alternative accommodation.

There was a blackout only a few weeks ago…

Yet more information to stop me sleeping at night. New Zealand was home to one of the two most Violent eruptions in the World in the last 5000 years. In 181 AD, by which time the Romans had taken over most of Europe, lake Taupo in the North Island of New Zealand did not excist. Where the crater and lake now rest, was the point of explosion which sent 800 cubric kilometres of ash and fire 50 kilometres into the air, which then dumped itself over the North Island 200metres deep.

To put pespective into the risk of Volcanoes, around 70,000 years ago a Volcano called Toba in Sumatra erupted. A global 6 year volcanic winter then took place, and only a few thousand humans were left on the Planet. Everyone alive today is descended from those few thousand people.

This is a cast of one of the victims of Pompeii. He was taking shelter from the explosion, when he was covered in ash. Notice the hands covering his mouth to try and breath.

And just to put the fear of God into me, the musuem had an installation of what it would be like to experience an eruption in Auckand. They predicted that the eruption would take place just out to sea infront of Mission Bay, viewable from the balcony of my flat

At least I would get a good view…

Finally managed to check out the Museum. It’s split between 3 floors, on the Ground is the History of the Pacific People, 1st Floor is The Land, and 2nd is New Zealand at War.

After spending a few hours walking around (really needed more), headed outside to watch the sunset

I have to admit to taking a photo of this statue on the Domain park before, but not reading who it was of. Turns out it’s a brother: