DAY 54 DAY 42 SERENITY

WELCOME TO AUCKLAND,  New Zealand - DAY  1

We began last evening at the Crystal Cove for a  pre-dinner drink.

We had  dinner  at Waterside.

These are the dinner menus.

We had two courses rather than our regular three course meal.  A dinner salad followed by Mahi  Mahi Tuna   for  Keith from the Moment Menu and Tiger Shrimp  over Pasta for Anne  Marie.

The featured entertainment was Fosse which we attended.  This show was first shown a few years ago and we were glad it was shown again.   It was developed on the ship and at the time most of the singers and dancers and members of the Crystal Showband were not involved with its debut.  Watching the show  you  would not  realize  they practiced it for  less  than  two weeks.  Rather, you would think this is one of the regular production shows.  A very special show  indeed.

We slept well as  we sailed to our next port of call stop of Auckland, New Zealand.  We enjoyed another wonderful  sunrise.  We also saw the Pilot  Boat arrive  to the ship.

Attached at the hip.   LOL.

After Keith worked out, we had breakfast in our room and got ready  to explore Auckland. We have visited here several times over the years.

​Auckland is New Zealand's largest city with a population  around  1.6 Million people.  Its  population is diverse and  it is home to the largest Polynesian population in the world.

Major downtown attractions included the Auckland Museum, the Sky Tower, Parnell Village, the Maritime and the Auckland War Memorial Museums, The Auckland Zoo, Newmarket and Auckland Botanical Gardens.

Auckland Museum provides  both the natural culture and social history of New  Zealand and its people.

Sky Tower offers wonderful views of the city and its suburbs  and can be seen from  various vantage points across the  city of Auckland.

Maritime Museum  is a terrific venue to  learn about the history of seafaring in New Zealand.

Auckland  Zoo opened  98 years ago and  is home to over  1,400 animals.

Newmarket is an  upscale area of Auckland including a  retail district along   with cafes and and restaurants.

Auckland Botanical Gardens started in  1973 and opened  to the public in  1982.  It has six major gardens.

The city is located between the Hauraki Gulf and the Hunua Ranges.  The surrounding hills are covered in rain forests.  There  are  many dormant volcanic coasts near the rainforests.

The nice thing  about the location of the cruise ship terminal is no shuttle is required to visit the city.  The location is right in the middle of the city.

As we left the cruise ship terminal we saw Hotel Director  Scott  Peterson.  Scott will take over when Hubert goes on a well-deserved Holiday at the conclusion of this cruise.  Less than a block from the terminal, we ran into former Crystal Symphony Shore Excursion Manager Jim whom we  last sailed with in 2018.  He is now assisting Crystal Land Programs with special projects.   It was wonderful to see and visit with Jim.

As  was the case last year  there is  lots of construction downtown as part of the expansion of the  subway  system.   There are lots of people  who help direct the pedestrians and get them  safely  across the street.

We made our way to different areas where we  enjoyed views of Sky Tower, the  Harbour, over to Albert  Park and the nearby university.  Apologies  for the photo of the iconic Clock Tower.   However, the only  way  to photograph was with the sun to  the front of where we were.  We made a few stops; one at a pharmacy and the other to a Mac Pac shop.  No, not Mac as  in Apple.   Rather, Mac  Pac as in outdoors  type of clothing.  We have purchased from  the Mac  Pac stores in Auckland and other areas within New Zealand and Australia including clothing in preparation  for the Northwest Passage Cruise.

We also checked out one  of the train stations.  We plan to see the Elton John Farewell Yellow Brick Road Concert this evening.  Our original plan was to use Uber but we think we will take the train.

Back on the ship we enjoyed lunch at Marketplace, Paddle Tennis for Keith, a walk for Anne Marie.

This is the daily Reflections Program.

Cheers,

Anne Marie & Keith