Richard Moller - Auckland 10 - 11 November 2007

Richard's New Zealand Odyssey 2007

Auckland
10 - 11 November 2007

Our weekend in Auckland started with an almost hour long taxi ride from the airport, around the harbour, to Devonport Naval Base. From the observation deck on the Sky Tower you can look across the harbour and see HMNZS Canterbury alongside their largest jetty, with Rangitoto Island in the background (below left). Looking out into the Hauraki Gulf you also see the main container terminal (blow right).


The Devonport Wardroom reminded me very much of the old Wardroom in Esquimalt. Not surprisingly since they were built around the same time, by naval officers with a common British heritage. The Wardroom is names after H.M.S. Philomel. The guns and anchor in front of the Wardroom came from the ship.

	Here is the view of Auckland from the dockyard.

	New Zealand's newest ship is HMNZS Canterbury, designed to be used for amphibious operations.
Thirty-three per cent of New Zealand's population lives in the Auckland region, and the city with 1.1 million inhabitant, continues to expand faster than any other part of the country. Its population has increased by 20 per cent since 1991, almost double the national rate. Below Right is the Ferry Building. This 1912 Edwardian baroque building is the focal point for commuter ferries. Designed by Alex Wiseman, the building is made of sandstone and brick, with a base of Coromandel granite. Not just a transport centre, it is also home to Harbour side Restaurant, a popular seafood restaurant with stunning views of the harbour. It was a ten minute ferry ride from Devonport to downtown Auckland.





Albert Park with Auckland Domain behind.	Auckland Town Hall
Skycity from the Sky Tower	Victoria Park
West Auckland	Mount Eden
University of Auckland Campus

Old Arts Building and Clock Tower. Part of the university buildings, the Old Arts Building and Clock Tower face Albert Park, a summer gathering place for students, Designed by Chicago-trained architect r.A. Lippincott. It was completed in 1926 Lippincoutt's brother-in-law, Walter Burley Griffin was the designer of Canberra in Australia. The clock tower that crowns the building was inspired by the Tom tower of Christ Church in Oxford, England, and has come to symbolize the university. The building's octagonal interior is vaulted and galleried with a mosaic floor and piers. A major reconstruction was undertaken between 1985 and 1988, which won an Institute of Architects award.

Albert Park

Below, a memorial to Lieutenant Geo. Leece, Corporal Herbert A. Edwards, Bombardier John Mays, Driver John Beck, Gunners Joseph Brown, Frederick Forbes, Arthur w. Kendall, and Driver Thomas Withers. Who lost their lives in the South African War, 1900-1.	Above, Sir George Crey, P.C., K.C.B., &c (1812 - 1898). Soldier, Statesman, Lover of his fellowmen, whose wisdom eloquence and strong personality gave to the people of this colony a large measure of the liberties they now possess. Governor South Australia 1841-45, Governor New Zealand 1845-53, Governor Cape Colony 1854-61, Governor New Zealand 1861-68, Last Superintendent of Auckland 1875-76, and Premier of New Zealand 1877-79


Auckland Domain

Central Auckland is built around a number of extinct volcanoes, including 14 volcanic cones, many of which are now parks. The oldest park is the Auckland Domain, situated within a fairly easy walk from downtown (provided you don't mind going up and down hills, thank goodness I did the Battle Fitness Test march which got me into better shape). Land for the 1.35 sq km park was set aside in 1840, in the early years of European settlement. The Winter Gardens, a legacy from the Auckland Exhibition of 1913, consist of two glasshouses joined by a courtyard that contains a large water lily and lotus pool. The dome-roofed areas contain a wide variety of plants.






















	In recent years, a scoria quarry behind the Winter Gardens has been converted into a fernery. Ferns are a dominant feature of the New Zealand landscape and there are more than 100 varieties in the fernery. the gardens are a popular venue for wedding and other photography.
Auckland War Memorial Museum

Built in 1929 to commemorate the end of the Great War, in which 16,697 New Zealanders died. The museum's Neo-Classical facade evokes the Greek temples that many servicemen saw from the decks of warships in the Mediterranean. the design of the cenotaph in front of the museum is based on newsreel footage, shown at the beginning of the movies in the 1920s., of the tomb of the unknown soldier in London. Besides providing visitors with an introduction to New Zealand's history, people and landscape, the museum also contains a renowned collection of Maori treasures and Pacific artifacts and holds Maori cultural performances. The museum's collection is housed on three levels. the ground level is dedicated to the people of New Zealand, both of Maori and European descent, and the Pacific region. The first level provided information on the land, while the top level focuses on New Zealand at war and how these experiences have forged the country's identity. From the front lobby you can see the stained-glass ceiling of the Great War Sanctuary. It shows the coat of arms of all British dominions and colonies during the Great War. Canada's is the top one on the left side.



Here you can see both some of the Maori Treasures collection. You can also see the blending of Maori symbols with standard European architectural style.	The balcony showers badges of the units, regiments and corps in which New Zealanders served.

To the right, you can see a statue of Laocoon and his sons. Laocoon warned his fellow Trojans against bringing the wooden horse presented by the Greeks into the city. In the Aeneid, Virgil gives Laocoon the famous line Equo ne credite, Teucri (Do not trust the Horse, Trojans) Quidquid id est, timeo Danaos et dona ferentes (Whatever it is, I fear the Greeks bearing gifts.) The Trojans disregarded his advice, however, and were taken in by the deceitful testimony of Sinon. Minerva, who was supporting the Greeks sent sea serpents to strangle Laocoon and his two sons, Antiphantes and Thymbraeus, who were then dragged into the sea.

In the stairwell to the top level you walk under this V1 Bomb from World War II. After passing under this you enter the Great War (World War I) Sanctuary.


H.M.S. New Zealand, who fought at the Battle of Jutland, 1916.	Victoria was indeed a Queen of an empire on which the sun never sets. Some say that is only because God never trusted the British in the dark.
Viaduct Basin	Harbour Bridge


	Viaduct Basin is largely a legacy from the 1999-2000 America's Cup. The up-market apartments, shops and restaurants overlook its mooring facilities. The basin is part of an extensive redevelopment of Auckland's waterfront, following the trend in cities such as Sydney, London and San Fransisco.
New Zealand National Maritime Museum We meet up with Micheal, a pen collecting friend, at the ferry terminal who took us to the Maritime Museum. Boats have played a pivotal role in New Zealand's history, from those of the early Polynesian navigators who steered their canoes toward the country to the whalers who made Russell the centre of the whaling industry in the 1840s, and the thousands of immigrants who arrived in the 19th and 20th centuries. These aspects of the country's maritime past are highlighted in the museum. In Maori the museum is called Te Huiteananui-a-Tangaroa, "the legendary house belonging to Tangaroa," god of the sea.



After lunch by the Viaduct Basin, Michael took us on a driving tour of the environs of Auckland, ending at a gannet colony. The Takapu Gannet Colony sits opposite Auckland on the West Coast of the North Island. Muriwai Beach lies just north of the gannet colony and is a popular black sand beach.



A lone fisherman stands on the rock outcrop below the gannet colony.	Just outside the gates of Devonport is this statue of a sailor looking over his shoulder to the mouth of the harbour, waiving to all the ships who are leaving the harbour.