I was picked up from the hostel at about 2:00pm on Monday. John pulled up in his silver Range Rover, I tossed my bags in the back and we were off. John asked what I had got a chance to see so far and named a few places. My replies were something like "nope; not yet; no haven't been there either." "Great," John said, "We'll see them all!". We immediately made our way towards the unique sights of Auckland.

First was Mount Eden, a now dormant Volcano whose summit is the highest on the Auckland isthmus, just minutes from Downtown Auckland. We circled our way up the mountain on a single lane road bordered with lush green grass that flourished in the nutrient rich volcanic soil. The wind grew stronger as we progressed upward. Finally, at the top we came to a small area where we parked and hopped out. We made the mistake of both opening our doors at the same time and the wind, now gusting strong enough to throw you off your balance, instantly cleared the front seats of some stray paper that laid on the dash. I watched the paper quickly fly out over the mountain side and out of view and I stopped in awe, for behind the paper lay one of the most incredible views I've had the opportunity to see. We were at a single point of land mass higher than all else in the city. It was a 360 degree view from which you could spin around and look below upon the 2 bays of Auckland speckled with boats, the highrise buildings of downtown, the suburbs that looked like small terracotta tile with green grout, and at least 3 other dormant volcanoes that sat silently in the distance. At this same point atop the cone of Eden, you could look down into the crater of the volcano from which molten debris last ejected 60,000 years ago. In its place now, some 300 feet down, lay a small herd of cows grazing at the bottom.

(You can see Mount Eden pointed out in the picture to the left. Photo taken atop One Tree Hill)

The next destination was One Tree Hill, named for the lone sacred tree that once stood upon its top. This hill (actually another dormant volcano) has a rich history. It was the home of the largest and most important Māori tribe (indeginous people of New Zealand) before the European settlers came. The tree that originally stood upon the hill was a sacred totara tree. It was cut down by a white settler in 1852 for firewood. Two pine trees were planted in its place. In 1960 some boy scouts cut down one of the pine trees. The remaining pine tree that stood upon the hill was a source of great controversy. The pine tree, which is foreign to New Zealand, was seen as an insult to the Māori. After a number of attempts made by the Māori at cutting it down, the damaged and dying tree was removed in 2000 out of safety concerns. For this reason, the now treeless One Tree Hill is often referred to as 'None Tree Hill'. The above picture of Mount Eden was taken from atop this hill.

Before finally making our way to the ranch, we drove by the renowned Auckland Museum. We didn't go in the museum so I don't have a whole lot to say about the place, but the massive open green grass vistas in front of it were pretty impressive.

So we made our way back to the ranch where John, Niel and Edward (John's 24 year old son) live. The area is mostly rural. There are fair amount of single family residences, each with several acres to their own. The roads are lined with grapevines, kiwi orchards, and incredibly green grass everywhere. You go to the local shops and everyone is greeted by their first name...

to be continued (sick of writing at the moment, hehe)