Exploration of Auckland by Axel

Exploration of Auckland

by Axel Mitchell

I have spent the last 2 weeks in Auckland at the Viaduct Harbour. The Volvo ocean race boats came in the same harbour after racing all the way from China. There was a race village which included a cinema, restaurants, activities (like simulators and games), live bands, shops, bean bags to lounge in and built towers with, and last but best, a Lego Volvo boat.

There are lots of good restaurants near my boat, including Pride and Joy Ice Cream. Ice cream happy hour is my favorite time of day, 1 dollar ice cream with free toppings.

I went sailing on a Topaz, a small sailing dinghy, with my sister and friends Johnny and Victoria. It was a blast! They let us use the jib and I went out on the trapeze, which meant I put my feet on the edge of the boat, held onto a wire from the mast and dangled over the water.

I went exploring Auckland on my dad's fold up bike by myself. Every day I would explore something new. The coolest thing I saw was a big skate park that I rode in on my bike. I played on 2 giant curvy, tube slides that were on 2 levels of the platform.

I went on a classic yacht race with my family and their friends with absolutely no wind. It was soooo boring, but I did see someone bungy jump off the Auckland Harbour Bridge when we were under the bridge on our boat.

Almost every day I went to these pools called the Auckland Tepid Baths. There are 2 pools and a hot tub. The tepid pool water was a perfect temperature for me. One day I went with my sister and 2 friends, without any parents, we had a blast.

I had a wonderful time in Auckland, but there are still plenty of things I didn't do, like go up the Sky Tower. I really enjoyed exploring most of Auckland on my own and with my parents.

Mar 9, 2015 Auckland etc

Lots to catch up on. We have been having a great time and doing so much the last few weeks I haven't found time to write anything.

We started by sailing from the Bay of Islands to Auckland with my Dad. The first night out we anchored in Deep Water Cove, a tranquil spot close to Cape Brett.

The next day we passed the famous "Hole in the Rock" and headed south to the Poor Knight Islands. There is a spectacular cave that we watched a large power enter, turn around and hang out inside for a while. The islands are in a marine reserve so there are tons of fish. I tossed a carrot top in the water and it was instantly boiling with good size fish. We anchored in about 80 feet of water about 200 feet from the shore, and didn't get much sleep. When the wind shifted onshore at 1:30 am, both Gary and I got up and decided it was time to leave.

We sailed/motored to Great Barrier Island and anchored near Port Fitzroy. We enjoyed the delightful all in one general store, bottle shop, post office, social center,… and did a short hike and kayaking. Then onto Waiheke Island. Here Axel and I nearly killed my dad hiking from Owhanake Bay to Matatia Bay up and over about 5 headlands. The hike provided spectacular views of Auckland and was lined with massive houses, some even had helicopter pads. We took a taxi into town and relaxed at a café overlooking the beach and soaked in the views. As we started our hike back toward the boat, Axel stuck out his thumb and the first car stopped and picked us up. My dad was shocked, but relieved, as he didn't want to walk anymore. It has been a long time since my dad has hitchhiked!

The next day we tied up in Auckland at the Viaduct Marina, and there we stayed for 2 weeks. We had intended to stay just 1 week, but we enjoyed ourselves so much we stayed on. Our slip was behind the main stage for the Volvo Ocean Race, so we were right in the heart of the activities.

 The first week before the Volvo boats arrived was tranquil, Gary did a bunch of work on the boat, and the kids and I focused on schoolwork in the mornings and exploring and shopping (for stuff you can only get in large western cities) in the afternoon. We visited the art gallery and really liked the lego city exhibit, especially the fact that you could contribute to the artwork.  We saw the Chinese new year lantern festival in Albert Park. Interestingly, the Kiwis call this the year of the sheep, but the rest of the world calls it the year of the goat.

Feb 27 - Mar 1 we raced in the Classic Yacht Regatta. Unfortunately there wasn't much breeze, except for one squall that made everything very exciting for about 20 minutes. The squall hit as we were sailing under the Auckland Harbour Bridge in close quarters with many boats. The most challenging part was avoiding the other boats that were wiping out around us and trying to see past the end of the boat in the worst part of the storm.

I really want to thank Neil Cox and his navigator on Vestas Wind for making available their team compound for the Classic Yacht Regatta to use. We got the best spot at the end of the pier for our after race parties and watching the Volvo Ocean Race finish.

 Before the Volvo boats arrived, the classic yachts got to use their slips.

The classic yachts heading out for racing the morning after the Volvo boats arrived.

During the Classic Yacht Regatta.

On Friday morning before we headed out for our first race, the Volvo village was officially opened by Maori leaders, the mayor, and the Prime Minister. Due to the location of our berth, we got to view the ceremony up close and without any crowds. John Key even gave Gary a nod of acknowledgement when he walked up to watch. We all commented on how close we were to the Prime Minister and how there was only 1 security guys between us, that would never happen in the US.

The night the Volvo boats arrived was exciting. There were tons of people and tons of action.  The first boat, Mapfre, arrived about 9 pm, followed by Abu Dhabi about 4 minutes later, and Dongfeng another 4 minutes after them.  From our Classic Yacht Race center we were only a few feet from the finish line and right at the harbour entrance. Even though it was dark and there was little wind, you could see the boats and I was amazed at how fast they were sailing.

Even with my fairly poor quality photos, you can see how close the boats finished to us and the entrance to the harbour.

As soon as they finished, swarms of boats surrounded them, making it challenging for them to even enter the harbour. Once in the harbour there were loud greetings, swarms of media, on dock interviews and almost immediately they had the prize giving for the first 3 teams. The teams were ferried to the dock next to us for the ceremony. A Maori tribe greeted every team with a traditional Haka before they went on stage for their recognition. Again due to our berth location, we got a private up front viewing location for the ceremony.

Mapfre getting their first place champagne

Team Alvimedica, then Brunel arrived over the next few hours. After each team arrived there was a loud on the dock interview and even louder prize giving. About 2 am after team Brunel's prize giving, we went to bed, only to be awoken at 4:30 in the morning when the women's team, SCA, arrived. Lots of fun, but not much sleep that night, and we had to get up and go racing in the morning.

After our race was over, we got to explore the Volvo village. They set up a temporary village complete with restaurants, bars, cinema, exhibitions, boat yard, stores and our favorite the music stage beside the boat. Actually Axel's favorite was the SCA boat built out of legos.

During all of this we had numerous friends join us for meals and stay with us. There was never a dull moment. The most amazing part of staying in the middle of such a safe city, was letting the kids go explore on their own. They really enjoyed the freedom that they had. They found all the coolest parts of the Volvo village, went sailing on Topaz dinghies, and they biked all around the city on their own. We were all a little sad to leave Auckland, but much richer from our visit there.

Cheers,

Julie

 Sorry Neil we had to change allegiances since your team is out of the race