Wednesday, October 30 - November 2, 2002
Photos © Linda J. Goff
The City of Sails is right! Auckland was hosting the Louis Vuitton Challenge Cup while we were there. Winners will go on to take part in the America's Cup races in February, 2003.
Lovely city, surrounded by extinct volcanoes. We saw the races from the harbor cruise, a Maori cultural show and a fascinating 50th anniversary display of Sir Edmund Hillary's expedition to Mt. Everest at the Auckland Museum. We also saw the views from the Sky Tower. No, it is not me dangling from the bungee cord !
It wasn't quite spring, still a little rainy. They say you can have
4 seasons in one day, and we did. "Aotearoa" is the Maori word
for New Zealand. It means "land of the long white cloud,"
and I can definitely see where that came from.
View from the Sky Tower
with extinct volcano on the horizon
The Kiwis are big on adventure, and
bungee jumping off tall buildings is popular.
One of the America's Cup racing boats
Maori "Haka", or war dance is designed to scare the enemy - lots of noise and faces.
And how far can you stick out your tongue?
A Birthday Toast!