Paritai Drive, in the suburb of Orakei, is one of Auckland’s most exclusive addresses. The Drive follows around a point with expansive views of the harbor. The houses come in all shapes, styles and ages but only one size, extra large.
Dwarfing its already large neighbors is one of New Zealand’s most expensive houses. Taking up three lots, it has a tennis court, indoor and outdoor pools, parking for twelve cars and seven bedrooms. It is hard to see from the photo just how big it is, but take our word for it, it is truly enormous. When it last changed hands it was for the princely sum of 39 million dollars.
Here are some of the views that make the address so desirable.
For some reason, it seems to be the practice in New Zealand to cover houses that are being built or renovated with plastic. We can only hope that it is reused, or at a minimum, recycled.
In the neighborhood behind Paritai Drive, the houses are generally less grand but no less interesting.
There were also some cool small apartment buildings.
The eastern end of Paritai Drive overlooks Okahu Bay. The name comes from the Maori, Okahu, meaning “the home of Kahu”. It was once the site of the home village of the Ngati Whatua iwi (tribe). However, in 1952, the Auckland City Council, deeming the village “a dreadful eyesore and potential disease center”, relocated the residents and razed the village. The move was, probably, precipitated by Elizabeth II’s royal tour of later that year. Today it is a popular bay where you can rent outrigger kayaks.
Go for a run
Or just sit and enjoy the view.
Across Tamaki Drive from the beach is a large sports ground used for cricket and rugby. There is also an adventure playground, complete with thatched roof.
The village may be gone but the Maori cemetery remains.
At the eastern edge of the bay is Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium. The aquarium is located below ground and, ingeniously, has been repurposed from no longer used storm water and sewage tanks. It holds over 1,500 fish, including stingrays and sharks. There is also a colony of king penguins and gentoo penguins.
On a beautiful early Autumn day we went for a walk around neighboring Grey Lynn. In many ways it is similar to our own neighborhood of Freeman’s Bay with lots of white wooden cottages and villas.
But there are also a variety of other types of houses, including this Spanish style home.
And these two that were less than welcoming.
Although most of Auckland’s villas and cottages are made of wood, there are exceptions.
Another difference between Grey Lynn and the neighboring suburbs is the number of tree lined streets. At times we could almost have been back in Washington DC.
A friend of ours, visiting from the States, once described Auckland not so much as a city than as a series of villages. Certainly, each suburb appears to have its own little Main Street. Grey Lynn is no exception.
This home welcomed passers by to enjoy its colorful deck and swing.
And this one offered free reading material and tapes. We often come across little lending libraries outside homes in DC. This was the first that we have seen in New Zealand.
Our niece, Debbie, joined us on a visit to the Sculptureum. Just outside of Matakana, it is the home of some of the most beautiful palms and weirdest sculptures you are likely to find anywhere. With giant green rabbits, pink snails and multi-colored meerkats, this is not a place to visit under the influence of psychedelics.
The most disturbing were perhaps the sculptures of humans with animal heads.
The weather in the Auckland region is very changeable. The bad news is that you can set off for a walk in bright sunshine and five minutes later be drenched by a passing shower. The good news is that the region has more than its fair share of rainbows. Driving over the hill from Matakana to Pakiri, just north of Auckland, we were treated to a vibrant rainbow and some beautiful farmland.
We were on our way to stay with Mal’s sister, Christine, and brother-in-law, Bill, who live high on a hill overlooking Pakiri. Here was the view from their front lawn.
We headed across the Harbour Bridge to visit Takapuna, on Auckland’s North Shore. Taka is Maori for knoll or assembly and puna means spring. It probably refers to Lake Pupuke, a small lake lying about 200 meters inland which was created when a volcanic crater filled with fresh spring water.
The beach is very popular in the Summer when it attracts big crowds. On this warm Autumn afternoon it was much quieter.
At the north end of the beach is a pathway that follows the shoreline around to Milford Beach, about a mile away. The path is lined with houses, ranging from modern large homes to small old shacks. Because of the location, even the smallest shacks are worth millions. Here are some of the sights that we saw along the way.
We went along to the Van Gogh Alive multi-sensory experience with our friends Howard and Carolyn. It was a beautiful experience seeing the tormented artist’s work on huge screens in vibrant color with classical music playing in the background. The colors and texture of his works make him an ideal artist for such a show. The works were also accompanied by many poignant quotes by the artist. We particularly liked his foresight when he wrote “I can’t change the fact that my paintings don’t sell. But the time will come when people will recognize that they are worth more than the value of the paints used in the picture.”
Today we continued climbing the peaks of Auckland. At 143 meters high, Ohinerau / Mt. Hobson is smaller than Maungawhau / Mt. Eden and Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill (both of which we have previously blogged about) and a much easier climb. It has been extensively modified by human use, first as a pa, then as a quarry and finally as a water reservoir. Its Maori name references Hinerau, the goddess of whirlwinds and the English name references William Hobson, New Zealand’s first Governor.
Ohinerau sits at the middle of the affluent suburb of Remuera. Back in the eighties we rented a small one bedroom flat there for $100 a month, which seems inconceivable now. We stopped at the top to enjoy the view over our old suburb.
Because a reservoir now occupies the volcano’s cone, there is a large flat area at the summit, much like a mesa.
Remnants of the large pa that occupied the site still remain, including terraces and food pits.
From the top we could see Maungawhau / Mt. Eden and Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill.
Maungawhau Maungakiekie
It was still early afternoon but the Southern Motorway was already becoming busy. Such are the joys of Auckland traffic.
Here are some more of the spectacular views from the top.
View over Remuera toward the Hauraki Gulf and RangitotoView over Newmarket toward the CityView over Remuera toward the Coromandel ranges.
As the sun started to fall we joined our good friend Hamish as he took his two dogs, Bonnie and Chica, for their regular walk up Maungawhau / Mt. Eden. Maungawhau (mountain of the whau tree) is Auckland’s highest peak at 643 feet above sea level and at times the climb was rather strenuous. Hamish took us ‘off piste’ as we climbed steep slopes and walked along the terraces left over from pre-European times when it was the site of a pa. Along the way we were treated to some spectacular views.
Maungawhau is a dormant volcano that erupted about 28,000 years ago. There is a deep bowl-like crater that is 50 meters deep. The crater is named Te Ipu-a-Mataaho (the bowl of Mataaho). Mataaho was a deity said to live in the crater and to be the guardian of the secrets hidden in the earth.
Today we walked along Karangahape Road, commonly shortened to K Road by the locals, over the Grafton Bridge and on through the Domain to the Auckland Museum.
K Road was Auckland’s most popular shopping street during the first half of the 1900s and was home to many of New Zealand’s most popular stores. However, in the 1960s a new motorway system was built which led to many of the surrounding residences being destroyed. As a result many of the stores closed and the road became run down. The western end of the road became the center of the sex industry and was the home of a number of strip clubs and adult video stores. However, more recently it has undergone a resurgence due to the gentrification of the neighboring suburbs and the construction of new apartment buildings. Now it is the home of trendy restaurants, artisan bakers and even a Tesla dealership.
We aren’t generally big fans of cakes but we make an exception for The Caker’s gluten-free cakes. Sadly, they have stopped making our favorite passionfruit orange cake.
Standing on the bridge that crosses one of the motorways that led to K Road’s demise is one of the more colorful bus stops that we have come across in our travels.
There is still a way to go before the Road returns to its former glory. Currently, it is undergoing an extensive beautification project.
We found this overhead sign somewhat disturbing.
About half way along K Road is St. Kevin’s Arcade. Built in the 1920s, it is now the home of fashionable restaurants and shops. We are looking forward to dining soon at Gemmayze Street, a very popular Lebanese restaurant.
Our local Member of Parliament (MP) also has her office on K Road. At 26 years old she is one of New Zealand’s youngest MPs and is also only the second Green Party MP to win an electorate seat. And because New Zealand is such a small country where everybody knows everybody, she also used to date Mal’s cousin’s son for a couple of years.
K Road ends at Grafton Bridge which we crossed on our way to the Museum. Completed in 1910, it was at the time the largest single-span concrete bridge in the world. Unfortunately, because of its height it also became popular with suicides. The bridge now has curving overhangs to discourage would be jumpers and provide shelter from Auckland’s frequent showers.
The Museum stands in the middle of the Auckland Domain (Pukekawa) the city’s oldest park. The park sits on the explosion crater and surrounding tuff ring of the Pukekawa volcano. It has extensive playing fields and beautiful gardens.
As well as the Museum it is also home to the Wintergardens, which include two beautiful glass houses and a fernery which has been constructed in an old quarry.
The Auckland War Memorial Museum (Tamaki Paenga Hija) is one of New Zealand’s oldest and most important museums and war memorials. It was constructed in the 1920s in neo-classicist style.
It contains a large variety of exhibits and many Maori artifacts, including a complete meeting house and a war canoe.
There were a lot of students wandering around, including these boys from Mal’s old school, Auckland Grammar
The museum also has some great paintings by Charles Goldie. Goldie was born and died in Auckland (1870 to 1947) and is best known for his portrayal of Maori dignitaries.
The museum had a recent makeover of its south atrium to the tune of $38 million. Once again, our cousin Neil’s old firm took the lead. The results are spectacular. The Noel Lane designed Tanoa bowl is particularly stunning.
The traditional north entrance is also very impressive.
The museum had some old photos of Auckland that we were able to compare with the same spots today.
K Road circa 1865The same spot on K Road today.
Sitting next to and below Grafton Bridge is Auckland’s oldest cemetery. Here are photos of it from circa 1868 and today.
Auckland cemetery circa 1868.Auckland cemetery today.
In the evening Mal had dinner at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron with his old school friends Howard and Hamish. The Squadron occupies a prime spot at Westhaven, practically under the Auckland Harbor Bridge. It is the current holder of yachting’s most prestigious trophy, the America’s Cup. We are proud to say that Howard built the cabinet that now holds the Cup.
The Royal New Zealand Yacht SquadronAuckland Harbour Bridge as seen from the SquadronThe America’s CupHamish, Howard and Mal
The Auckland area is home to 48 volcanic cones, many of which are clearly visible standing above their surrounding suburbs. The most recognizable is Maungakiekie (hill of the kiekie vine) more commonly known as One Tree Hill. The hill got its English name from a solitary tree that stood near its summit. However, that tree was cut down by an early settler in 1852 either in an act of vandalism or for firewood. Over the years, there have been numerous attempts to replace it with other trees. Most recently there was a lone pine standing near the summit but it came to an untimely end when it was attacked by a chainsaw wielding Maori activist in 2000.
Joined once again by our walking buddy Judi, we made our way up along the winding road that leads to the summit. The hill was once the site of the largest and most important Maori pa (fortified village) in pre-European times, with a population of up to 5,000. It is not uncommon in New Zealand to see terraces cut around the sides of hills. These are the remnants of the original pas that were built on the easy to defend hills. Maungakiekie is no exception.
From the top there are spectacular views over the city.
There also appears to be a new effort to regrow trees at the top.
Although there is no tree currently at the summit, there is an impressive obelisk. Unveiled in 1948, the obelisk is a memorial to Maori and features a bronze statue of a Maori warrior at its front. The money for the Memorial had been bequeathed by Sir John Logan Campbell, who had donated the surrounding farmland to the public. Campbell, who died in 1912, is buried at the foot of the obelisk. Like many European New Zealanders of his generation, Campbell had expected that the Maori would gradually die out and his hope was that the obelisk would make a striking memorial. That, of course, never happened and the use of the term “memorial” seems inappropriate nowadays. Particularly with Maori culture becoming more and more predominant in modern day New Zealand.
It was pretty breezy at the top so we made our way down into surrounding Cornwall Park.
The Duke of Cornwall, later to become King George V, was visiting New Zealand in 1901 at the time that Sir John Logan Campbell was intending to donate to the public his 230 acres surrounding One Tree Hill. So on June 11, Campbell, who was Mayor of Auckland at the time, presented the deed to the land to the Duke and asked for his consent to name the park Cornwall Park in his honor. It is incredible to be able to enjoy such idyllic farmland right in the center of Auckland, complete with grazing sheep and cattle.
Cambell had become interested in wine and olive oil cultivation and had imported 5000 olive trees to be planted on his land in the 1860s. Unfortunately, the trees were sterile and produced a low yield of poor quality fruit, making the venture unprofitable. Today there are around 200 of the original trees on the west side of the park. They are some of the largest olive trees that we have seen anywhere.
Campbell, along with William Brown, a Scottish lawyer who had arrived in Auckland at the same time as Campbell, built Auckland’s earliest house. That cottage still exists, having been moved to Cornwall Park from its original location in in 1920.
Mal and Lauren 