Downtown... March 30 - April 14

After waiting for over an hour for our luggage even E.was exhausted. The summer in Auckland seemed to linger a bit longer this year; In those wee hours of a March Sunday, we were welcomed by a thick wall of humidity, heat... and cigarettes smoke. Needless to say not one of us was prepared for this - garment-wise.

A more-than-I-was-ready-for taxi ride later, we arrived in the heart of Auckland, literally a couple blocks from the Sky Tower. The proximity of the landmark did not help our first impression of the neighborhood: dirty, bleak, smelly... KPMG put us up in a two-bedroom apartment for two weeks. During that time we were to find our new home. The apartment itself was a bit of an disappointment as well. Small, hardly adequate for three adults and a toddler, no central air or ventilation system...

Well, as soon as we all showered, had some breakfast and coffee, things were to look a bit brighter... and they sort of did. I need to say that Carol and E. turned out to be good sports. They both made best out of our spartan conditions...
Improvising...

Improvising...

And improvising some more...

E. did not mind the heat, humidity, tight quarters or the really run down inner city playground (far cry from our clean, bright and colorful Cuesta Park in Mountain View):