12: Friday the 13th: Dargaville to Auckland

Goodbye to our lovely room in Dargaville, with a fabulous bathtub/shower.  I took two baths; Molly took one.  Ahhhhh....

our kitchenette, in use; the computer table with Ethernet was at the left.  My wireless ceased to work. Just what everyone wants to do while on vacation...troubleshoot computer problems.  Luckily one of the three fixes I wrote down while I had the ethernet connection worked...

Who needs a pedicure?  It will have to wait two weeks....

Saving the day: do-it-yourself-dentistry--a mouth guard that I fitted to my lower jaw, to protect my tongue from the wire mesh protuding from my November bone graft surgery. 

my hero...do you think I have a future in amateur dentistry?

OK: I was addicted to the Blah Blah Blah cafe.  I took take out the previous day to have quiche this morning...with the most delicious stone-ground crust.

an odd sight en route from Dargaville to Auckland

Our plan was to make it to Auckland in time for lunch at the previously closed Blue Bird Vegetarian Cafe.  And then drop off our backpacks and food at the Quadrant, then turn in our car by 14:00.  I called Apex Car Rental from the Blue Bird to get permission to be up to an hour late, but we made it there by 2:15pm. After being ripped off by a gas station attendant who super topped off our tank. And, I couldn't pay my tolls there, so I will have to do it my phone or online, where I will be charged as much as the toll by Master Card or Visa.

BlueBird Calzone and salad (Teri).  

What happened to Molly's Bali Hai Kumara bowl?

a view from upstairs

another view from upstairs....

When we got back to our hotel, Molly hung out in the room.  I went downstairs to the tiny cafe/bar and did some writing and chatted with the "bartender" who was, at 22, living on his own for the first time and getting daily shocks about bills.  "What? you pay for water from the tap?" I guess the folks in Auckland aren't getting their water from their own rooftops...the city must organize that for them. 

At 6:00, we walked down to the harbor

Ahh...a cruise ship! What a great idea!!!

CPAs are busy here, too

PriceWaterhouseCoopers needs its own building, too...right by the wharf

Our destination on this walk was Freddy's Ice House, which was a bar made of solid ice. The drink glasses were also made of ice.  Unfortunately, they did not allow us to take our own photos in the place. They did it for us, Universal Studios style.  Molly had brought her license (the drinking age is 18), but they would only take a passport, so a drink out with mom is still in the future...

The Ice House provides the jackets, rubber glove liners, and gloves

Probably our only emu ride of the trip...

In the evening, we watched a NZ comedy show in the room, followed by Ellen Degeneres and hit the sack...