Grey Auckland

After South and SE Asia, New Zealand is empty and colorless, at least in the big cities. So strange to finally be back in a land where I understand everything, have all the modern conveniences, and long for the mess and bustle of Calcutta. I arrived yesterday, and set out last evening in the cold drizzle to find a cell phone service, do some quick shopping for essentials, etc. Everyone is wearing some shade of black or grey, the 10 people on the street I see, that is, and the shops have all closed at 5:30 pm! Dorothy, we're back in Kansas. Definitely not the tourist ghettos I'm used to staying in, and this is the neighborhood with all the hostels! I'm going to have to get used to life in the modern world all over again. And I hate black, grey, and tasteful shades of tan or beige! Even the backpackers are wearing neutrals.

Rode to the top of the SkyTower last night (the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere is shorter than the Eiffel tower) and watched the rain storms roll in off the bay as the sun set. Beautiful, and since there's so little people, even the cheesy tourist attractions aren't crowded. Looked down on 4 lane streets with maybe 5 cars per block, and caught some of the charm of a modern big city with no people. 30% of New Zealanders live in Auckland, but it only has 1.3 million people . . .

On the plus side, food in the grocery store is cheap (about the only thing that is, and the business section of the paper today said the NZ dollar will continue to rise against the USD. Damn currency markets have recently become an obsession, as I watch my savings buy less and less.) The sun is shining today, and I found the local equivalent of TJ max and bought a bright yellow fleece. I'm staying in Auckland until Thursday, with local trips out do a dormant volcano and the Bay of Islands.