A magnificent city, extraordinary scenery and memorable hospitality.
I found myself in Auckland, NZ, half way around the world from home. I hadn’t flown over seas since I was in high school and I was about to take a trecherous 19hr flight. Honestly this country wasn’t even on my radar of places to visit, I thought I’d be lucky enough to get to Europe once in this life time. So when, my now husband, invited me to join him for a work related trip, I couldn’t resist my urge to explore and said yes!
Auckland is and will always be a city that I dream of living in. The city is magical and country side is breath taking, the people are kind, generous and approachable and the food is simply delicious. Every encounter that I had with a local was, well, memorable
One evening we found ourselves at the local pub called The Occidental. We bellied up to the bar for a Leffe draft beer, muscles in such proportions their size formed a mound on our plate and pommes frites. As we are sitting there chatting, an older man asked if we had known each other long. We laughed in shock by this question and responded no, we had only known each other a few weeks. He continued on describing how we seemed to have known each other for a long time. Turns out he was a couples counselor and minister.
The conversation developed and evolved in enlightening directions and by the end the man wrote down the following items on a coaster:
My husband and I still live by these rules and this coaster is now displayed in our mudroom, a room that is seen daily, as a reminder of this experience, to never forget. Our lives changed that day. We never not once questioned why we met, why we traveled together so soon after meeting and why we are still together this day. If it wasn’t for them, and their ability to illuminate us in the mysteries of love and relationships, I believe that we wouldn’t be where we are today.
Since I was alone most days, I explored this vibrant city on my own by means of walking and was it a workout in every meaning of the word. The Pullman Hotel, icon for this city is located at the top of a hill, more like a mini mountain and the views from our room were stunning. However, this view came with little sacrifices…
I had to hike all the way to the bottom.
