A gallery of photos from my trip to New Zealand in June 2011.
Click on the photos to see full-sized versions (1200 x 797). Once a photo has been opened, you will be able to view all of the photos in a lightbox viewer, using arrow keys or your mouse to navigate. 42 photos.
A Red-billed Gull sits near the Ferry Building on Auckland Harbor.
A girl on a fountain in Devonport.
Children playing on the beach in Devonport.
The news was dominated by natural causes. Earthquakes continued to rock Christchurch and ash from a Chilean volcano invaded New Zealand airspace.
A cruise ship emerges from the foggy morning and pulls into port, right outside my apartment!
Oh, hullo! I guess I had better put some clothes on!
My favorite lunch in Auckland – the seafood risotto from Auckland Fish Market, Market Seafood Brasserie. My friend Joe opted for the fish and chips, with a side of broiled potatoes.
Sunset on Viaduct Harbor.
The view from my apartment. Full moon rising over Auckland Harbor.
Dinner at Euro.
Joe Terahata checks the board.
Joe Terahata and Nabraj Khatri have an intense talk before dinner.
The Euro kitchen brigade at work.
Massage parlor on Fort Street.
Alley off of Fort Street.
Bar on Karangahape Road (K’ Road).
Girs walking on Commerce Street.
The White Lady. This mobile burger joint appears after dark each night and feeds the vampires until 4 am. Look for a review on this site soon.
Just before leaving my apartment on another urban photo safari. Self portrait, Auckland, New Zealand, June 19, 2011.
On Friday night, a cold front blew-in bringing freezing temps and wind gusts of 57 kph. Meanwhile, back home, there were 17 straight days of 100+ F temps.
The Foodstore on the Viaduct. In 2010, I watched the construction of this restaurant as I walked past each morning on the way to work and then managed to have dinner there on its opening weekend.
The Foodstore was bustling on a Saturday night.
Like Euro, The Foodstore features a live kitchen in the dining room. During the day, the Foodstore is used to produce and film cooking television shows.
Grass-fed Hawke’s Bay eye fillet with potato gratin, quail egg & roast tomatoes, from The Foodstore. Simple and delicious.
Countdown clock for the Rugby World Cup, located across the street from the Britomart Transport Centre building.
The back of the Britomart Transport Centre.
Inside the Britomart underground train station.
The massive light fixtures. These skylights not only diffuse both natural and artificial light, but also visually reflect the volcanic heritage of New Zealand.
Stainless steel and glass barriers reflect the colors of the lighted walls. At least for now, there is almost no advertising present in the train station.
Stairs and escalators leading out into the Britomart Transport Centre, where the post-modern design elements of the underground crash into the Edwardian-style, re-purposed General Post Office building, originally built in 1911. The effect is fantastic.
Back on the street and on my last night, it’s time for a steak. The sign for Angus Steak House is on the street, but you have to go around the block and into an alley to find the entrance.
Angus Steak House features a prix fixe menu for the basic steak and salad bar. The customer selects his own (massive) cut of meat. Other options are available, including eye fillet and a rack of lamb.
The steaks are grilled and then served on cast iron plates.
Unlike the steak from The Foodstore, this one was bigger and better – no quail egg, no fancy sauce, and no push-back when I asked for it to be cooked rare-to-medium. This was just an honest steak that was so good, I had to take a bite first, before I could be bothered to take a picture of it.
The ubiquitous, but always impressive Auckland Sky Tower. Someday, I need to jump off of that thing.
The delightful sushi and sashimi lunch “plate” at Industry Zen. The theatrical and elaborate presentation style of the food is fun, not fussy. The food was delicious and I was smiling throughout my meal, as I would open the colorful ceramic boxes to find the treasures within.
The beautiful turbofan blades of one of the massive General Electric GE90 jet engines on the B777-300ER, on which I flew home. This was easily the nicest airplane I have ever been on. Even in the cattle car section, the seats had folding leg rests, which could be used to make a bed, assuming luck or fortune gave you access to the seat row. The seat-back video screens were the largest I have seen and featured the latest touchscreen interface. Even the ambient lighting looked like it was from a luxury car.
Back at home, our newest cat, Hudson, plays with his new Kiwi finger puppet.
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4 comments
love the pictures! It’s like an episode of No Reservations in blog form, without the arrogant new yorker!
love the pics… cool to see jo n nabie!
Awesome picture, you have flicked with camera. Some very nice place you had mention which I have not visited during the trip of New Zealand. Thanks for sharing such a nice photos.