Auckland,cont....

Did I say Auckland was a beautiful city! It is! Everywhere we went we saw beautiful vistas,water,green, and it is clean. As in no litter,trash, or such. Pete, who was born,raised, and still a part time resident said everyone is taught from early on to take care and take pride in their country...and it shows. Because they have strict gun laws, and registration, it is illegal to carry a personal firearm. The police feel no need to carry weapons, so the presence of violence is not the same as in the US.
After the Underworld Tour, which was the dream of Kelly Tariton, we ventured to the big cultural museum in town. Just a brief note that the Underwater Aquarium was entirely built from the old abandoned sewer in Auckland! We walked under the sea as all types of indigenous marine life swam over head and around us, including some big sharks. We loved it.
OK...on the the museum. After watching a short dance presentation that served to just "lick our chops" for more, we all went on our own to the various sections, or interests that related to NZ. I found myself drawn to the culture of the Maori and their transition through the years as the first people in NZ. As you can imagine, the exhibits were quite complete. We spent most of the afternoon there, then we were dropped into the middle of the big city proper to fend for ourselves. Lots of fun as we did "barnsdancing" (their version of everyone crossing the intersections ALL AT ONCE-EVERY WHICH WAY, while all traffic stops. I thought it worked really well, and wish we could borrow it.
As a funny coincidence, all 3 of us gals needed a watch. We were running out of time to
Meet up, so the guys sent 3 women into a giant discount mall to find 3 watches...and we only had 10 minutes! I felt like we were on some reality show, as we raced up the escalator, trying NOT to get distracted by anything. This was a tough assignment, but guess what? Do not underestimate 3 determined women on a mission. We did it!