Travel to New Zealand

Auckland is, above all else a maritime city. It is built astride a narrow isthmus that bridges two coasts: the Tasman Sea to the west, the Pacific Ocean to the east. The isthmus itself enfolds two magnificent harbours - the Manukau and its more famous twin, the Waitemata Harbour.

The Waitemata and its front-yard, the Hauraki Gulf, are among the world's most stunning sailing and boating waters and Aucklanders are thus boat crazy. Not for nothing do they call it the City of Sails. On the average summer weekend the harbour and gulf are confettied with white canvas.

Auckland is home to a million souls - a polychromatic melting pot of races and cultures. Predominantly British, but with, naturally enough, a very strong Maori element. On top of these base tones add in the peoples of the Pacific Islands - notably Samoa, Tonga, Niue, and the Cooks - Dutch, Dalmatian, and (especially recently) Chinese. But then add the coloratura high notes - Indian, Greek, Italian, African, Middle Eastern and many more. The result is a true multi-cultural city which for the most part works harmoniously and successfully.

What it has meant is an interesting melding of cuisines which have combined to create a very distinctive New Zealand style of cooking.
Sightseeing

But what to see, what to do?? -

Start with the basics: The Auckland Museum has an excellent Polynesian court and (not unexpectedly) the best Maori section in the world. For some reason, it is one of the most visited museums in the world. It is certainly NZ's most visited visitor attraction. There's also a grand view of the city from its front steps. The museum shop sells particularly good quality, authentic souvenirs.

While you're up that way, wander over to the Wintergardens - glass houses dating from the 1920s, they house splendid displays of tropical and temperate plants. Well worth the stroll, as are some of the other lanes and dells in the gardens.

The best views of the city, however, are from the volcanic cones that dot the isthmus. Mt Eden, one of the more prominent, blew its top only a few thousand years ago . . . but yesterday geologically. That'll add spice to a summit visit. (If the ground starts rumbling, run).

Another high point for viewing is One Tree Hill. It used to have a single tree on its crown until some loony Maori "activist" (I prefer the phrase "mindless racist vandal") tried to score cheap, destructive publicity by attempting to fell it. He was stopped before completing the job but its days were numbered and in October 2000 it was finally felled. And for you U2 fans, yes, this is the One Tree Hill of "Joshua Tree" fame. The park that surrounds it is worth a wander and the tea kiosk in the grounds is a fine old-fashioned watering hole.

Prominent on the city's skyline is Sky City Skytower ranked as the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere and the seventh tallest in the world. The view from the top platform is stunning, but to be honest the "high"-light for me was walking on a glass floor a hell of a long away above Mother Earth. Set into the floor of the viewing platform are glass blocks that give a splendid view straight down. You are invited to step on to this seemingly insubstantial construction. It requires a considerable leap of faith in the engineering profession to do so. The elevator ride to the top costs $18 . . . but the best value is to go up for a meal at either of the two sky-high restaurants, Orbit or The Observatory. The meals are not too badly priced - around $35 for a two course lunch and dinner mains at $29-32 - but the elevator ride is included for free. It makes the eats cheap. And if you want a great mood shot for an "Auckland" photo, try to catch the Skytower by night as the clouds drift around it. It's lit, often with an unearthly bluish-purple light, and with the cloud effect can be quite spectacularly spooky.

If you want a rapid adrenalin rush the Skytower has a couple of other options: Climb to the top of it or simply jump off it. Vertigo takes you on a climb to the highest man-made viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere. You'll get spectacular views from the open air of the crows nest, 300 metres (1000ft) above the city. Access is gained by way of a climb 44 metres up the internal ladder system within the steel mast structure. The Skyjump is not a bungy - a bungy cord would be too long and too dangerous - instead it's a wire-controlled base jump, the highest of its kind in the world. You fly a bit like Superman for 20 seconds down 192m (630 ft) to the landing below.

Rather go up in the world, than leap off tall buildings? Try the Skyscreamer in Victoria St, near the corner of Albert St. It's like a giant slingshot, a bungy in reverse, that hurls you into the air, reaching 200kph in 2 seconds - faster even than a top fuel dragster.

The king of the adrenalin rush, A.J.Hackett, was the first person to bungy off the Auckland Harbour Bridge - for which he was promptly arrested. He went on to start commercial bungy jumping operations in Queenstown and later around the world. Now he is back at the Auckland Harbour Bridge, this time legally with a commercial bungy jump. In my view, this has to be the bungy jump option anywhere in the country.

If leaping off a bridge isn't your thing right now, why not just take a stroll over it - over the top span to be precise. Another A.J.Hacket operation, the Harbour Bridge Climb is set to become one of the top tourist attractions in town.

Auckland Zoo is popular with visitors because of its well-presented kiwi house. Kiwis (the ornithological variety) are a nocturnal species so it's difficult to arrange their hours to suit thems-as-us that prefer it t'other way round. At the Kiwi House a group of birds, duped by technology, work on human time in a specially created and controlled atmosphere. The rest of the zoo is also worth the wander, especially if you have young 'uns at heel.