Common People
If there is one place you would want to arrive and be welcomed after a journey to the other side of the world, it's Auckland. The numerous time zones we'd passed through dissolved in the early morning sunshine as we descended from high above the Pacific Ocean and caught our first sight of New Zealand. Auckland is a city built on 53 dormant volcanoes and looked bright, colourful and inviting. It would reveal itself as a friendly, laid back and happy to share itself with curious travellers. Auckland waterfront Auckland Airport runs with the kind of quiet, understated efficiency we’d soon recognise as distinctly Kiwi. Welcoming without going overboard. Biometric checks, bags waiting, no fuss, no drama. Immigration, luggage, done. Outside, the air felt different: cleaner, sharper. The centre of the city is a short 20‑minute taxi ride from the International Airport, and our modern, central hotel was in a great location adjacent to the iconic Sky Tower. The shadow of the Sky Tower,...
