July 12, 2017, Aukland: who knew?

I didn’t know that palm trees grow in New Zealand. I didn’t know there is nothing between here and Antarctica to break the frigid winds. I didn’t know that Aukland is built on 50 extinct volcanoes so wherever you go it’s a steep climb—or a trippy descent. These things and more we learned on our city tour the afternoon of our arrival.

Still, I don’t know if the toilets swirl backwards because they flush and gulp. But it turns out that New Zealand is different in myriad ways.

Young people are clean and scrubbed. There is no evidence of tattoos or piercings. No pants hang loose with the crotch at the knees. No ratting of hair or half shaved heads.

Older people are tidy and sensibly dressed with sturdy shoes and an umbrella always at hand. It’s winter, after all, in a South Pacific island and it’s damned cold. And raining. It feels a lot like Toronto in December.

Meat pies are popular and the food is generally carb-heavy and uninspired. The city is unremarkable, but the people are warm, welcoming and amazingly helpful, and after Tel Aviv, I am struck by the civility here. Courtesy is valued. I have not yet heard a car honk. It’s a time warp.

July 15: A keynotes at the Austral-Asian Conference of Philosophers

Judging by the audience attention and note-taking, the ovation after the talk, and the length of the questions during the Q&A (nearly as long as the presentation) all I can say is A was a hit. Of course, I didn’t understand a word of it. I know it was English. I know the sentences were well constructed because A is my go-to guy for all questions grammatical. But put those words and those sentences together and I may as well try to decipher Sanskrit.

Anyway, it was something about the role of the international courts in an era of autocratic world leaders and isolationism—with a Hegelian twist.

Dinner was delicious. Roast lamb I can understand.

July 16, 2017: Raw beauty of the North Island 

If Auckland is unremarkable, the countryside is not. A minibus took us on a “wilderness tour” to the west coast of the north island and the Waitakere Ranges. There, breathtaking outlooks provided panoramic views from the Tasman Sea to the Pacific Ocean. Wilderness all the way.

Just as the brochure promised, we were immersed “in the lush native rain forest as we walked the easy bush tracks amongst New Zealand’s famous kauri trees and giant tree ferns.”  Because of its isolation, everything that grows in New Zealand is unusual. Here you’ll find the southern-most palm trees on the planet. And there are black ferns. Silver ferns. Giant fern trees. We loved the ferns!

From there we drove to Piha, a black sand beach—originating as iron dust from a volcano. It’s a moody scene of raw beauty, crashing waves and Lion Rock, a stunning rock formation reminding us how far we’d traveled.  Awesome!

Interestingly, until the Maori arrived about 700 years ago (bringing rats along with them) there were no mammals on the islands. Zip. Zero. Zilch. None! So, the Maori ate the birds and quickly decimated most of the indigenous species. When the Europeans came about 200 years ago, they were picky eaters and imported a variety of animals to satisfy their needs. Today, of course, there are 4 sheep to every inhabitant.

BTW, the Maori are not a single group. They were Polynesian tribes who came from about 17 different islands, each with their own customs and language.

In any case, the Maori were poor and starving. The Europeans were not. Land wars followed. A treaty was signed, but the Maori claim it was broken. And sadly, so it goes with aboriginal people all over the world.

July 18: Spectacular Sydney

We may have missed the magic of New Zealand’s South Island, but Sydney blew us away.

The university booked us into a hotel right next to Central Station because it was “convenient”.  Other than the Central Station I’m not sure what it’s convenient to, but it seemed pretty far from everything I wanted to see. Nevertheless, while A prepared for his second presentation, I walked. And walked.

My first mission was to find the Queen Victoria Building (QVB) because Monique said I would like it. I loved it. A beautiful British-style shopping arcade with the finest finery of the uppest scale requiring the fattest wallet. Fun, but no sale.

Next day, I headed for the museum—a stately building in a glorious park offering a fascinating blend of war memorial and Maori cultural exhibit with some stuffed emus and eggs behind glass. Plus a Maori heritage show. I gave the Maori music a 10. It had a good beat and you could dance to it—sort of like an updated version of The Beachboys. Terrific.

July 19: Walking Sydney

A and I decided to leave the Central Station and get a real look around, so we took a walking tour. And the farther we walked, the better it got. What a city!

There’s the iconic bridge, of course, and the incredible opera house—which turns out to be as beautiful on the inside as it is outside. There are stunning sky scrapers, broad spaces, wide concourses, and block upon block of shopping and cafes. And then there’s the happening Circular Quey where the opera house looms and hoards enjoy the dazzling waterfront.