Auckland first day

We touched down in Auckland around 8 am local time. Btw it is Sat, Dan and I lost a day of our lives! Neither Dan and I have really traveled internationally before (I've been to Jamaica, Canada and Mexico and Dan has been to Canada- no passport was required) and so we were unsure how the customs would go. In addition I had to declare my food and also potentially explain my animal work. Dan was as clean as a whistle, nothing to declare and computer scientists aren't usually a biosecurity risk. Once we made it through all the security checks and LONG lines we went and found our ground transportation.
Our travel agent Lori did a fantastic job of arranging this beforehand so we didn't have to worry. We just need to find the Super Shuttle!!! It was a comfortable ride into the city though a little scary. I'm still not used to the opposite side of driving much less the driver on the right side of the car. The outer parts of Auckland is pretty, the houses are middle class US sized and there are palm trees all around. Everyone seems to drive a foreign made car (not US) though we did see a one Ford and a hummer. Also it was weird to see a Ford banner at a local event. So I guess Ford much has dealerships here. Still it is something I noticed.
Once we got to our hotel it was about 10:00 am. Our room was not ready though the hotel stored our bags so Dan and I could get some lunch. We had no clue where we were going or what we would find. So we headed out to the west and found a restaurant that was serving breakfast. Dan had to remind me that it was breakfast bc my internal clock was still on US time which was 2 pm or so. The restaurant was called Bella's Cafe and was delicious. Dan had scrambled eggs and toast while I had French Toast. The eggs we super fluffy and good while the Italian baguette for toast was amazing. Dan loved his dish but so did I as I reached over the table for many tastes. My French toast was good but I didn't really like the grilled bananas so Dan dug in and demolished them.
After breakfast we started exploring. Not until later did we realize how far we went. It was a lot of walking which was good bc Dan and my goal for the day was to wear out our bodies so that we would be tired. So far Auckland reminds me of San Fran though no streetcars. It is hilly and surrounded by lost of water. In fact our hotel is on the harbour (Princes Harbour) so we can see water from our room. The room in general is a normal hotel room. One thing Dan and I noticed it is true about the toilets. They do flush counter clockwise. A cool thing to compare when we get back home.
One other thing Dan and I needed to do was get a local cell phone. We brought with us an old phone however it was locked to AT&T so the 2degrees SIM card we bought didn't work. So after some thinking Dan and I decided to try and find a local phone. We found one at an electronics store and bought it. It was only $50 or so and lets us call locally for cheaper than a land line. Plus we will be driving so it is also nice to have on the road. And now I get to make fun of Dan. So Dan doesn't like clutter in his pocket and so after we bought the SIM card he "threw" away the receipt. So we got back to the hotel and were trying to get this to work and he noticed that we needed a code to activate which he thought was on the receipt. So we check all his pockets and nothing. So then he says "I remember crumpling something up and throwing it away. At this point I couldn't help but be upset. I was thinking we went through all this trouble and now we have to spend more money to get a new SIM card. Well... luckily he found it in his jacket pocket and all was well. Though we don't know yet what he threw away so now he is not allowed to throw anything away unless we both agree it is not needed. Just in case. :)
Once we got cell figured out Dan and I were a little hungry. Since we didn't want anything big we opted for good old American Subway which is right across the street. We then ate our subs and waited for our 4 pm appointment for Dan and I to get massages. Something I set up last week so that we could get the jet lag sore out of our muscles. It felt amazing and even though it was only a half hour it was still wonderful. I do feel that it helped to get me feeling good again. It was good to have after our long haul flight (it was almost 13 hours).
Since we nearly feel asleep (or did we can't quite remember) we decided it was time to go get dinner and find this Internet cafe to use. We found the cafe to be closed as well as many other businesses and so Dan and I decided to walk around a bit looking for an open cafe. Sure enough we found one that offered WiFi access with a purchase. Dan got a cup of hazelnut hot chocolate and a voucher for one hour access. We enjoyed the hour just browsing and posting the pictures on the blog. You can see a little of our trip. After the cafe we decided to head and find dinner. We happened upon Neptune's Bar and Grill on the wharf across from our hotel. We both had the Fish and Chips which happened to be Turkey Fish (still not quite sure what it is yet but I will have to look when I get Internet access again). The food was good and a nice compliment to the day. Plus you can't go to a water locked country and not have seafood. So at least I got that done. :) I'm not really a huge fan of seafood so I may not have much more. After dinner Dan and I spent some time taking night pictures on the wharf. He did an amazing job and surely we will post them.
We retired to our hotel at just about 10pm. We made it through the whole first day. Jet lag appears to have not affected us and we feel great. Now for a goodnights sleep and breakfast in the morning.