Final leg of the journey...

Woke to a nice bright crisp morning, shame it would be mostly spent travelling but at least the views from the plane would be good.
Flew out of Dunedin just after 11am, great views of the southern alps (incl. Mt. Cook) as we made our way up the island. A quick stop at Wellington to drop and collect a few other passengers. Added time to the flight but at least it meant we got to have snacks and drinks twice! Landed into Auckland about 2pm then into the hire car and set of heading north by 3pm.
Straight into heavy traffic crawling up state highway 1, remind me never to live in Auckland! One city is just like another wherever you are in the world! Once we were away from the city boundaries the views opened up and we settled back into the holiday. Noticeably more people north of Auckland than south, almost entirely down to the wonderful environment I guess. First off it is much warmer, it is classed sub-tropical and the countryside and coastal regions are fabulous. Plus, you do have reasonable access to an international airport and although Auckland isn't the actual capital you could class it as based on it's population and the type of business and commerce run from it.
Into Whangerei and immediately felt comfortable, the vibe was right and the choice of accomodation was spot on. Efectively a self-contained comfortable modern apartment set on a hillside overlooking the town. We are doing bed and breakfast for the first time and our hosts Wendy (English) and Urbi (Swiss) have made us very welcome.
No photos from today folks, more to report tomorrow after our day up at the Bay of Islands...