I'm out of here #9: Auckland, NZ - culinary joy & dizzy heights

I don't always inform myself to death when I go out travelling, at least not when I'm on a long trip as I am right now. I Need to be Aware in between somehow, that I have no clue of where I'm exactly going, like having some Kind of suprise effect open. This is what I thought when I was about to leave the untouched Tropical paradise  of Fiji to visit the City of Auckland in New Zealand. Bad move.

Auckland CBD

The only fact I knew was that the temperature will drop down by almost 20 degrees Celsius and it will be raining most of my time there. Don't get me wrong, this is not going to be any hater post about Auckland, I think I guess imagined the whole Thing differently because I was thinking stuff like "I'm still in the Pacific Ocean" and Maori is equal Polynesia so it's going to be still exotic in some way. So now you might understand why I was a wee bit disappointed when I took a cab from the Airport and saw very Swiss similar landscapes out there. There's nothing wrong about my home Country either: but I wasn't expecting any disappointment, so this Feeling deep down just reminded me how I wasn't ready to end being on the road and head home.
More than 50% of my world trip is already over now, and looking back to a couple of weeks ago, fortunately something is starting to Change. I am starting to loose the scary mood about thinking about what will happen when I get home, I didn't loose it completely, but I can tell that I can Focus more on what's Happening NOW. And this is a pretty good Thing.

All this stuff started to Change during those four days, I feel ready to embrace the things that life has to offer when I get back, see what happens and go with the flow, so thank you Auckland. A lot. And no, it wasn't all  disappointment actually, I had a bunch of pretty good times here too. Our trio still had some time to do some Sightseeing in the city's Business centre, including a visit to the Sky Tower. That's actually the best Point to have a wide overwiev of town, the surrounding Islands and Suburbs. The most awesome Thing for me was to step up on bare glass and see the cars passing down on the tiny street way down at the bottom of the building.

Another great Thing about my stay in Auckland was my neighborhood. I was so happy to have Chosen to live between Ponsonby and Grey Lynn. Our Apartment was located on the backyard of a house, which gave us a real feel to be part of it, also because our Hosts invited us to join their home Party once. Wine is always a good Option if you ask me :)

The area of Ponsonby seems to be the hippest in Auckland, featuring vintage, heritage buildings, a slowed down City life and great local Restaurants. I liked a lot how creative the gastronomic world can get here, every place has its own vibe and is decorated individually. So if you'll ever find yourself wandering around in Auckland, make sure to be hungry and in a discovery mood, there is plenty of stuff for every taste.

I tried to put together a bunch of my favourite places during those days, I hope you'll find your favourite in here.

Breakfast/Brunch

I usually am not a big breakfast taker. This is maybe combined with the fact that I rarely am awake early in the morning, for me it's more brunch. There are a few chains of coffeeshops that offer great breakfast Sandwiches and amazing coffee. I really missed a good macchiato, so I really enjoyed being awake again in the morning :) plus, the salmon and Avocado Sandwiches are simply delicious. I tried several places and they really are good. So just step in wherever you are, the Cafés are great in Auckland!

Meatballs

I discovered Bedford Soda & Liquor by Meeting an old friend there that now lives in New Zealand again. This spot is great for tasting very good made Cocktails and the New York inspired Meatballs are great. The funny Thing about ordering meatballs is the Menu itself: you can choose different variations of Beef, sauces, and add extras like salad or Pasta to them. It can get pretty crowdy here during nighttime so make sure to be early.

Ponsonby Central

Pizza (!)

I know, you get Pizza everywhere. But you don't get LA Pizza everywhere. Especially not while travelling. Dante's Pizzeria is a small place with just a bunch of seats outside, that serves only the simple variations of neapolitan Pizza. So if you're looking for no-nos like add ons like pineapple or chicken you're definetly in the wrong place here and should go to Domino's. Dante's only uses real italian products and is certified by the neapolitan association of Pizza as a member. That's something that only 200 Restaurants in the world reached, it means something, or it will as long you will give the first bite to your Pizza slice. I didn't have a proper Pizza in Ages, so I was almost about to cry :)

Live Music/Bars

As a live Music Lover I was delighted to find a Little bar just across Ponsonby Central which has bands playing every Weekend. We enjoyed a Jazz Band playing and had our Drinks in the huge backyard where another, good stocked bar is provided. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out its Name, but you can see the colorful lights of the back shining out from the street.

The bar located on Ponsonby Road

On our last day the sun was laughing a Little bit more, and I really enjoyed one last walk in Ponsonby, including its cute Little park. My mind got ready to leave some annoying stuff behind and I was really looking Forward to see what Australia has to offer. I was wondering the most if the Feeling would last, and fortunately I have to say that it does every day a Little bit more. This trip was supposed to discover new places. However, I also wanted it to calm me down from unnecessary worries. And it's working out. The world is mine.

I'm out of here #5: Maui - Picturesque Towns & Hidden Treasures

Getting back to Maui is always soulbalm for me, it's a sweet spot that I would definetly call paradise. Getting around is pretty easy, since the Island is so small compared to the last I was, Hawaii itself. We arrived already in the morning and had the Chance to settle down in the sweet Wailuku, a Little town that faces the big Maui Forest Reserve. It feels very cosy here, it's a local town with a bunch of Shops and cafes, almost everything Closes at five, despite one Restaurant or two. It's a nice place to get back after exploring the Island and driving around all day.

The first Thing we've done after checking in, was heading to Paia. I love Paia! It's an historical Plantage town located on Maui's North Shore, that has a very strong Hippie vibe and actually seems to be Standing still in the Woodstock era (or it might just is my Impression, having a Hippie heart). The houses are colorful, streetart is around and Paia Beach is a good spot for Windsurfing too. There are also some local Restaurants worth to try! Café Mambo is a good address for mexican Food and tonight's hunger brang us to Thai Spice for some yum Curry and Tom Kha soup.
There is a nice variety of alternative Shops as well, selling local products and clothing like Mahina for clothing or jewels and Pakaloha for original Maui Bikinis (I have one and I am amazed!)

Another must, speaking of sweet Little towns, is Lahaina, the former royal capital of the hawaiian kingdom. There's a lot going on here, and you won't miss loads of tourists, but I like it a lot. There is lots to do for activity Lovers, like parasailing and whale watching, just make sure to bring a good filled wallet with you. I love to be on the fine dark sanded beach over there. It's never too crowded and the water is mostly calm, perfect for a swim. Make sure to be there on a second friday of the month, to enjoy some live Music, movies under the stars or just a walk on Front Street.
Try to make a stop on the way there at the scenic Points, you'll have breathetaking moments and bring home some great memories.

Clear Waters of Lahaina Beach

A typical scenic point

Earlier today, we decided to hit the curvy road to Hana. This Little village is just 50 miles away from my homebase, but since the road is full of curves, it takes around 2 hours to get there. It's totally worth the drive actually! Hana and surroundings have a lot of amazing beaches to offer. The first one we went to was the Red Sand Beach, a Little hidden treasure, that takes a Little hike down the hill. Watch out, it could be very slippery sometimes, so don't do it in flip flops like me :)
The water temperature is amazing and snorklers surely will be entertained by all the beautiful creatures Swimming between the rocks. I tried to make some Pictures with my ABC Store underwater camera, I'm pretty curious to see how they turned out.
After the Red Sand Beach, we went to see the Venus Pools by advice of a local guy of Hana. Unfortunately, the sun was already gone, but if you find yourself there in the morning, it's a total must. There is no sand to lay down, just rocks, and Swimming is only an Option if you jump down from them, but the water and the view are something out of this world. The Venus Pools are located around  mile 48.5 on Hana Highway and here is my advice again to bring at least a pair of Sneakers to walk down easily.
Our last stop for today was the Black Sand Beach (Waianapanapa State Park), which includes also the famous blow holes (if you're lucky enough you'll see the water coming out between the rocks) and a trail to some sea Caves. There is also a Camping facility in the park, in case you want to spend the night under stars Close to the ocean.

Red Sand Beach

Venus Pools

View over the blow holes

I'm out of here #3: Big Island of Hawai'i - Snow, Kona & Waimea

While I am writing this post, which should have been coming quite some time later than planned, I am sitting on a huge Patio of a wonderful house in Hilo. I know, you might don't mind, right? But I felt that my first post about Hawaii should have been, well, 'more hawaiian' than my actually homebase big City Honolulu. I am already living there (or, my suitcase is right now) since more than two weeks already, I have lots to tell you about and a lot more amazing Pictures to Show you. Honolulu is a big City, maybe a Little less polynesian styled than the actual place I am visiting in These days, that could be the reason why I Chose to talk first about my days here on the Big Island of  Hawaii. Don't worry at all, you'll get to know the pretty Island of Oahu in my later Posts for sure ;)

Landed in Hilo yesterday around noon, got our car and drove first to the Richardson Ocean Park, to  catch some seabreeze by sitting on the windy Lava coast. After getting used to the place, that's quite more different than big City life, we went to check in in our house located downtown. What a surprise! I mean, I knew I booked a house, but hey, it's huge! A dream! I think I just stepped in in what I would like to call my own home. The house is huge, with a big terrace surrounded by Tropical plants, I have frogs chirping around me at night, the host's love for Detail is certainly palpable in every Corner, and a lovely cat greets me every night when I get home. Should I ask for more?  It's so peaceful here that it actually feels like being in paradise. Our host is lovely, even spoils us with fresh baked Croissants and giving us tips on the must sees on the Island.

Richardson Ocean Park

My wonderful temporary home

For our first full day, we decided to drive all over the other side of the volcanic Island to see the very famous town of Kona and then drive back along the coastline. I had a lot of People telling me to live in Kona instead of Hilo, but I couldn't be happier to be here instead! Hilo may be a Little more industrial, but it also feels more oldschool to me and having a car gets me everywhere pretty easy. If I was in Kona, I'd never had the Chance to meet my host Kawehi and be here sitting in this lovely place, which would habe been a shame.
On the way to Kona we drove through the mountains on Saddle Road, which gave us the opportunity to stop at Saddle House, Standing on Lava Stones and having a huge mountain in front of us actually covered (!) in snow. The Big Island of Hawaii has a different Kind of climate all over, so you could basically snowboard down, hit the coast and then go out Surfing. And you're Standing in the middle of the  Pacific Ocean. Not a big deal. Yeah. Right. I wouldn't have expected snow. That felt pretty amazing.

The drive to Kona took us maybe around 1 hour and 30 minutes, and it was all worth it. This town, well known for its coffee and beer brewery, is very pretty. As a big coffee Junkie, I had to try a fresh brewed one, and it has a very nice, strong taste. Unfortunately I hadn't enough time to visit the brewery, but Kona beer is avalaible all over the Islands and I really like the Longboard Version. Another must see is the former Little homebase of King Kalakaua, which is a Museum today, right in the middle of town. There are also loads of cute Shops and Restaurants, for those who want to take home a Little handcrafted Souvenir or have a bite.

King Kalakaua's homebase through  the palms

After leaving Kona, we opted to get to Hilo and drive down from the North coast. This gave us the Chance to make us stop in the tiny Waimea. Located in the middle of the wide land of the Island, Close to some huge ranches, it was very nice to see a town that is so immaculate. We arrived in Hilo just after dark, had a bite in the very awesome Kanpai, for some Sushi and Noodles. Sitting at the bar made us be part of the Happening in the kitchen and how fast Sushi rolls can be prepared.

Waimea

I couldn't ask more for my first full day here on the biggest Island of the State. I am having a very Relaxing time... I think I found some peace.

If you're interested in staying in Hilo and in Kawehi's house, you can book it here.