Today we returned our campervan-such a shame...not!

We waved goodbye to our hell on wheels and headed off to our hotel by taxi. We had arrived on a particularly horrendous day. It was like a monsoon was passing through so we were glad to reach our hotel which was fantastic. The concierge took our cases and carried them to our room for us so they were waiting for us when we checked in. Another member of staff gave us an orientation of the hotel including the gym and spa facilities and the various restaurants. We were the taken to our room which was huge after our van prison.

Anyway, I was in urgent need of some pampering so booked a body wrap a facial for the following day. I then headed to the gym and Stephen to the pool. Afterwards we used the sauna, steam and ice rooms which were pretty cool.

That evening we ventured out for food and a wander, having a quick look at the Sky tower, Aucklands tallest building.

The next day was a warm and sunny one and Agee doing the usual tourist sightseeing we headed down to the waterfront for liquid refreshment. A crazy Thai woman coaxed us into her bar with the promise of cheap beer and wine and we were soon sitting outside enjoying the sun with a cold drink. Agee a few minutes a group of 4 American men turned up and sat next to us, engaging us in conversation. They were quite an amusing bunch and were from California so we got some tips from them. After about 3 rounds in the bar, they invited us to join them at the next pub besides they went off for dinner. They work in the wine industry and wanted us to try some of the wines they sell so it wasn't long before we were doing just that. All a bit random really but good to speak to some new people.

We liked Auckland a lot, better than Wellington by far...