While we were at sea, I got a comment from Lisa on my blog who’d read the Metafilter post about our trip via a link in the New York Times. Over email she connected me with her friend Rob who was looking for someone to rent the spare bedroom in his flat. After a few days at the budget hotel, we inquired about the room, it looked nice enough, so we took him up on the offer.

For the last week we’ve been staying at his apartment in the Mission Bay suburb of Auckland, about two blocks from the beach. It’s an hour and a half walk to downtown, or an easy bus ride. It meant we were able to save a little money cooking some meals for ourselves and Rob let us take advantage of his internet so we could plan our next steps.

Last Sunday, Rob offered to take us out and show us the area, so we drove with him around Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, checking out Piha Beach, observing a gannet colony on Muriwai Beach, and finally stopping for beer at the historic Puhoi Pub.