Mark awoke at 6am and went up to the crow’s nest (the bar on deck 10 at the front of the ship) to watch the entry into Auckland. There is a lot of rain but the wind wasn’t too bad. We managed to dock and were thankfully allowed off from 8am.
However, before we got off we had another announcement saying that the planned stop on 15th Feb to the Bay of Islands has already been aborted (another of our planned ship tours automatically cancelled and refunded) and instead we will try and go south to a place still on the New Zealand North Island called Tauranga. Avoiding the Bay of Islands seems sensible but still think Tauranga is hopeful as the whole of the North Island is on emergency alert so it is moving from one hotspot to another, though slightly reduced, hotspot. On the plus side Tauranga is a lot closer to the Rotorua - the 12hr trip we had cancelled for the 13th Feb so maybe we might still see that.
We have been monitoring local news sites and the predictions for the cyclone hitting Auckland have been quite dire but the best of the conditions are meant to be today - at least up till lunchtime. Our tour was cancelled, and so are almost all tours, so that just left us with items that we had planned to see in the local area. Other than the main city, and a couple of suburbs, we had hoped to catch a 45min ferry to Waiheke island and also a separate 15min ferry to Devonport. We decided Waiheke was too risky as we could be stranded there but Devonport was worth the risk as we could come back via a longer road trip if the ferry was cancelled or the seas too rough. We have lost out on so many of our plans lately that we really felt we had to try and achieve something that we had planned.
The trip wasn’t smooth but not bad at all and was definitely done in under 15mins.
Devonport is a nice little town and everyone seems to have a dog. Many places were open and the rain was not constant and was not that heavy. Mark attempted the 15min climb up to Mount Victoria but aborted halfway as the winds were too strong.
Pam pottered around many quaint shops and bought a few items plus had coffee and cake. Mark joined her later but was more like a dog following her around the shops and in the end stayed with many of the dogs outside the shops. Here are a few of the pics we took.
The wind was really picking up by noon when we headed back on the ferry and we were told as we boarded that the service would stop in a few hours. The seas were definitely rougher on the way back but the ferry was very stable and the hardest bit was actually getting on and off.
We decided to get back onboard the ship and regroup and to also see if any ship tours for Tauranga had been released - they sell out fast. We needn’t had worried as there was a sign up at the shore excursions desk informing passengers not to ask as the whole port change was still being finalised and it would take some time before new excursions would be released. Announcements would be made when ready.
Then, whilst back in the cabin, something very odd happened. Mark’s phone made a very weird siren noise. We later heard that it happened to phones all over the ship. Via the NZ phone networks, the local authority had managed to send a text message to everyone in the area accompanied by a siren alert noise. In essence, the message said that Auckland was now in the highest state of emergency and bridges were closing; trains and ferries would stop running and schools would not open tomorrow. Everyone was advised not to travel where possible.
It was a very scary message but outside it was not even raining hard and although windy, it was not enough to blow anything small over.
Pamela decided to hunker down onboard and Mark decided to explore very locally and pick up a few essentials. Mark was also due to meet Dan (an Aucklander & an old work colleague) for dinner and was reassured that this was calm compared to what had occurred a couple of weeks ago.
Not knowing if/when we would be stuck aboard Mark risked exploring and here are some pics.
Left onboard, Pamela went for a buffet dinner (roast pork Sunday dinner plus rhubarb crumble and custard). Then, left to her own devices, it was off to the library to tuck into a new jigsaw puzzle which she had all to herself. Afterwards, she attended the 7:30 Pulse show on guilty pleasures which was hit and miss as some songs were good but others ruined by their interpretation. This was followed by some DJ hits being played. The ship was relatively quiet except that the quizzes were still popular but Pam decided to go back to the cabin to read.
Back to Mark. So as general alerts go it felt like a usual wet and slightly windy UK day. During dinner with Dan, Mark learned that a few weeks ago there was very heavy rainfall leading to mass flooding, with land slippages, and even deaths. There was next to no notice that anything like that was about to happen and now the general feeling was that the local authorities were being ultra cautious so not to be caught out (blamed) again. Funny world isn’t it - who would want to be in power trying to win votes and support.
Anyway whilst Pamela stayed onboard I (Mark) had a lovely wharf side restaurant meal with Dan - it wasn’t even raining (a pity as if it was then I would not have left the umbrella in the restaurant) and any wind was really only a stiff breeze. It was fantastic to catch up and though Dan & I have been exchanging sporadic emails for years it would have been around 10 years since we had seen each other in person. At the end of the meal Dan kindly offered to drive me around Auckland to see the sights. The city was very quiet (a mixture of it being a Sunday and no doubt the general alert message being the reasons). It was nice to have places pointed out and to get bearings etc… Around 9pm the wind was definitely picking up and the rain started to get heavier. It still wasn’t anything remarkable but sensible to heed advice and call it a night.
Mark tucked himself up in bed with Pam watching videos whilst we listened to the wind and rain outside our balcony window. Felt very much like we were back in the UK.
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