Kiwi Kindness

We've been in New Zealand less than 24 hours, and I'm already immensely impressed with the people and country. From the moment we went through customs to getting directions from a petrol attendant at 1 in the morning, we have found the Kiwis to be friendly and helpful. With only one full day in Auckland, we were discouraged from staying in the city but opted to take a ferry into downtown and another ferry to Waiheke Island. We took a bus to one of the areas that has several wineries, including Stoneyridge which has won several international awards. I had a tasting of their prize winner, which sells for $275 a bottle (and I thought the price was per case)! When we went to settle our tab, the bartender waived our fee! We walked to the beach, which ended up being about 4 km away. Beautiful weather--in the 70's--which they told us was very warm! Back to the city and then to a small Victorian town called Devenport for fish and chips at a local hangout and a chance to watch a Kiwi sunset.