Took a ride into town with Clive so we could explore whilst he went for interviews. In total the boys & I walked close to 15km all over the Auckland Central Business District.
Aotea Square
This was our first stop. It is a large paved public area in the Auckland CBD used for open-air public events including fairs, protest rallies, music festivals, rock concerts and the annual seeing-in of the New Year. It hosts a regular arts and crafts market on Fridays and Saturdays.
A number of art works are in Aotea Square:
• Archway 'Waharoa' (Gateway in Māori) was formed in wood and copper by Selwyn Muru, a Māori sculptor. This is an expressionist version of a traditional Māori entry gate.
• Bronze statue of Sir Dove-Myer Robinson, a former mayor of Auckland. This work was made in 2003 by New Zealand sculptor Toby Twiss.
• Bronze figure of a Māori warrior by Lyndon Smith, commissioned in the 1960s for the lobby of the Auckland Saving Bank's new building on Queen Street.
• Fountain by New Zealand sculptor Terry Stringer. This angular bronze ""mountain"" was commissioned in 1979 to form the centrepiece for the new square, and its form echoes the roofline of the contemporary Aotea Centre.
• 19th century bronze statue of George Eden, Lord Auckland, Governor of India, after whom the Auckland is named. This statue was originally erected in Calcutta and was purchased from the government of India by Auckland City Council in the early 1960s.
Victoria Park
Victoria Park is a park and sports ground in Auckland City, New Zealand, it was opened in 1905 and named after the late Queen who had died four years earlier. It lies on reclaimed bay land in Freemans Bay, a suburb directly west of the Auckland CBD.
Albert Park
Albert Park is a public park in central Auckland, bounded by Wellesley Street East, Princes Street, Bowen Avenue and Kitchener Street.
Meyers Park
Myers Park is a narrow park in central Auckland, New Zealand, running parallel to the upper part of Queen Street.
