Just experienced my first go-around on a commercial flight. That was unexpected. #auckward

We're at the airport, and I've been awake for three hours. And now I want those three hours of sleep returned to me please. #auckward

This cinema was delightful, as was their hokey pokey choc top. #auckward

And that's maybe about it for our #auckward adventures. Today we are having a very chill day. We've done a bit of gift shopping, we had some breakfast, there will maybe be a swim in our future. I'll likely get started on my next book. Then we'll pack up for a (very) early start tomorrow.

Sarah had a swim in the afternoon, while I finished my book ("I Peed on Fellini" by David Stratton). Then we ordered some very good pizza for dinner and watched PRACTICAL MAGIC, a film I have never seen, and which was tonally so jarring that it was almost excellent. #auckward

A beautiful view over the harbour from the "Harbour Bridge", looking towards the city, which has a backdrop of low clouds behind it. Prominent in the centre, and probably intentionally guided that way by my fluttering lovestruck heart, is the Auckland Sky Tower bane and joy of my existence.

Then it was home for a leisurely afternoon. We got a good view of the city on our return. #auckward

We didn't even really mind when during the scene of the final twist, the proprietor of the cinema came in to look for someone's lost phone and turned all the house lights up in a glaring flash for about 2 seconds. #auckward

The film was just as excellent as I remembered, by the way, and having the cinema to ourselves meant that I could nudge Sarah at salient parts and go "ahh ahh I loved that bit!". #auckward

The entry to the Takapuna Beachside Cinemas. Four screens, showing a nice selection of indie and big name films, with what seemed to be a focus on variety rather than multi-session streams of the same film.

The couches, with cushions and little tables in front for your snacks & beverages.

Looking towards the screen, where someone (on the screen, you understand) is smoking.

Then it was to the cinema, which was a lovely little place, where all (well, most) of the seating was comfy couches. We were the only people in the cinema for a 1pm weekday screening of a film that has been out for months, but that's perhaps not that surprising. #auckward

The menu at the Takapuna Fish Shop, where we bought our lunch.

Jez sitting in the shade at the beach, such as it is, holding a wrapped package of feesh and cheeps.

The aforementioned fish and chips, with two potato scallops, which are called "potato fritters" here, thereby satisfying none of the factions of the Australian dialect debate.

Because this was technically a beach, we thought it worthwhile to order some fish & chips, so we could have some kiwis make fun of *our* accent for once. #auckward

Looking down towards the water from Takapuna with the islands in the background.

Our goal was Takapuna, which is a pleasant little place situated on the bay looking out towards Rangitoto Island. #auckward

A view through the Auckland traffic of the slight bulge of the Auckland Harbour Bridge in the background.

Excitingly, this took us over Auckland's "Harbour Bridge", a meek and pathetic copy of our glorious Sydney Harbour Bridge, which is itself a meek and pathetic copy of the Hell Gate Bridge in New York. #auckward

Me with the two loves of my life, the mind-controlling Auckland Sky Tower, and the mind-controlling Auckland Sky Tower.

We then waited in the shadow of the looming Sky Tower for a bus to take us to Takapuna. #auckward

A soft roll with the aforementioned ingredients on it, also a dollop of very concentrated house-made tomato sauce on the side, and a sprinkling of a kind of dukkah-and-curry-powder kind of deal.

First though, we needed a hearty breakfast, and we tried the most local bakery, which served me this quite tasty breakfast burger with egg, bacon, haloumi and rocket. #auckward

Yesterday, we decided to get out of the city a little bit. I'd been meaning to show Sarah CONCLAVE, my favourite film from the Oscars this year, and there was an convenient screening in a beachside suburb north of the city today, so that was our goal. #auckward

a man in a racing suit is standing in front of a red and black background . Alt: A poor-quality gif of Oscar Piastri clearly being told to pretend like he's won a race for some F1 package. He looks more excited than he actually did when he actually won the race.

That was about it. But OSCAR PIASTRI won the race, which was excellent. #auckward

A screenshot of the timing order of the Chinese Grand Prix, showing the brief period where OUR BOY Alex Albon was leading the race. On his birthday, no less.

After the show, we wandered homewards. I had a peaceful evening reading my book on the balcony, before we watched the Chinese Grand Prix and ate leftover Malaysian noodles. #auckward

The stage of the ASB Waterfront Theatre, set up with a tripartite set—on the right is a podcasting setup which represents the current day, on the left is a small stage set up as though for a daggy wedding band, and the main stage has various drapes set up to obscure or expose the memories of the past.

The show (A Mixtape for Maladies) was again excellent. This told the story of a family who experienced the Sri Lankan Civil War, told through flashbacks as an old mixtape evokes memories long buried. #auckward

Looking out of the window at the ASB Waterfront theatre, past its red spiral staircase, towards the city, where sits my nemesis, the Sky Tower, again forcing me to love it with every fibre of my being, which I do, of my own free will. I love you horrible tower.

Auckland's theatres all seem to have excellent lobbies. The ASB Waterfront was no exception. #auckward

The poster for "A Mixtape For Maladies", a new NZ work written by playwright Ahi Karunaharan, who was replaced by an understudy for this performance. Sarah and Jez are standing in front of said poster.

But there was theatre for us, and today's show was "A Mixtape for Maladies", again part of the Auckland Arts Festival. #auckward

A copper pipe snaking up from below the sink, attacked to a copper mirror frame. It looks like something you'd find on a trans-Atlantic gyrocopter.

The yellow light of a loosely coiled filament in an old shaped incandescent bulb.

I also enjoyed 16 Tun's steampunky bathrooms. Clearly, this has been one of my favourite venues in Auckland so far. #auckward

Altitude Brewing's "Transmission Fluid", a gose brewed with black carrot. It looks vivid red, like a glass of beetroot juice, with a large purplish head, and if you giggled at the phrase "large purplish head" that's exactly what I was going for.

A glass of Cryo-Reserv Eis-Veredelt Kölsch from Heydey Brewing. This was an ice-distilled kölsch brewed with jasmine tea.

A Fork & Brewer "Crustacean Congress", a stout brewed with mussels, oysters, prawns and cajun spices. It was intensely peppery with an eventual chilli burn on the back.

Most interestingly, 16 Tun were running a "Rare Beer" takeover, which were a bunch of beers brewed to raise funds for people living with rare disorders. But they involved a wild array of interesting and unusual things. #auckward

Jez posing with his handle of pilsener, pretending like he's always looking over and smiling at his wonderful wife, when in actual fact you can tell from his phone screen that he has hastily laid down on the table that in actual fact he was in the middle of checking it into Untappd.

A smash burger and some excellent chips. The burger was actually too light on meat, but to be honest, eating a salad roll with a thin meat patty garnish is probably what my body was craving this week.

A can of Peckham's Apple Zero non-alcoholic craft cider.

This afternoon, we had more theatre booked, so we went down to the waterfront for lunch first. We found the excellent 16 Tun Free House, which had a ton of good tap beers, interesting n/a options for Sarah and some good smash burgers. #auckward

Jez working on his Sicilian defence. Please don't correct me if this isn't the Sicilian defence. I don't know anything about chess and it's important that I feel like a big man even so.

Endgame. Looks like white is going to win. By the way, you can literally see this giant chessboard on Google Maps satellite imagery, so if this didn't give away our location up to now, the cat's definitely out of the bag now for anyone searching the centre of Auckland for a chessboard on the top of a building.

On the way back to our apartment, we decided on a game of giant chess. The one you could see from our balcony the other day. #auckward

The platonic ideal of a man, kind of lounging back in a chair like he has everything going right for him. He's lightly dozing and may be doing a kind of grunting snore. He's wearing watermelon swimming trunks and a striped shirt which covers his bagel-filled belly.

Also a good spot for a little nap after a swim. #auckward

A blue hotel pool with a bunch of outdoor chairs and umbrellas, and a view of the city behind.

Looking out over Auckland harbour towards, I believe, Devonport. If it's not Devonport, don't correct me, I'm very fragile and I don't handle criticism well.

After breakfast, we went on an expedition to find our apartment complex's "rooftop pool", and it did not disappoint. #auckward

Two salmon bagels with cream cheese, red onion, capers and dill. You'd think it would be too salty but it wasn't. Amazing how your prejudices expose you as the coward you are.

We started with bagels again, because they were excellent. We discovered they're "Montreal style", which is maybe why I like them more than the standard bagel we get which to me tastes like a week-old donut. #auckward

As I apparently say a *lot* but don't really notice it until I'm outside Australia and I question whether it's cringe or not: G'day!

Time for a catch up of yesterday's adventures. #auckward

A delicious meal of roti, chicken wontons, Mee Goreng (with fried egg), and Malaysian chicken curry. To be honest, the Chicken Curry wasn't up to the standard of IPOH Town in Sydney, but the Mee Goreng was tasty and the roti was flaky and delicious, even being delivered across the city.

Oops! Haha! Don't look at that. That's not my blood alcohol reading after my adventures today.

From there, we caught the bus home in time for the two sessions of Formula 1. Oscar Piastri got pole position, and I got a tasty meal of Malaysian noodles and roti into my belly. #auckward

A reasonably pleasant beer garden next to the train line.

An honestly slightly underwhelming hazy beer.

Finally, we got to Saint Leonards, a reasonably pleasant beer garden next to the train line, with some honestly slightly underwhelming beers—mostly hazies and sours, done well enough but not much better than anyone else to be honest. #auckward