08.13.06
Day 8&9 A bit of a rest…
Woke to glorious sunshine interspersed with some showers – did the washing like a dutiful girlfriend 
It was a bit of a funny day as Murray had to go with his Mum to have Cuddles the cat put to sleep … so we weren’t really in the mood for much.
Went for a walk on Takapuna Beach in the afternoon just for some air.
You are not too far from the coast in any direction here – infact can see the coastline from Marg’s kitchen window!
The next day we went to Devonport which is one of the oldest parts of Auckland – a real oldie worldie community – with a huge emphasis on sailing – the winner of the tall ships race (so my Tour Guide tells me 
) was a member of the Devonport Yatch club.
The town itself is built on the slopes of Mt Victoria one of Aucklands volcanoes – there’s about 80 of them …
they say they are extinct …. hmmmm….
Devonport
We then went a little further up the coast to North Head.
North Head was a very important part of the defence of Auckland – its now a reserve but you can still walk through the tunnels and go up to the gun placements on top of the hill.
Murray used to come up here when he were a nipper when the family would be watching Grandpa take part in sailing events – but I get the feeling M was more into exploring the tunnels than boats … 
Some wonderful views from the top of the skyline of Auckland which ranges from beautiful bays to mountains (volcanoes!!) to the modern skyscrapers donimated by the Sky Tower
Off further North tomorrow … hope the weather picks up … 