Let’s start this crazy adventure! After some emotional goodbyes in Europe, we had to take three long flights crossing the world, starting on October 18th and arriving on October 20th! First a 12-hour long Milan-Singapore, then a 5-hour long Singapore-Perth, and finally a 6-hour long Perth-Auckland!


The first flight was very long and tiring, as we almost did not manage to sleep at all. We therefore did not enjoy the little break at Singapore so much… we tried to sleep a little at the airport, but without much success. Especially because we received a message saying that our airBnB in Auckland got cancelled… the adventure was really beginning 😅

Fortunately, we quickly found a not-too-expensive alternative in a youth hostel in the center. We could then be more relaxed for the two remaining flights to go, and we even managed to sleep relatively well…!



Around 6am, New Zealand time, we finally arrived! We had to pass many controls at the border, in particular a biocontrol in which they fully opened up our tents to check for any biological residuals from abroad which could bring some forest disease, and the standard border control for the visas. Strangely, Stefano got temporarily blocked at the border because it seemed that both of us got registered as French citizen, which was obviously incompatible with his italian passport. But everyone was very nice and the situation quickly resolved. At the airport, we were also able to buy two local SIM cards for good prices, and then we were finally free to explore this new city, Auckland! … and to get a real rest!


After finding and checking in the (very minimal) hostel where we would stay for three days, we got a 2-hour sleep, and then we went outside to try not to be too jetlagged (which was not an easy task). We toured the center of Auckland by feet (we need to get used to walking again!), which is a very modern American-style city, with many skyscrapers, a large commercial center, almost exclusively composed of modern buildings.



However, we discovered how strong are the Maori roots of New Zealand, even if we know that it has definitely not always been this obvious. Every sign and every announcement is translated in the two languages; we find this culture mix very interesting, and we are definitely looking forward to learning more about it.

In the city, we also really felt the Asian/Oriental influence. First because most of the restaurants are Chinese, Indian, Thai, etc, but also because in the parks, we found some features we would imagine in Japan for instance (even if we have never been there): an alley of cherries ready to blossom, a garden with a little red bridge, and somehow also the vegetation.



Anyway, what will remain above all, is the kindness of people here. Everyone seems relaxed, they have always been very helpful and very nice with us. But enough exploring, we need to do some last minute gear and grocery shopping, and get ready for the long hike to come…!