Weekday Walkabouts: Mission Bay & The Sky Tower

Mission Bay, Auckland, NZ

We kept things pretty close to home for this edition of Weekend Weekday Walkabouts. Mac & I took the bus to Mission Bay – a little town on the north coast that boasts a fantastic beach & park area. We met Drew & Chris there and spent a bit of the morning walking around the town and taking in the sights. We trekked up to the top of MJ Savage Memorial Park where we were treated with a great view of both the harbour and the city skyline (with which we would become even more familiar with later!).

Later, Mac & I went for a quick dip in the water. I say quick because that water was COLD! It didn’t take me long to start shivering & book it out of there! With ample sunscreen applied, we dried off & soaked up the sun on the beach with books in hand.

The beach & park were busy with locals (as it was a holiday), but it wasn’t as unbearably packed as you would expect. There was even a pop-up jazz band at one point!

We left the beach before any sun damage could occur, and with warm skin & smiling faces, we headed into the city for the evening. First stop: the Sky Tower! Mac & I had both been in the tower before, but only to the third floor for the weekly Couchsurfing event. This time, the four of us headed up, up, up to the top levels! The gorgeous weather that we had at the beach continued into the afternoon and we had great views of the sprawling city with clear, blue skies to top it off.

I loved noting how much green space we could see from above (once you look past the cluster of towers in the city centre). Part of why I like Auckland so much is because you can still experience the beauty of nature while never leaving the city. Cornwall Park & One Tree Hill are favourites of mine and I love that I can escape there whenever I please!

We had a round of drinks at the top of the tower before heading back down and into the city for dinner. All in all, a great day spent in the heart of the city.

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I hope that wherever you are, and however you’re celebrating that you have a happy & safe New Year’s Eve! (By the time you read this, it will already be 2016 here in New Zealand! – So Happy New Years from the future!!!!) It’s been a wild ride this past year and I can’t thank everyone enough for following along and leaving your thoughtful comments here on my little corner of the internet. Here’s to an exciting 2016!