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A nice lie in as the bus didn?t pick us up till 11am. The journey to Auckland doesn?t take that long from Rotorua but we stopped in Mata Mata along the way. Mata Mata is also known as ?Hobbiton? as this is the place where they filmed all the Shire scenes for the Lord of the Rings. We got to Auckland at 3.30pm and Margaret (Bens Auntie) picked us up from the bus with her daughter Helene. On the way back to Margaret?s we stopped at Helene?s house and met her sons, Ethan who is 11 and Jordan who is 9. We also met Margaret?s youngest son, Colin. We were both really looking forward to spending a few weeks in a house rather than a hostel. We both just want to relax and watch TV and cook what we want and save some money of course. That night the 2 of us went to Eden Park to watch the Auckland Blues against the Cheetahs of South Africa in the Super 14s tournament. As we had booked our tickets late we had to settle for the terraces as there were no other tickets left. As we were walking to the gate, a man stopped us and asked if we would like to join him and his wife in the corporate area. Turns out he has 6 seats, but as it was Good Friday, he had no clients to entertain and so gave us the seats for nothing. They were so kind and Ben and I were really grateful. We sat in the corporate area drinking with fish and chips before the game and then took our seats in the covered stand right on the halfway line-perfect. The atmosphere was amazing, the crowd was fantastic and there was plenty of entertainment before the game and during halftime. It was quite a different experience to a rugby game back home but we loved it all the same. The final score was 29-8 to the Blues. We both had a great night and wish we could have caught another game whilst in New Zealand. We spent the first week with Margaret getting to know the outer suburbs of Auckland and visiting quite a few beaches. On Easter Sunday we went for a walk (and an ice-cream) on Mission Bay. It was a great afternoon weather wise and we had a good time. The beach has great views of the Gulf Islands and is really popular with families. That week, we also went to Piha, a popular beach with surfers. Again, it was really nice, and we enjoyed walking the length of the beach in the fine black sand. Piha is the home of ?Lion Rock?, named this because of the rock formation which supposedly looks like a lion. We couldn?t see it though! Later on in the week, we took Ethan and Jordan to Bethel?s Beach for a few hours with Margaret and Colin. Everyone went in the sea except for me, it was far to cold and the weather wasn?t exactly the best. So far we have really enjoyed our time in Auckland as we have just been able to relax. It?s been nice meeting Ben?s family and they are all pleased as he is the only person who has bothered to fly over here and visit them in the 20 odd years they have been here. We also looked after the boys a few times as they were on school holidays. We took them swimming one day and lunch another. We have been to Mount Eden which has a 50metre deep crater and gives perfect 360 degree views around Auckland. We are heading to Waiheke Island this weekend to meet the last of Margaret?s sons, Michael. We look forward to telling you all about that when we get back on Monday.
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