Watching NZ play Australia in World Cup cricket. Couldn't get tickets to the game so had lunch at…read moreMamak and now am at Vulture's Lane. Seems to be the place to be. Massive selection of beers and nachos are $5.00 today. Had a pint of Garage Project and now thinking about a pint of 8WiredSemiconductor!

A charming little lane off Queen Street with lots of good bars and other shops of interest. It's…read morethe little lanes like this that make the CBD interesting and offer welcoming relief from the blandness of Queen Street. There's a few good bars, namely The Belgian Beer Cafe; O Carrolls Irish bar and the best of all: Queensferry Hotel. The first time I came here in 2007 (on holiday) I recall browsing in a cool record store and buying a Bob Dylan album. That store is gone now but it indelibly marked Vulcan Lane as one of the cooler places in the CBD. The Vulcan cafe is a good spot to watch the people go by and another useful addition to the lane is Wishbone Deli. In case you haven't read my review, it's got a great selection of pastas and risottos which are great if you are on the go. A bit of cult place to Aucklanders, there's a lively vibe here and there is always something going on.

For us, the monthly visit to the night market is really just entertainment for the kids and a very…read morecheap dinner. I love any Asian/Indian/ethno food so can always find something to keep the wolf from the door. There is a wide range of cuisines: Malaysian, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Philipino, Hungarian, Hong Kong, Pacific Island, and more plus a plethora of post prandial sweets. The food quality at some stalls might be a bit iffy - I suppose at $6 they won't be using the best ingredients, but I have never been sick!!. Sometimes I wonder about the hygiene too but fingers crossed... A lot of the food is in bain maries pre-cooked but the last two meals I've had have been cooked on the spot. It always amazes me that there is a huge queue for churros, which must be the most over-rated snack ever - flavourless dough sticks covered in a sauce of choice. Having said that though I wish I owned that business because the queues reach out the door and they are making a killing!! As at the time of writing this, the Pakuranga market is getting overcrowded. We went last night, arriving at 6pm opening time and it was already extremely busy. We were glad to be in and out within 30 minutes because it was becoming uncomfortably congested. If the crowds continue to grow, the market will need to expand its area. If I was designing the space I would move the "dining" tables to an area away from the throng of hungry punters trying to buy food. And in my perfect world pushchairs would be BANNED from all pedestrian areas!! Why, oh why, do people bring push chairs into crowded pedestrian areas? Dumb. I recommend the night market for a bit of frivolous fun on an evening when you have nothing else on and want to take the kids out for some low key entertainment and dinner. The "shopping" is best avoided unless you want fruit and veges. However, if on the other hand, you have an urge to offload your cash on $2 Shop junk, costume jewellery, flannelette onesies, carvings, mobile phone covers and accessories, a (fully-clothed) back/neck massage, ear candles, cheap and nasty nail polish and nail art, a dubious fortune telling, or second-hand bric-a-brac then this will be your Shangri-la!

Awesome place to have a super unhealthy Friday night dinner. The cuisine there is just so varied u…read morecan have anything u cud think of.. Obviously cheap food.. As for the shopping.. There are a few vege stores and a lot of cheap low quality stuff, items that may entertain children..

Since when did craft fairs become sooo cool? I'm pretty sure that back in the day craft fairs were…read morejust full of knitted jumpers and painted eggshells. Well, that is certainly not the case these days. At Crafternoon Tea specifically, you'll find cool terrariums and succulents, beautiful prints of pencil drawn animals (look at the photos), modern jewellery and these adorable woolen hot waterbotttle covers (ok, so that's sounds a little nanna-ish but trust me, they're cool). The fair runs one Saturday a month from 10am - 2pm in the old church at the top of Bond St. Head along first thing and then stop in at one of the many cafes nearby to refuel. Perfect Saturday morning activity!

Crafternoon Tea is such a good market to visit. It's held in Kingsland in the Trinity Methodist…read moreChurch Hall in Kingsland, a great hub for lots of creative and crafty people. It's usually packed with loads of stalls and people milling about them. There's everything from soap, to clothes, cupcakes, jewelry and more. And the best thing about it is that anyone can have a stall for around $30. However, they stress that it needs to be handmade or retro and nothing imported can be sold. I think this is such a good idea to keep the market, well, a market. It's so great to see local people using local resources to create awesome Kiwi products. They also have lots of tutorials on their website that show you how to make some of your very own handmade delights.

I mainly wanted this glowworm tour because they allow pictures to be taken while in the cave. The…read moretour date I was looking at was fully booked but you can email them to be added to the waitlist. I asked to be added to the waitlist for 2 on October 12, and got off the waitlist on November 9, for a tour on December 28 so don't give up hope if it is originally fully booked! I did the spellbound explorer tour which included a walk through a cave as well as a boat ride through a cave for the glowworms. The tour guide was great and allowed pictures during the first back and forth on the boat ride and asked us to put away our phones during the second. This is because the first go-around allows for the eyes to adjust and see the glowworms better so the second go-around the glowworms are much brighter. The cave walk was also a nice add on for 20 NZD but if the tour with the cave walk is not available the regular boat ride is perfect on its own. I loved this tour as our tour guide took pictures for each group that wanted some with glowworms and also provided us with personal pictures of glowworms taken with a nicer camera with a longer shutter speed.

Oceane was an informative and friendly guide. We were able to see so many glow worms! It was like…read moreseeing the milky way! Ask her about Mama Mia if you like aquatic wildlife.

If you like coffee, you have to come here and sample the traditionally brewed Ethiopian coffee. I'm…read morepretty sure it's the best coffee in the world. The process of making the coffee is interesting to watch in itself, but the taste is heavenly. A tiny cup of incredibly thick, strong, aromatic coffee with teaspoon after teaspoon of sugar stirred in. I don't even like sugar in my coffee usually, but Ethiopian coffee is a revelation. There's other stuff at the festival too! I've been a number of times and always had a great time. With it's focus on the art and food traditions of refugee communities, it's an opportunity to share in some culture that you might not be so familiar with. Ever-popular are the drumming demonstrations and the dancing on the main stage, but there are also heaps of stalls to browse, food to taste, and the Annual Cultural Football Tournament. If you've been before, note the change of venue; the festival won't be held at Potter's Park this year (2013), but at the War Memorial Park instead, on Sunday the 7th of April.

I have to say, as free events go, this has to be one of the best I've been to, be that here in…read moreAuckland or back in Blighty (to be honest, the council would have charged for this kind of event back in the UK). The imagination behind the installations at this years Art in the Dark was amazing, with so many of the pieces having my wife and I going "wow". I had no idea that Western Park was so big, as I've only ever passed the park from Ponsonby Road. The event organisers made great use of the space and really showed off the natural beauty of this park. Although, better lighting on some of the footpaths may be something to think about for next year, especially the paths being lifted up by stretching tree roots. From the very cool QR Code mobile to the giant fish riding around on cycles, we very much enjoyed our first time at Art in the Dark and look forward to next years.

I feel like I'm a couple of years late to the Art In The Dark party…read more.. Awesome idea - wander through Western Park in the dark, check out light installations for FREE. The only problem was it was waaaay too busy. Painfully so. The line moved at a snail's pace and with people packed in like sardines it was rather claustrophobic. This was my first time to Art In The Dark so I don't have a point of comparison but I think it was particularly bad this year because of the weather. It had been raining, hard, for a couple of days beforehand so you couldn't leave the paths without the risk of falling over, which we saw several people do. Hilarious, when it's not you... Also, the bad weather meant that come Sunday (the last day and also the first break in the miserable weather), every man and his dog were there. Plus we went just after it got dark. Rookies. My recommendation is to go a little later, after all the kids have gone to bed. I think it's awesome that Auckland plays host to annual free events like this and it's unfortunate that the weather didn't play ball but I can't help that think that perhaps it's time they moved to a bigger (and flatter) park.

An institution on Waiheke Island, Saturday morning markets at Ostend…read more Love the food stalls, everything from samosas, crepes, Turkish breads and baklava, organic spelt breads, artisan yoghurt and cheese, island olives and fresh fruits and vegetables. But be in quick because believe me, things sell out fast and you'd not want to go away hungry. The stalls spill out from the Ostend hall to the curb and adjoining field. Regular merchants come and sell their wares as well as garage sale type stalls. We picked up a few items of bargain clothing from the latter. Also couldn't resist some ceramic artworks for sale at wholesale prices at the market. We loved the buskers and the addition of sail covers to the central area. A great day out for the family, wouldn't miss a Saturday.

It was a great shame that the rain had rolled in for our visit here. Lots of people were crowded…read moreinto the hall, it was like walking down Oxford Street (London) at Christmas. Saw a few cool looking trade stores, brought a lovely handmade card. The little tea urn was boiling overtime. Outside being wet, it was not idea to sample of the delights on offer. There was some sort of dance presentation trying to put a show on, but the rain beat them. I liked the look of the different food stalls, was tempted to try the Hungarian bread, but it would have ended a soggy mess. Hoping the weather plays ball on our next visit.

Just to the south of popular Muriwai beach on Auckland's West Coast is the small cove of Maori Bay…read more This beach can be accessed either by foot from the stairs at the Southern end of Muriwai, or by turning up left before the car park. To get to the beach you are faced with a very steep walk down over rocks gravel, and this is one of the reasons that if you went to this beach to relax, you are less likely to be surrounded by hoards of children. What you will come across is a large number of surfers. My partner tells me that the break at this bay is better than at Muriwai, and it is often less crowded. This is not a swimming spot for amateur or weak swimmers as there are no life guards on duty, and there can be a very nasty rip that runs along the beach and straight into the rocks at the northern end. I have seen surfers walking back around over the cliff path after being sucked out and swept around to Muriwai. You have been warned! Rare and endangered Fairy terns nest at the northern end of the beach in the right season, so heed the signs and don't touch the baby ones, even if they look lost!

Every time I pull into the car park at Maori Bay I smile. Even though I visit the surf spot often,…read morewhen the swell is good, I am always surprised by the amazing views. The car park sits high on a cliff giving you a tremendous view of the rough ocean crashing onto the rocks at the base of Otakamiro point, where hundreds of gannets flock together at one of New Zealand's few breeding colonies. It really is a sight. The west coast waters here are a little too feisty for the casual swim, but even if you're not a keen surfer, the grassy clearing next to the car park sets the scene for the perfect picnic to watch the sunset. Or if you're more of an adventurer take the walk over the hills to get snap-happy up close and personal with the gannets!