We left Toronto on Saturday November 12th, at 8:00 am and arrived in Auckland a full two days later on Monday November 14th at 8:00 am after a long uncomfortable layover in Los Angeles. We checked in at the Frienz Backpackers hostel right away, both thrilled with the prospect of a good shower and sleeping horizontally. As we waited for our check-in time, we walked around the clean and beautiful down town and checked out Albert Park, the Auckland Harbour (where the NZ Team’s America’s Cup boats are docked) and Britomart.  The rest of our time in the City was dedicated to re-calibrating our internal clocks and trying to buy a used car for the next few months of road-tripping.