November 10, 2014 -HobbiTon Movie Set, Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium, and Mount Eden

Daily itinerary were:

• HobbiTon Movie Set
• Drove to Auckland
• Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium
• Stopped near St Mary Bay area to view Auckland skyline
• Dinner at Jin Hai Wan Chinese Seafood Restaurant
• Visited nearby Parnell Rose Gardens
• Drove to Auckland Airport
• Flew back to US

As agreed by majority, we all toured the HobbiTon.  It is in Matamata which is a small agricultural town in the heart of the Waikato region nestled at the base of Kaimai ranges.

Hobbits are described by JRR Tolkien (author of The Lord of the Rings) as an uncomplicated and ancient little people, shy of Big Folk and preferring well-ordered and well-farmed countryside. Hobbiton is one of the places in The Shire where the Hobbits live in both The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and The Hobbit. As seen in the films, Hobbits are a merry folk who love nothing better than a good party, preferably with many helpings of food. They have been known to eat at least six meals a day and always have room for more. They are no more than four feet tall, seldom wear shoes ( their feet have tough leathery soles) and clad in thick curling hair.


When Peter Jackson spotted the Alexander Farm during an aerial search of the North Island for the best possible locations to film The Load of The Rings film trilogy, he immediately thought it was perfect for Hobbit holes.  Site construction started in March 1999 and filming commerced in December that year, continuing for three months.  Some interesting facts are as the following:

• The New Zealand Army was contracted to build 1.5 km of road into the site and the initial set development. 
• Barberry hedges and trees were brought in and gardens were nurtured throughout winter.
• 37 hobbit holes were created with untreated timber, ply and polystyrene.
• The Mill and double arch bridge were built out of scaffolding, ply and polystyrene, then glued and painted.
• The oak tree overlooking Bag End was cut down and brought in from near Matamata.  Each branch was numbered and chopped, then transported and bolted together on top of Bag End.
• Artificial leaves were imported from Taiwan and individually wired onto the dead tree.

The set was rebuilt in 2011 for the feature films "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey", "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smug", and "The Hobbit: There and Back Again".  In addition to the narratives from the private guide of the hobbit holes and beautiful landscape, we also had lunch in the famous Green Dragon Room.  At the end of the tour, we visited the gift shop for some hard-to-find souvenirs.

We all agreed that HabbiTon was the best attraction of this whole trip.  When the tour guide asked who has the most number of photos taken during our trip, Mike Yeh came up on top with more than 1000 photos.

Then we drove to Auckland, the largest and most popular urban area in New Zealand.  The first attraction we visited was the Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium which is located in Orakei, Auckland.  From the entry point of the aquarium, we can see the northern part of Auckland across the Torpedo Bay.  They have sharks, King Penguins, Gentoo Penguins, jelly fish displays, stingrays, Pigfishes, Moray Eels, Lion-fishes and Clown Triggerfishes and many other kinds of sea wildlife.

Then we visited Mount Eden to see Auckland from the top and the majestic bowl-like crater (50 meters deep).  It was formed by a dormant volcano whose summit is the highest natural point (196 meters) near Auckland.

Then we stopped at the Auckland Central around St Marys Bay area to see the bay and Auckland Skyline.  After some photo moments, we had our dinner at Jin Hai Wan Chinese Seafood Restaurant for last dinner in New Zealand.  It turned out this was the best Chinese food we had for this whole trip.  We also met the owner of our local tour company and provided a good feedback of Vivian (South Island) and Lee (North Island) to her.

With some more time left before we headed to the airport, Lee took us to a nearby Parnell Rose Gardens in the Dove Meyer Robinson Park to enjoy the beautiful and variety of roses. It marked the final spot of the tour of Auckland.