This weather! What to do in Auckland on a rainy day? Everyone knows Auckland has four seasons in one day. Its true, I can put my hand on my heart and say it can start hailing in summer just as fast as the sun can come out and burn you in winter. I searched the internet also to confirm that this is actually a thing and yes, Google tells me its true, who am I to argue with Google?
Now that winter has reared its ugly head and seems to have settled in for the coming months a visit to the zoo is out of the question as is a beer down at Mission bay, what do we do on these miserable weekends?
Not all of us can afford to put the skiis on the Range Rover and drive down to the mountain, so start off with coffee…not a frappe from Starbucks but find a cafe you have never been too. Park as far away as you want, wear a heavy coat, run through the rain and burst through the doors into the warmth! Trust me, the whole experience will be amazing. The dampness that you hate the idea of suddenly disappears when you enter a toasty warm room full of the aromatics of roasted coffee.
Then, bring out the kid in yourself, go to one of the hidden arcade game rooms on Queen St, $20 can get you a couple of hours of great entertainment. Play Street Fighter, let your girlfriend beat you and never hear the end of it. Play the Japanese games you cant even understand. Get on the Dance Hero games and dance until you are all sweaty and have forgotten about the cold.
Just get out of the house, if nothing it actually feels amazing just driving around with your window wipers and heater on, no one can disagree with how comforting that is. Drive to Maori Bay on Muriwai beach or Piha and just watch the waves crashing into the rocks while sipping a hot drink. You will feel better for it and your car is probably warmer than your un-insulated leaky home anyway.
So get out there, take a change of clothes for all seasons and expect it to be hot, cold, rainy and windy with the potential of sunburn at some stage of the day.
If none of that appeals or you cant be bothered, find a bar that serves hot mulled wine or good tequila and sit there until you are warm and the weather is no longer an issue! Or watch movies on the couch and feel bad for not leaving the house then feel obliged to walk outside briefly when the sun does come out.
Real Life Auckland 