Last week, I was in Hobbiton, which was amazing.
Today, I'm back in Auckland and this is the harbour area.
Approximately 1.5 million people live in the city. It's a very diverse and multicultural place,
and home to the largest Polynesian population in the world.
The official languages in New Zealand are English and Māori.
The word Māori means "ordinary" or "normal" and is often used in combination with other words.
For instance, "wai māori" means "normal water" or "fresh water" as opposed to "salt water."
Nowadays, a lot of Māori call themselves "tangata whenua,"
which means "people of the country."
The Māori name for Aukland is Tamaki, or Tamaki-makau-rau.
I'm probably mispronouncing that, but what it basically means is,
Tamaki with a hundred lovers.
It's in reference to the desirability of its fertile lands at the hub of waterways in all directions.
As you can see, there's plenty of water here, so today I thought I'd take a boat cruise
so I can enjoy Auckland from the water.
This is actually my first time on a sailing boat, so this should be exciting.
Should I just sit right here? Yeah. Anywhere you'd like.
It's nice!
We're starting to go now. It's quite interesting. It is a sailing boat, but it has an engine.
I wasn't expecting that. But hey, it's 2017, eh?
It's a really special feeling, being on a boat. It's unlike anything else.
It's nice and relaxing and you really do get a different perspective of the city.
I think we only use the engine to get out. Then we switch it off and hoist the sails.
It makes sense now.
The boat just started rocking from side to side. I kind of like it.
I could probably fall asleep right here.
What exactly are you doing now when you're turning that thing?
I'm pulling on the sails so there's a bit more pressure,
which will hopefully make us go a bit faster.
So, it's a similar concept to a wing on an airplane, right?
Yeah.
We're going to go up here on this part of the sailboat.
I feel like Captain Jack Sparrow.
This is an awesome feeling. I feel like a pirate.
This is what I was talking about. There's nothing like this.
It's not like taking the car or the bus.
Am I flying Jack? I'm the king of the world! I almost fell over!
DiCaprio's got nothing on me.
When you take this boat ride, you can really notice how big Auckland is.
All of this is Auckland, with the water in between and everything,
and the bridge connecting it. It's really massive … and windy.
They're letting me manoeuvre the boat now. It's actually quite tricky to keep it straight.
You'll feel some pressure and it will want to come with,
so you've just got to resist it. Hold it there. It's straightening up.
Perfect. Turn to your right a bit.
It is kind of tricky to keep a straight course. It's kind of like … I feel like I'm …
I'm going to step aside now and let the professionals take over.
Here comes some advanced manoeuvring, so I'll just sit here.
We've turned now and we're heading back to the harbour.
It's been a really nice, calming experience. It was really fun to manoeuver the ship.
It's quite tricky, actually. You feel like you've got the hang of it,
then you look down and look up again, and you're going to the right or the left,
and you're just like, woops!
The boat is going sideways!
This is crazy.
Look at this. It was relaxing, at first. It keeps you on your toes.
Doing 10.2 knots right now.
Woah, it's going a lot faster now, and a lot more sideways.
What a wonderful city Auckland is, and going by boat is a great way to explore it.
Do you like boats?
Leave a comment below and the best answer can win this tiki,
a powerful Māori lucky charm.
Make sure you watch next week's video when Maria is in New York.
Take care.
Next week: Maria visits EF New York
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