Jake hunts for treasure at Conch Records
Saturday was shopping day for a couple of reasons: first, it’s my Dad’s birthday and we had been unable to find anything really suitable as a gift until that point (and had been running around doing a lot of other things too), and also because it was the day of the Aotea Square markets, so it was a good day to get into the shopping frame of mind.
We started in Botany Town Centre, because there was a Kathmandu sale on. It’s a camping and travel goods store, if you’re unfamiliar, and their sales are pretty legendary. I found some little travel bags for putting electronics into so they don’t rattle around in your suitcase and a little iPod dock speaker system, which was an absolute bargain. Nothing for Dad though.
Left my keys on the counter there, so had to go back and get them after a short panic.
Jake, of course, managed to get something suitable for his granddad almost immediately: a little zip-up golfball holder with four tees, couple of balls and a divot replacer (whatever that is). Perfect. He also picked up something for Ethan, while I looked at everything on the racks and just kind of dithered, which is my standard shopping strategy.
Aotea Square on a nice day
Headed into town for the Aotea markets. We had it in our head that we’d like to buy some t-shirts, and perhaps some kiwiana tat for little gifts. The market seems to have been largely taken over by independent clothing designers and the kind of people who make souvenirs for the expensive shops at the airport.
In other words, most of the shops aren’t aimed at residents, but actually, the quality is very good. There are plastic souvenirs to be found, but there’s some really high-end stuff of this sort here. Jake was quite excited to find that the samosa man was still going strong, but for some reason, Indian food didn’t hold quite the novelty appeal for us that it used to…
This man sold us some t-shirts
There were a few really great stalls, and we spent some money on t-shirts and some really touristy bits and pieces. We like to think that because we’re actually from New Zealand, the tourist tat is redeemed by the irony that we bring to it. I now have a t-shirt with a tiki on it, which it would never have occurred to me to wear while actually in New Zealand.
Jake managed to grab a great shirt that I really wanted. It was a Ngaru Toa design plain black long sleeved shirt with a white tattoo design print on the back. They didn’t have my size, but they had his. I was quite jealous, but I bought it for him anyway.
Our old home
Had a bit of a wander down Queen Street to check out a new music and DVD chain from Australia that had set up recently (JB Hi Fi) then up to Lorne Street to have a look at the old building we used to live in.
There’s a nice little cafe across the road where the beauty therapist used to be, and everything’s much cleaner than I remember too. They’ve also completely redone the front of the Auckland Library and there’s a nice little cafe on the corner where the kids section used to be. Looks great.
Headed up to Ponsonby because I still hadn’t found anything for Dad.
Made a beeline for Conch Records to catch up with Cian and check out the empire that had once been his little stall at Aotea Markets had now become. It’s a great shop: amazing selection (as usual), a great little cafe in the front section (can’t get over how many great cafes serving good coffee there are here), and a really nice vibe. Looks like he’s doing pretty well and it’s well-deserved.
I picked up some local vinyl: Manual Bundy’s ‘Solephonic‘ EP was a must-buy, as was a 12″ by Ishfaq with Adi Dick on vocals. Finally, I scooped up the Feelstyle album on the recommendation of that Grant Smithies book I bought. Looking forward to giving that a spin.
Still nothing for Dad – but I did manage to leave the keys on the counter again.
Jake in Ponsonby, all shopped-out
By this time, I think Jake was a little over shopping, so I decided to make one last ditch effort to find something for Dad so I could call an end to the shopping spree. We headed for Askew, which usually has some pretty cool gifts. I settled on a book called 1001 Golf Holes To Play Before You Die, which seemed in keeping with the theme, and left it at that.
I was relieved to be done for the day, as far as that was concerned – and the empty suitcase that I have with which to bring stuff back to the UK is starting to get pretty full.
Left the keys on the shop counter, and headed back to the car, job done.
Still having a wonderful time, still wish you were here.
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Incidentally, aren’t these short ‘postcard’ blog posts getting kind of long?
Tagged: New Zealand, Personal, Travel