It’s much cooler today and even a bit rainy. Since we arrived on Sunday daytime temperatures have been between 35C and 39C which is a bit confronting for us Waikato souls. Today the high is a chilly 26C which suits us perfectly.

We had a nice breakfast at Alba. The granola would never be mushy enough for me to enjoy.

It is a very nice place to stay although not in the centre. It is on South Terrace which is in the opposite side of the square from the CBD which is close to North Terrace. Unsurprisingly the square is connected by East and West Terraces and then parks run along the other sides of each terrace with the suburbs beyond. It’s a great layout with lots of greenery.

Looking out from our breakfast table (and across the fence beyond the pool) you see this enormous mural of a bloke with dog and other background. It’s evidently depicting a famous identity and I invite guesses (no googling please) as to who it is.

We left the Alba and Ubered to the Mayfair Hotel. We could have walked to West Terrace and caught the free tram but even in temperatures closer to 20C a trundle along the road with our luggage in drizzle was not appealing.

Mike and I struck it lucky when we arrived as our room was available and a very nice room it is. No outlook to speak of but the interior is very well appointed and it’s roomy. Good for the night in any event.

The Mayfair is diagonally opposite the Haigh’s Chocolate shop. I’m not sure if it’s Disney or authentic.