Seventy million years ago New Zealand separated from the Asian Continent. Since that time kiwis survived on the land without a reason to fly away, on the land free from threats of fierce predators such as lions, tigers or snakes. Like the isolated world of the kiwis, up until 1970s, New Zealand had been one of the most isolated countries of the world. But now, the blue sky, green fields and the unique culture of people who made home here, invite the world to Auckland, an increasingly popular travel destination of the time.

A soft breath of wind blows away the darkness that covered the city, and the city awakes. First to greet the morning breeze is the Sky Tower on Queen Street. The tallest tower of the southern hemisphere looks down onto the oldest thoroughfare of Auckland, which fills fast with people beginning the day. The faces of the people waiting for the traffic signal to change show all colors of the human spectrum. Half have the pinkish color of the European face, while the rest have either the reddish complexion of Asians or the copper tones of Polynesians. Surely, such an even mix of skin colors, none standing out in particular, must be a unique sight seen nowhere else in the world.

But this riot of diversity is in more than just skin color. From the businessman in suit and tie, to the students on skateboards speeding towards the Sky Tower, and to the joggers in shorts loping along the street, people of all ages, lifestyles, and values give life to Queen Street.

The smartly dressed woman licking ice cream and going barefoot, the young and the old also in barefoot calling me to throw off my stuffy shoes and join them in a leisurely walk on the dustless sidewalks of Queen Street freed my spirit.

The mascot of New Zealand is the kiwi, because for a long time the New Zealanders have equated themselves to the flightless bird. ? Though I’ve heard of this bird before, my first encounter was in the zoo in Auckland. It certainly looked like a bird, all feathers and pliant beaks and sitting on its eggs. But instead of flying, it kept looking down and grubbing in the earth. New Zealand has been separated from the Asian continent for 70 million years. ? Throughout that time, kiwis made home on this land without lions, tigers, snakes, or other beasts of prey. Without threat from predators, there was no particular need to fly. So the kiwi built its nest on the ground and lived looking down at the earth. Life was probably just fine that way.

Poet Ingeborg Bachmann wrote, “Things that fall have wings.? But the kiwi has no wings. Its scientific name, Apteryx, means precisely “the bird with no wings.?Because the kiwi has no wings, it never falls.

Like the remote habitat of the kiwi, up until 1970s, New Zealand has been one of the most isolated countries of the world. New Zealanders lived peacefully amid the endless expanse of nature. The North and South Islands were their whole world, and this was a paradise. There was no need to fall into the world. This is probably why the New Zealanders call themselves Kiwis.

It was in the 1960s, when student movement rocked the northern hemisphere, the Kiwis finally began their wingless flight. ? What lay beyond those watery horizons? They were curious. Coca Cola was opening up the world then, and the Kiwis took flight on the winds of Coca Cola. They scrutinized the world. They saw that they were not alone. They embraced the world in each feather. And when they returned to Auckland, they blew a breath of the world into every alley. They added a bit of Europe here, Asia there, America beside them, and in the middle they put Polynesia. Immigrants poured in and helped to draw the new map of Auckland and made it one of the most colorful cities of the world.

Though the little town was purchased by the British from the Maoris in 1840, and named after the incumbent Indian governor of the time, the western influence does not dominate the local mindset. Maori names remain dotted about the city, like Karangahape Road south of Queen Street and Aotea Square downtown.

Long ago, in the Sahara Desert, a fortune teller told me, “Your destiny is the wind.? Of Auckland’s 1,200,000 residents, 400,000 have come from across the seas. The destiny of Auckland’s Kiwis, too, must surely be the wind. Like the wind, they roam the world, and like the wind, they embrace all things.

Northwest from Queen Street along Albert Street, innumerable signs in Korean, Chinese, and Japanese sway in the wind blowing from Viaduct Harbor. In the harbor, yachts wake up and stretch their masts as the morning breeze nudges them ready for sail.

Auckland is known as the City of Sails. One household in four owns a yacht, and rumor has it that children learn to handle an oar before they learn to walk. When Team New Zealand snatched victory from Young America in the 1995 America’s Cup, Auckland erupted with jubilation.  And when Team New Zealand claimed a kind of maritime pre-eminence by winning the Cup again in 2000, the frenzy of celebration was beyond description.

America’s Cup victories brought a total transformation to a place that was nothing but a deserted shore only five years before. ? Where fishing boats once plied the sleepy waves, Hilton Hotel was built with an architecture inspired by an ocean liner. Where ramshackle sheds lined the beach, open-air cafes sprang up; and ferryboats carry tourists out from the harbor to the islands large and small just off the shore.

Downtown Auckland, known as the CBD or Central Business District, is so small that you can walk right across and back in an hour. ? Yet it’s a place of islands, beaches, woods, shopping arcades, galleries and museums. It’s a cultural smorgasbord of England, South Africa, Maoris, China, Japan and Korea. Walk north from Queen Street and you come to the sea. Head east along the shore and then south again, and you enter Auckland Domain, a giant forest with a museum. Within the woods, where the high-rise buildings are visible, road signs read “Ducks Crossing.? Don’t be surprised if a duck waddles out in front of your car.

Across the road to the east lies Parnell Road. This artistic alley was almost swept away by the force of development, but it was rescued by a wise man named Harvey.  From the late 1960s, Harvey bought old houses that were on the verge of demolition, saving Parnell Road from the violence of redevelopment. Built by Europeans in the late 19^th century, the houses on Parnell Road now enjoy a brilliant new lease on life as galleries, souvenir shops, and cafes.

Whether on Parnell Road or on Queen Street, the Kiwis show extra-ordinary consideration to outsiders. If a lost visitor looks about with an open map, someone is sure to come up with a friendly smile. If they are unable to help, they will stop a passer-by. If that doesn’t work either, they will call yet another person. By the time you’ve got the help you need, you’ll feel quite overwhelmed. In a souvenir shop, if you don’t find what you want, especially if you are struggling with the language, the shopkeeper will lead you by the hand to the rival shop next door, saying “I’m sure they’ll have it here.?/p>

On my way to Wellington, the capital city, I got lost and my car got stuck in deep sand. I stood helpless when a group of Kiwis carrying a log came toward me. No fewer than ten people made a ramp out of the log, dug the sand, roped my car and pulled it onto the asphalt. A middle-aged woman drew a map on her palm to direct me. “You are not the first,?she said, “and you won’t be the last. Take care, young man, take care.?That’s the kind of people the Kiwis are.

Just forty minutes outside of Auckland, crystalline waters of beaches, magnificent forests and mountains that look like the Middle Earth of J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel and the Hollywood blockbuster The Lord of the Rings surround the city with beauty.

Muriwai Beach on the west coast is a place you must see.?If you miss it, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life. From September to the following April,Australian gannets fly here to nest and raise their young. During this time, two islands and two cliffs get completely covered with big birds whose wings span up to two meters. The noble snow white birds against the black sand, blue sea and the sky are quite a spectacle.?All along the shore, parking is free, admission is free, and barbecue grill is provided free. And every beach leads into woods. Forty minutes north, at Orewa Beach, is a hot sulphur spring. Adults soak in water smelling of rotten eggs, while children play in the hot spring water of the swimming pool.

But there is no need to go to these distant places to enjoy Auckland. In thirty minutes walk from the Sky Tower you can be in Auckland Domain. Ducks follow children around waiting for bits of bread to be thrown at them, and elderly couples drink tea in the sunset under the palms. There are concerts on every weekend of summer, and the lawns get full of groups of picnicking friends and families. Two dormant volcanoes, Mount Eden and One Tree Hill that command a view of Auckland soar high within the city. In geological times, both erupted like a searing inferno, but later they provided a stronghold for the Maoris to resist the Europeans. Today they have become holy places where the visitors admire the beautiful windy scenery.