auckland a gateway for a get-away?

been here for a few days...
getting from the airport was dead easy as this place is like an over-protective parent offering to do anything for you as long as you have money huhuh. at first i felt a bit lost after so much time on the plane, but just minutes after i settled in the hostel i went to explore the nearby volcano, mt eden, to admire some of its heavenly views. well,first thing i saw were...other volcanos! and of course, Skytower, doomed to be the highest building in southern hemisphere. wow. gotta go there at dawn one day.
anyway, so far i have managed to explore most of the heart of auckland, along with impressive Rangitoto Island, which was created by a...volcano eruption! god, this definitely IS a hot place. generally, every day brings news and information load i need to process. one thing for sure - got to leave this place asap.
today i moved downtown to this huge hostel, a real backpacker factory, a multi-storey nest in which i hope to find my way out of auckland.
i signed up for FHINZ which basically means i got a booklet of farm addresses around new zealand so that i can work there for accomodation. well, i've already found some cool places to go to...
it finally cleared up a bit so i'm gonna check out a few shops for hiking equipment. see ya soon.