After a lovely 4 hour drive south from Napier, with a couple quick stops on the way to see Raewyn's school and then take a midpoint break in Shannon and check out the funky shops in the somewhat empty yet pretty town, we arrived in Wellington. We had no real plan and only a few hours to spend in the city. We found a 30 minute parking space, grabbed a map from the info center near by and did a speed walk up and down Cuba Street, known for its funky shops, cafes, street performers, and nice atmosphere. We listened to some pan drum music and watched a funky water fountain dump water all over the surrounding bricks before dashing back to the car to avoid a parking ticket.
We then headed to New Zealand's national museum, Te Papa, where we got a rooftop view of the city, saw a wide variety of New Zealand art, explored Maori culture, and learned about New Zealand indigenous wildlife. We also saw a small snippet of the world famous World of Wearable Art (WOW) exhibit, with some very elaborate and not at all practical dresses that were very fun to see.
With the day quickly fading, we headed back north of the city to Paraparaumu Beach, making a quick stop to see the Beehive Parliament Building on our way out of the city. We enjoyed the beautiful views from the west coast and looked across the Tasman Sea to the South Island in the orange glow of a sunset. We walked the long beaches, enjoyed collecting tiny pieces of drift wood (pieces small enough that we thought we might actually be able to carry them with us to the south island), and took a stroll through an estuary path. The beach in the evening had a beautiful sunset with a view of Kapiti Island and the following morning, the entire beach was engulfed in a thick fog (so thick that you couldn't see a thing and all flights to and from Wellington were canceled, making us glad we had chosen the ferry).
After a relaxing morning, we drove back to Wellington, all set to catch our Interislander ferry, only to find out that the fog had also delayed the ferry by over an hour. Having already deposited our rental car, we took advantage of the spare hour on foot. We sped walked through the not so pretty industrial areas of the harbor, passing the Westpac stadium, cruise ships, and huge cargo ships (many of which were loading wood), and arrived at the pedestrian harbor front. We walked along cafes, street art and music, and even made a quick stop to see a portrait gallery exhibit before walking back to catch the ferry.
We positioned ourselves on the ferry for perfect viewing of Wellington City as we pulled out of the harbor, but the moment the ferry left the sheltered bay, we were engulfed once again in a thick fog (so much for seeing the gorgeous views from the Cook Strait!). Nevertheless, we passed the majority of the 3 hour and 10 minute journey relaxing and watching some rugby (doing our best to figure out the rules). However, as luck would have it, after making our way far enough into the Queen Charlotte Sound, the fog lifted (swirling around the hills) and allowed us a gorgeous evening view as we made our way to Picton.
To view all the photos thus far, visit the 2014 New Zealand Album.
We then headed to New Zealand's national museum, Te Papa, where we got a rooftop view of the city, saw a wide variety of New Zealand art, explored Maori culture, and learned about New Zealand indigenous wildlife. We also saw a small snippet of the world famous World of Wearable Art (WOW) exhibit, with some very elaborate and not at all practical dresses that were very fun to see.
View of Wellington from Te Papa
Traditional Maori Hall
With the day quickly fading, we headed back north of the city to Paraparaumu Beach, making a quick stop to see the Beehive Parliament Building on our way out of the city. We enjoyed the beautiful views from the west coast and looked across the Tasman Sea to the South Island in the orange glow of a sunset. We walked the long beaches, enjoyed collecting tiny pieces of drift wood (pieces small enough that we thought we might actually be able to carry them with us to the south island), and took a stroll through an estuary path. The beach in the evening had a beautiful sunset with a view of Kapiti Island and the following morning, the entire beach was engulfed in a thick fog (so thick that you couldn't see a thing and all flights to and from Wellington were canceled, making us glad we had chosen the ferry).
The Beehive
View of the South Island from Paraparaumu
Paraparaumu Beach
The fog coming in...
After a relaxing morning, we drove back to Wellington, all set to catch our Interislander ferry, only to find out that the fog had also delayed the ferry by over an hour. Having already deposited our rental car, we took advantage of the spare hour on foot. We sped walked through the not so pretty industrial areas of the harbor, passing the Westpac stadium, cruise ships, and huge cargo ships (many of which were loading wood), and arrived at the pedestrian harbor front. We walked along cafes, street art and music, and even made a quick stop to see a portrait gallery exhibit before walking back to catch the ferry.
The Wellington Waterfront
We positioned ourselves on the ferry for perfect viewing of Wellington City as we pulled out of the harbor, but the moment the ferry left the sheltered bay, we were engulfed once again in a thick fog (so much for seeing the gorgeous views from the Cook Strait!). Nevertheless, we passed the majority of the 3 hour and 10 minute journey relaxing and watching some rugby (doing our best to figure out the rules). However, as luck would have it, after making our way far enough into the Queen Charlotte Sound, the fog lifted (swirling around the hills) and allowed us a gorgeous evening view as we made our way to Picton.
Wellington from the Ferry
The fog coming into the Wellington Harbor
The ferry in dense fog on the Cook Strait
The fog leaving us behind in the Sound
Picton Harbor
The Interislander Ferry
To view all the photos thus far, visit the 2014 New Zealand Album.
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