Absolutely Positively Wellington
When we told people we were going to New Zealand to celebrate the beloved’s 40th birthday everyone who’d been suggested Wellington over Auckland. We’d filled our four days in Auckland and were now ready for the next leg, courtesy of the epic Northern Explorer train to the small capital city.
New Zealand is one of those countries where the capital is not the largest city, much like fellow new world countries, USA, Canada and Australia. Not only does it feel smaller, it felt like a decent-sized town rather than a city.
Upon arrival, I received a text to alert me to an upcoming earthquake drill. It worked, I got a text alert to let me know what to do in the event of an earthquake. This kind of world-class behaviour towards its citizens is what gives NZ a solid reputation internationally.
After one day, we knew we needed to day-trip to maximise our time at the base of NZ’s North Island. We popped to Brooklyn on the bus and it seemed to have more Asian restaurants rather than the American influence we expected. Plus I needed hiking boots and a stick to navigate it’s version of Central Park so we opted out.
Zealandia, is just a cable car/shuttle bus away and turned out to be a highlight of the whole China/New Zealand adventure. Zealandia also fulfilled Wellington’s promise of good food and coffee. To repay this awe-inspiring eco-sanctuary that even supplied a boat to give us a lift back to base (which happened to be managed by an informative ex-Brit) we stayed a little longer in the cafe with a view - which was full of students making notes. The sweetcorn fritters and coffees that followed were excellent.
We happened to come across Wellington’s Diwali celebrations (running a few weeks later than the day) and I loved being able to step into little India for the price of a donation at the door. The arena was full of people being entertained from the stage and from the multiple market stalls. I headed straight to the food hall to snack up. All the coffee and cake stops lived up to their reputation. I was thrilled to see the local Midnight Espresso lived up to its name for post-dinner chai and cakes.
It was simply because two politicians disagreed
The museums are fantastic and I could have spent a day in the Wellington Museum. The national museum, Te Papa Tongarewa received no less than two amazing visits from us. I think the first was just a little overwhelming although we did bump into the couple that was sitting near us on the train from Auckland. The second time we paced it better and I loved the variety of history, art and social commentary. The exhibit about immigration and running from war-torn countries (It was simply because two politicians disagreed) floored me and I could only continue after both I digested it and compose myself again.
The digital donation point is so refreshing I just don’t know why these are not everywhere in the world and I spent some time in the shop buying everything that my conscious would allow to bring a little bit of Wellington home with me.
