As I start to write this it’s already January 20th and I’m sitting in a comfortable hotel room in my last port of call before returning to Thailand. As always, I’m amazed at how much I have seen in the last three weeks – and am grateful for the opportunities there have been to extend my knowledge and understanding of so many things: even the differences in the rules of the road between countries!
I’m also quite cross with myself – this was all finished a couple of days ago and then I lost it: the frustration! I hope I can remember all the interesting bits at least – there were many…
Let’s get back to Napier where we were to meet Rocky and Trish for breakfast on Dec.27 before heading down to Wellington for our last couple of days on the North Island of New Zealand. We were up and ready quite early that day, knowing that there was a lot to pack in and things we wanted to see and do along the way. We were also keen to reach Wellington before sunset, though that was not going to be difficult as sunset was happening at about 9.00p.m. and, as in a northern Scottish summer light lingered well after the sun had sunk below the horizon.
Breakfast and the unexpected opportunity to catch up with Rocky and Trish’s movements since they had left Chiangmai a few days earlier were over by 10.30 and, as they set off to confirm arrangements for their first few months in their new home, we set off in a southerly direction to see what we could find on the road to Wellington. This was a day when we didn’t stop much as there was a lot of ground to cover and we didn’t want to be stuck on the road in the dark ( when I saw the last part of our journey through spectacular mountains I was glad we had made that decision!) Lunch was at the nearest equivalent I had found to a roadside cafe in the UK, but this one doubled as the local museum and had a collection of vintage cars and farm machinery as well as souvenirs. The most notable feature of the landscape was the high hedges we kept finding: 12 to 20 feet high, I’d say, beautifully trimmed and obviously planted to protect the fruit from harsh winds. Sometimes we even spotted them just around an individual house that was vulnerable.
The one stop we made was at a winery owned and run by a couple from Aberdeen. Hilarious – no charges for anything except the Pinot Noir Naomi bought – as he was glad to have someone to talk to for a while. We had set out to follow the Vineyard Trail which we had started the previous day and it wasn’t until we met up with the folk from Aberdeen that we understood that there was a distance of 125kms between the first and second vineyards on the route – no problem for the driver.
The last couple of hours of the drive had us driving through the mountain range that forms the spine of the North Island. Every time I thought we must have covered the last bend or the highest peak there was another and by that time the wind had set in. There were warnings to be aware of the dangers of high winds. But we were OK and benefited from the amazing vistas this island offers. It proved a good way to enter the city and it was easy to find our hotel. Yet another that had been booked when there was a half-price sale on with Accor Hotels!
Next morning we woke to teeming rain and the strong winds for which Wellington is famous. The first task was to return the car to the Hertz office: it wasn’t that far from the hotel but never straightforward in an unknown city, especially in revolting weather! Fortunately we had already decided to spend at least part of the day at the Te Papa Museum, so we called a taxi and were there within a very few minutes. Not only did we find an excellent range of displays including ‘Through the Lens’ by Brian Brake and a very informative interactive display of the history of the different ethnic communities and migrants to New Zealand, but a very reasonable cafe which served well for both breakfast and lunch. It was a joy to see how many families were there with young children enjoying all that the museum had to offer. It would have been easy to spend the whole day, but we felt we should explore what else the city could provide and set off to see what was around. Some good quality souvenirs and very nice merino garments….but we restrained ourselves!
The next morning was to be a short one as Naomi had to be at the airport soon after lunch, so we headed straight for the Portrait Gallery. In such a small city everything was nearby and the hotel was just a couple of minutes walk from the developing arts area in a disused wharfside building. That was interesting but not as extensive as I had expected. whereas a nearby exhibition was fascinating but hardly advertised at all.
I spent the afternoon walking to places we had not ventured to and took the opportunity to ride the funicular/cablecar up to the Botanic Gardens to see the view over the city. Both were worthwhile and it was a fairly tired me who made her way back to the hotel to pack in preparation for the early sailing the next day. That was something I had looked forward to for a long time and I was not to be disappointed. I was also grateful to have had the first sunshine we had seen in Wellington to get some shots of the town at its best.
It’s the end of January now and I’m writing from Chiangmai: but just these few days in one post seems sensible. Hopefully, the South Island will follow soon! For some reason, the internet isn’t cooperating and will not upload photos, so I’m going to go ahead and post this anyway. The best photos will come later and I’ll add a couple here if and when I can.
Living the Journey 