Wellington really does live up to it’s claim to fame for being the windiest city in the world. There were a few times I was afraid of being blown right off my feet while crossing the street! It’s hard to believe we spent three weeks here. The time really flew by partly because we had some great company and a comfortable house to call home while we explored the area.
The house was in Petone, a quick 15 minute train ride from the city of Wellington. Between it and Lower Hutt we had everything we needed and only went into the city for sightseeing expeditions. I had my camera cleaned while we were here so hopefully there are no more spots all over my pictures.
We visited the Te Papa Museum over three days to make sure we didn’t miss anything. It was very impressive and informative. We never did get to see a real Kiwi bird but this gives you an idea of size compared to the bad feral kitty about to eat it.
The main attraction is the temporary exhibit called Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War. This exhibit opened in 2015 and will remain until 2019. If you’ve seen Lord of the Rings, Avatar, King Kong or Planet of the Apes you have seen the work of the people behind the sculptures that are the main part of this exhibit.
Pictures just can’t convey the true in-person experience of standing in a darkened room with an amazingly life-like giant version of a real human being, listening to part of their story during the First World War. These sculptures took over 24,000 hours to create and they are 2.4 times human size. They are so life-like, the hair on their arms blows in a breeze. Truly amazing!
Another amazing view can be found at the top of the cable car track in Wellington. It is an iconic photo opportunity but I had to do it anyway since the view was so nice and we had just ridden in this very car.
We walked back down to the city through the botanical gardens.
Part of the walk led us through a cemetery from the 1800’s. It was a fascinating feeling that time had stopped but also that it never really stops. In the late 60’s over 3700 graves in this area were relocated to put in the motorway.
Showing great restraint, I was able to refrain from taking pictures of street art, if you only look at it from a graffiti point of view, but I just couldn’t resist these statues.
And speaking of statues, our last afternoon in Wellington was spent at the Weta Caves, the people behind the Gallipoli exhibit and more famously, Lord of the Rings. I didn’t find them quite as impressive as the ones at the museum, but then these aren’t real people either.
Some fun facts about New Zealand:
- There are 4.7 million people in the whole country (we have 4.6 million in BC alone).
- There are an estimated 30 million possums. Down from 70 million at their height in the 80’s. They are considered an invasive species and eradication efforts are in place.
- There are 6 sheep for every 1 person. In the early 80’s there were 22 sheep per person or over 70 million of them.
- Dairy farmers produce 100kg of butter and 65kg of cheese per year for each person living in New Zealand.
- It is a land of birds and forests. The only native mammal was a small bat and there are no snakes.
Our journey around the country.
With mixed emotions we moved on from New Zealand. It was an amazing visit and somewhere I would definitely return, but the lure of new sights and sounds has us ready to explore parts of Australia now.
