Apr 4, 2013 - Looking around Wellington

We got the ferry in the morning from Picton to Wellington then we went for a look around Wellington. The next day we had a rest day that we spent in Wellington, Dad spent the morning going to the Parliament building new and old and had tours around both. I spent the morning doing the washing/walking around Wellington. In the afternoon we both went to the Wellington Lookout which dad saw a house he would like to buy/rent!

Mar 31, 2013 - Art & Museum

We stayed at an awesome hotel with interesting art in the lobby, restaurant & hallways. Very unique. They have a huge museum here in Wellington - "Te Papa" means our place. It is supposed to be be of the best anywhere - right up my alley! It is free to everyone & is open every single day even Christmas. I spent most of the day here while the guys golfed. The weather has been fantastic until today. It is cloudy & very windy, not great for golf. We all really liked New Zealand - more than Australia. It kind of felt more like home.

Mar 13, 2013 - Wellington

Wellington was our next to last stop before the end of our vacation. We took a unremarkable bus tour of the city, but we did get to visit a beautiful Garden, and get a rough feel for a city I would like to spend more time in. The ship Queen Mary 2 was in port and it was interesting to see it docked behind our ship.

Mar 11, 2013 - March 10, 2013

March 10 Left Masterton this morning via the back roads through Gladstone and headed for Martinborough in hopes that we would find some open wineries. Not too much was open but we did go to The Palliser, just outside Martinborough. The wine was good and the server in the tasting room very knowledgeable and fun. We bought a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc to take home with us. Chris didn't do any tastings. Yesterday when we tried to get into the wine festival at Masterton, he got stopped by police on the way in with a breathalyzer. Today, when...

Mar 6, 2013 - The Start of the North Island - Wellington

We left the hostel at 9am as we had to catch the ferry from the south island to the north island at midday from Picton. The ferry took 3 hours it was huge with ten decks but we spent most of our time in the restaurant, playing cards and watching idiot abroad until we were interrupted by two killer whales outside of the ferry, this was amazing very unexpected and they were jumping out of the water – awesome. Around 4.30pm we arrived at our hostel in Wellington – YHA. We all had twin rooms which was a bit of a shame as us girls wanted to...

Feb 21, 2013 - Wellington

Busy day in Wellington today. Started off by taking the cable car from the city center up to an area where there is a botanical garden and an observatory - guess which of us went where! Lynda, of course, went to the botanical garden and really enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the observatory and am now pondering on matters such as "is there life out there in the universe?", "what is dark matter", and "it's weird doing things here in NZ on a day that hasn't happened yet in California". I did actually walk around a little bit of the botanical...

Feb 20, 2013 - Napier to Wellington

A day of travel today with one interesting stop along the way, a wildlife sanctuary with several endangered species of native NZ birds. Here's a map of the drive.
View NZ 2013, Feb 20 in a larger map Probably the most interesting one was the...

Feb 15, 2013 - Exploring Wellington

Got to Wellington (known as windy Wellington) in New Zealand late in the afternoon. Our hotel is built into the hillside and overlooks the Oriental Bay. We have a little balcony and were able to keep the windows open all evening to enjoy the cool air. Wellington is the capital of New Zealand. New Zealanders are fondly called "Kiwis" after their country's bird (which doesn't fly). Today a Kiwi took us on a city tour and then we rode up the hillside on the city's cable car. Many people have to walk up many stairs to to their homes so all the...

Feb 14, 2013 - Fly to Wellington, New Zealand

Happy Valentine's to all! Our flight from Sydney to Wellington is 3 hours long plus you lose 2 hours - so we are now 18 hours ahead of EST-Florida time. Australia does not have the requirement of taking your shoes off as you go through security so it makes things just a bit easier for all. Because New Zealand is an island, they are very thorough with their questions about what you are/are not bringing into their country...no honey and certain wood products are not allowed. Since, we had been tin contact with wildlife in Sydney, it was...

Feb 8, 2013 - Otaki to Wellington

Our tour guides arranged for shuttles to transfer some people to Wellington, since we had an overweight bus. We had a day in Wellington, the capitol of New Zealand. The Te Anua Museum was highly recommended so we walked there along the shore. This is one spectacular museum: geology, geography, history, culture, floral, fauna, etc., etc. After the museum we walked around Wellington. Once again my phone couldn't get Internet - so back to Vodaphone. The guy said I used up my data and it would cost $188 to get more. REALLY SPRINT! I asked all...

Feb 2, 2013 - Wellington day 3, rugby day 2

So up early again, not such a great idea. After a few to many TUI beers, we were a little slow getting out and about. Once we did, we drove down to Cuba street, which is in downtown wellington. From there we walked to find breakfast at a little place called Olive. It was quite good. We then decided to go find the local craft market, (imagine that, Kara finds a market!). This was actually quite nice, we walked along the wharfs and waterfront in the downtown area. They have it set up beautifully there, where there are places for kids to jump...

Feb 1, 2013 - Wellington day 2, rugby day 1

This morning we headed off with Willy (Christina and Jimmy's roommate) to find a costume for the sevens rugby tournament. He didn't have his yet either, so we went searching to costume shops with him and a couple buddies.. Apparently, 'going to the sevens without dressing up isn't worth it'. So Clint and I scrounged together Fred and Wilma Flinstone (which happened to be quite a popular choice of others going too!) It felt like Halloween to us.. but I guess Halloween isn't really celebrated in New Zealand, but some of the locals mentioned...