February, 2018 | Postcards From Here and There

To The South Island

The Cook Strait between the north and south islands connects the Tasman Sea to the east with the Pacific Ocean to the west. It can be a very unpredictable stretch of water for navigation due to the winds that can roar through from the south, giving large swells on the open stretch of the crossing. We were fortunate that for our crossing it was it was calm and tranquil following Cyclone Gita which had passed through the area two days earlier.

The crossing itself between, Wellington on the north island and Picton in the south, is approximately 94 kilometres and takes three and as half hours. Only about a third of this time is actually in open water, the first third is leaving Wellington harbour and bay and the final third is the cruise up the beautiful Queen Charlotte and Marlborough sounds.

Two ferry companies cross the straits, Interislander and Bluebridge, both have several crossings per day. We crossed with Interislander which have bigger ships, our vessel Kaitaki is the largest and is used for the busy 9am crossing. It can carry 1350 passengers and on the day we crossed was very busy indeed.

The following photographs show some of what is considered by some to be one of the great ferry journeys of the world.

Marlborough Sound

36 Hours in Wellington

With only 36 hours in Wellington a good plan is essential. This is our guide as to how to spend that precious time.

Mount Victoria. A must for those awe inspiring 360 degree views of the city. I have posted a few photographs here
Take the cable car. Located at 280 Lambton Quay this is another way to get some good views. It is actually a funicular railway but don’t let that put you off. Cars run ever ten minutes and it costs 7.50NZD for a return trip. Once at the top you can visit the Cable Car Museum, The Observatory, the Botanic Gardens or simply grab some excellent coffee at The Kowhai Cafe before heading back down again.

3. Walk along the waterfront. A great free activity and always plenty so see. there are also numerous bars and restaurants along the way

4. Te Papa. The national museum of New Zealand is yet another free attraction. So good it deserved a post all on its own, You can read it here

5. Visit a gallery. We had hoped to visit The City Gallery, located in Civic Square, but it was closed until early March 2018 so made do with the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, which is also free. Currently housing an exhibition of the 26th Annual Wallace At Awards winners.

6. Cuba Street. Reportedly Wellingtons coolest street. Partly pedestrianised it has an eclectic mixtures of buildings, shops, cafes, bars and restaurants.Time spent strolling up and down and exploring its heart is well worth doing.

7. Visit a bar and sample some of the many craft beers made in the city. here are three places worth a visit.

Fortune Favours – 7 Leeds Street and very close to Cuba Street. Opened in 2016. You can see the beer being brewed before your very eyes you sample some of their previous efforts. the beers are really rather good. Fortune Favours

Goldings Free Dive – 14 Leeds Street. A great bar that features some nice beers. The atmosphere in here is amazing even late afternoon. The Star Was memorabilia around the place keeps you busy making sure you spot it all. Goldings Free Dive

Mac’s Brewbar – 4 Taranaki Street. Down by the waterfront and with seating both inside and out. The beer is good and there is even a restaurant attached. They also have an interesting display of lampshades!

8. All the sightseeing will probably make you hungry, well it does to me, so here are couple of suggestions out of the many on offer.

Nikau Cafe – Round the back of The City Gallery and only open until 4pm so an ideal lunch spot.Get here early, the outside seating fills up very quickly with all tables taken by 12.30 on the day we visited. The cooking here is excellent and on par with many restaurants where you might have to pay considerably more, their kedgeree was outstanding. Nikau Cafe

Beach Babylon – 232 Oriental Parade. Directly opposite Wellingtons beach which I am led to believe was created by importing sand. Beach Babylon is open for breakfast at 8am until late. The cooking here was very good and reasonably priced. they have some great beers too. Beach Babylon

Te Papa

Te Papa is the national museum of New Zealand and is a wonderful place to spend half a day or more. We were so absorbed by some the exhibits on our visit that we completely lost track of the time. The museum attracts well over a million visitors a year and I doubt that any of them leave disappointed. Whats more, its free to visit.

Te Papa occupies an iconic location on the city waterfront and incorporates many of the features you would expect to see in a modern museum. I have never found the displays of death, in the form of stuffed animals, in the museums of my childhood to be particularly attractive places and as you would expect Te Papa largely avoids this route. Many of the displays are not only informative and engaging but are often interactive too.

The museum consists of six floors, not all open on our visit, which are dedicated to telling the story of New Zealand’s cultural, geological, biological and social history. Te Papa Tongarewa literally translates as “container of treasures” and I doubt there is a more apt name for a national museum.

We were particularly taken with the geological exhibits which explained New Zealand’s place on the pacific ring of fire and how volcanic activity and earthquakes have shaped the country. There is even a mock up house where you can stand and experience the feeling of the earth shaking beneath your feet. The biological area described flora and fauna and to course everyone likes a good dinosaur and this is one of new Zealand’s own. Unfortunately I forgot to record its name!

The most outstanding exhibits were those concerning Maori culture. They request that visitors do not take any photographs in this part of the museum and we of course complied. There were superbly intricate carvings on whale bone and in wood together with complete reconstructions of Maori dwellings and meeting places. It is hard to visit such places and not be affected by the richness of their culture and their sense of place and belonging on the land.

There is so much here and I believe that you could visit time and time over and find something new. I even found a display of postcards from New Zealand which I thought was quite apt considering the name of my website.