Wellington

The capital city of this small country is one of my favourite places, and I visit as often as I can.
I'd live there if I could. The city is small and intimate, virtually everything interesting is within walking distance, the traffic's not (really) horrendous, and it's a very vibrant, art-filled and interesting place, with an excellent university.


I was there a few weeks ago. As usual, I paid a visit to Te Papa, the Museum of New Zealand. It's a stunning building, full of interesting spaces and excellent exhibitions.

In the entrance foyer, there's a huge escapee from the Lord of the Rings movies - Wellington is also the home of Weta Workshops, responsible for special effects for Avatar, Mad Max Fury Road and so many other films - see here.

This enormous artwork greets you at the entrance to the hall of Maori history:

I could spend all day on the top floors, which are given over to art:

 

My other must-visit is to Zealandia, a 225 ha (556 acres) wildlife reserve 10 minutes drive from the centre of the city. The highlight of this visit was meeting a pair of takahe (Notornis) which live there. Takahe were thought to be extinct until being rediscovered in a remote valley in 1948. In 1981 there were known to be only 112 birds; today there are 225. 

Puffin and T2 are now too old to breed, and live happily at Zealandia. In captivity the birds have been known to live over 20 years. Adults can weigh over 3 kg (7lb), and stand 50cm (20 inches) tall.

They are very tame - T2, the male, came right up to me as I sat on a bench.

Road Tripping

Last week I drove down to New Plymouth, one of my favourite parts of the country.

I particularly wanted to see the new exterior of the city's Art Gallery, which has a permanent collection featuring the work of Len Lye, a kinetic sculptor and film-maker who was born in New Zealand but died an American citizen.

The exterior is astonishing, brilliant even on a grey day:

It was just as interesting inside, with the light coming in from the reflective panels:

One of the exhibition halls. The filaments all move and change position, creating a play
of sound as well as light.

Hit the Road: TP 328

I love a road trip, but I haven't taken many recently - sadly! Just one short one, 

which I've already posted a road pic from. 

Taken from the top of the Manukau Heads Lighthouse, it is evidence of our ongoing drought:

Here are some favourite road shots from the archives:

 On the road to Whanganui. It'll be at least another month before the leaves are this colour -

 

South Island road trip in 2013 -

This is the road I drive when I head west out of our town -

You won't get far on this road!

See how others are hitting the road over here, at Written.Inc


Hopeless Wanderer....

Road Trip to the Wild West (Part 2)

In the first post (see here), I talked about a trip to see a lighthouse on a cloudy summer day.

Later I met these guys, holding a meeting:

And this bunch:

These two had other fish to fry:

What I am interested in with birds, just as I am with spiders or monkeys, is what they do and why they do it.

~ David Attenborough

Road Trip to the Wild West

On Wednesday I drove for a couple of hours over to the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand, to an area I'd never been before called the Awhitu Peninsula.

It was a cloudy grey day, warm and muggy, but still a great day out!

One reason for going was to visit the lighthouse at Manukau Heads, where the 

Manukau Harbour opens into the Tasman Sea. I love lighthouses. 

Sadly this one is a replica of the real one, taken from the original drawings and plans.

It's also at a different spot (the old position was too dangerous), 

but the bonus is that you can actually climb up inside, and walk around 

the outside balcony, where the keepers would have walked.

This is looking down at the heads - you can see the beginnings of the notorious Manukau Bar, where many ships and small boats have come to grief; it was the site of our worst maritime disaster in 1863, when HMS Orpheus ran aground on the Manukau Bar and sank with the loss of 189 lives.

Looking the other way, you can see the road in to the lighthouse, with evidence 

of our hot, dry summer:

I enjoyed my day out immensely!

Thematic Streetscapes

For Thematic Photographic 265, Carmi has set the theme of Streetscapes. To see his and other pictures on this intriguing theme, go here.

Last week in New Plymouth, I came across a lovely bed of poppies in the middle of a 

3-street intersection:

Two days earlier, in Wanganui on a quiet morning, this was the view:

Thematic Photographic 193: Faith

This Thematic Photographic theme made me head off to the photos of many beautiful European churches, monasteries and cathedrals I've taken over the last few years. But then I looked at the pics from my recent South Island road trip, and decided to post some photos of small-town churches that I had seen:

Anglican church, Arrowtown

Roman Catholic church, Franz Joseph

The Fire Station's right next door

Presbyterian church, Founders' Village, Nelson

Today this church is interdenominational,

and is still used for weddings and christening

To me these tiny wooden churches in small rural towns represent the strngth of the founding spirit, and the sense of community which once prevailed in our society. They may not have the awe and majesty of a great cathedral, but they are pervaded with a sense of peace and continuity - and love.