Just for Richard and Ross who are going in a few weeks!
After our 3 1/2 hour ferry ride from Picton, I had it in my mind that I wanted pizza before we settled in for the night. After perusing the google on the ferry ride over, I picked out La Bella Italia as being somewhere we could sit, have a glass of wine, and pizza. Turns out it is a very popular spot, and there was actually no way that they could accommodate us, even though the place was huge. There was a couple of tables on the patio they seemed to have forgotten about since the weather had not been very conducive to outdoor dining lately. The evening we were there was just fine, so we got a spot outside after we pointed it out.
The pizza, meh. Service, like most of New Zealand, is made up of European kids on “working holiday.” We naively thought when we started our trip, that when we splurged, and ate at a restaurant, we would be submersed into the culture of NZ We could ply our servers and staff for local secrets. Our server was an Italian lad who couldn’t wait for his time to be up in Wellington. He complained of the terrible weather, (did you know that Wellington is considered to be the windiest city in the world,) and the high cost of living.
We stayed at the Top Ten in Wellington so we could get a load of laundry done, take a shower, and recharge our battery.
We planned to have a city day. Our first stop was the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, a must do if like museums. I would even argue, it is a must for everyone visiting NZ. The highlight for most people visiting is an the Gallipoli Exhibit. Gallipoli was incredible in the amount of detail that went into it, but, it was a bit over the top for us.
We had to wait to get into our “camp” for the night, since the Harbourside Market was happening. Another must see if you make it on a Sunday to Wellington.
After we spent most of the day at the Museum, we walked up Cuba Street. 100%, one of the coolest streets we saw in NZ. Dinner at Kisa is probably the only restaurant meal that is worth mentioning from our trip. To be fair, this was the only fancy restaurant we went to on our trip, and I am glad the food was exceptional. We killed some time that evening having a drink in an alley that had a dj spinning some rad beats before going to see some live music at Meow Nui.
The next day, I don’t think we had the best night’s sleep. It was quiet, and felt safe, but maybe the combination of being in the middle of a city, and a few adult beverages had something to do with feeling a bit crappy the following morning. It was rainy, and windy when we got up. We got a quick bite to eat, and walked over to the park looking for the Nazgul, big trees and birds.
I was interested in going to Zealandia, but the weather got pretty serious about how much it was going to rain and blow, so we booked it out of town, and moved out with just a vague idea of where we were headed. Kapati Island held some interest, but was a bit more money that we felt like spending. We ended up going to the Paekākāriki to Pukerua Bay Escarpment Trail, where Barb took a nap while I went for a hike that featured some of Barb’s favorite features. Extreme edges, loooong swinging bridges, and huge vistas of Kapiti Island. Barb actually would have liked the views, but I took pics for her.
We spent the night at a freedom camp on Otaki Beach. Surprisingly, not a lot of pics.
The next day had us rolling all the way across the island to Napier. I think it took us about four hours.
Napier is known for the devastating earthquake in 1931, and the fact it was rebuilt with Art Deco architecture.
We planned on doing a freedom camp spot in Napier, but as we quickly learned on the North Island, many freedom spots only had two – six legal spots set aside. It seemed like a great spot to spend the night, but it was all full on a Tuesday, in March, in the early afternoon. We ended up at a nice Top Ten Spot. Wasn’t a bad idea since we were planning on heading into the woods for a yet to be determined amount of time.
Next up Te Urawera!
