March 27 – Wellington

March 27, 2016 – Wellington
We started the day with a 4 1/2 hour tour around the city. Most of the time we were on the bus but had many breaks to take pictures. We drove around downtown and then went up to the terminus of the public Cable Car line. We had a nice view of the city from here. Next was the Botanical Garden where there were beautiful orchids in the green house.
We drove past the railway station where they were filming a movie. Wellington has buildings from all different eras intermixed within the city. I especially like the Art Deco buildings.
Some private houses have their own private cable cars because the houses are on the top of a hill without street access. Other houses just have staircases running up to them.
We drove out to the area where Peter Jackson has a studio and visited Weta who do all his creatures.
When we got to the opening of the bay we could see the South Island faintly in the distance. The city center could be seen in the other direction.
Our final stop was a view point looking down at the city. It was a spectacular view.
After lunch we had a guided tour of the National Museum by a Maori guide. He was very interesting and his passion for the subject matter was evident in how he explained things. After the tour, I went to an exhibit on Gallipoli, a battle in WWII where 96% of the New Zealand soldiers were killed. It is a turning point in New Zealand history. The exhibit was done by Peter Jackson and was very moving. Some rooms had very large statues of soldiers that were extremely detailed.
Tomorrow, we are taking a tour of Parliament and then the rest of the day is free time until or farewell dinner.
If I don’t post tomorrow I will when I get home. We have to be up and out at 4 am on Tuesday. Since we cross the International Date Line, I’ll be home by 11am on Tuesday despite a very long day/night of flying.