Today was a nice
day. One of the better days I’ve had in awhile. I awoke, formed a
plan for the rest of my time in New Zealand, bought a couple of
tickets, booked a hotel for later, and went for a nice hike/walk. The
weather was more or less perfect.
I left the Northland
of New Zealand a couple of days ago. At first I had a couple of
beautiful days up there then the weather turned consistently fowl.
When I left it was during the fourth day of rain. Sometimes the rain
was light and other times quite heavy. I had a good visit with Deb
that turned out to be seven days in total which is kind of what I had
in mind. The place she’s caretaking is really nice but a little bit
isolated. Just enough to make it kind of difficult to get away
without some sort of transportation. She walked the mile with me to
the road where I had to hitch a short ride in the rain to Kaoe. For
there I caught a bus to Auckland where I walked around for awhile
before catching an overnight bus to Wellington a the southern tip of
the North Island.
Wellington is my
favorite city in New Zealand. It has all I like in a city. It’s
built on hills and mountains that flow down to a harbor. There is
plenty of culture and arts. Coffee shops are everywhere. People tend
to be very active. I’ve been amazed by how many people I see
running on trails during the middle of the day on a weekday. The
university draws a lot of young people which keeps things fresh and
new as well as the artists. And like most all of New Zealand people
are nice.
In places such as
New Zealand, Australia, and Europe some Universities turn a dorm or
two into a hotel in the summer for budget travelers. It can be a
very good value. In Wellington I was able to book three nights at Te
Puni Village which is a dorm complex for Victoria University. It’s
built on a hillside overlooking the city and harbor. For around $43
USD I get my own room with breakfast. I am on the top floor with an
amazing view. Considering the cost of New Zealand is on par with more
expensive regions of Western Europe, it’s a very good deal. Ah, and
it’s quiet as well. The students move back in around February 24.
You have to remember that the seasons are opposite south of the
equator.
Anyway, today was a
really nice day. Not just because of the lovely weather but because I
felt more like myself. I did a walk that started from my
accommodation on the University grounds. I found the Northern Walkway
at the botanic gardens where it begins. From there it’s a 10 mile
route into the hills that eventually climbs up for a spectacular view
atop of Mt Kaukau. Beyond the summit the path continues down to
conveniently end at a train station for a very pleasant ride back to
the city.
I finished my day
with a nice Miso Ramen at a Japanese place before heading up the hill
at the end of Vivian street to Te Puni village. Wellington has a very
good variety of places to eat. Tomorrow I’ll have another full day
in the city and there’s supposed to be more nice weather.
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