March 1, 2019 – Wellington, New Zealand
We arrived at 8 am today and we have a Wellington Tour planned.
Richard, from Xplor tours picked us up at the port and we went to the see the sights. Wellington is a relatively small city and its growth is limited by the frequency of earthquakes. 4 stories tall is about all you see here. Population of just over 400,000.
Mount Victoria is our first stop.
Great views of Wellington from here. Looks like a great place to live!
Wellington is home to Miramar Studios. King Kong, Lord of the Rings. The Wellington sign is is a takeoff on the Hollywood sign. Richard said Wellington actually considered calling it “Wellywood”. Also known as the “Windy City” – no mention of Chicago – the sign depicts the wind blowing the last few letters.
We stopped at an ice cream shop on the way down from Mt. Victoria to pick up a New Zealand treat. Hokey Pokey ice cream. Hokey Pokey ice cream is vanilla ice cream with honeycomb bits of toffee in it. Wow! Fantastic!
Next stop was the Wellington Cable Car. Early 20th century system recently upgraded. We rode up to the top for more great views.
The largest wooden building in the Southern Hemisphere. No match for the Grand Hotel.
Old St. Pauls Church
We finished our tour and decided to get some lunch. We did pass on the Burger King. It must be an important place in Wellington!
We stopped into an Irish Pub where I could get a Guinness and an order of fish and chips!
We passed by a music shoppe and had to stop in. According to the owner, one of the few music stores left. Many unique instruments. This is a 5 string piccolo banjo.
We stopped by a few vintage clothing stores. I think I had this jacket in high school! Anyone remember the La Notte disco in Macomb County in the 70s?
We had dinner back on the ship. Evening entertainment, back from sea sickness – the Vallies. This musical group did the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. This four man group was spot on! Great repertoire and great harmonies. Polished and flawless!
