Ramble
Quest - Windy, Wonderful Wellington.
"I'd like to switch rooms. The guy sleeping in the bunk above me has some sort of sleeping disorder. Periodically, he starts shaking violently and screaming obscenities."
"Mmm, OK."
"Seems like a nice enough guy otherwise." She gives me a key to the room next door. In front of it, I notice another key and pick it up. Inside, a guy rolls awake and asks if I've seen his key. I give it to him. Then he checks his watch and asks if the time is really after 9:30. I tell him that seems right.
"Shit, I was supposed to catch the ferry!" He quickly throws his stuff in his pack and stumbles out the door. OK, weirdos aside, the Wellington YHA is very well equipped and in a great location, near Te Papa, the National Museum. I pop in and out rather than tackle the monster all at once.
Te Papa is definitely an example of style over substance. Despite its huge size, I doubt its collection is as valuable as the Aukland Museum's. There are huge rooms, and I mean really huge, with just a few little pieces in them -- bizarre. The place does have style though! The building is amazing and the presentations dazzle, even when there's little to show.
I criticized Aukland for its insipid architecture, boring downtown, and neglected waterfront. Wellington has none of these flaws. Like Napier, Wellington is earthquake prone, but the fault lines near the city give it lots of green space among its scenic hills. As in Aukland, a series of public walkways (City to Sea, Norther, Southern) connect portions with parks or views.
I spend an enjoyable day walking along the wharf and looking at the older downtown buildings before taking the cable car up through Kelburn to the top end of the botanic gardens. I've heard some travelers give a lukewarm review to the gardens, but it just takes a little effort, getting off the main paths, before you can fully appreciate their excellence.
Walking back down to town, I ome across a wonderful old cemetery, meticulously maintained. I'm very impressed until I discover that the main expressway cuts right through it! Clearly they tried to assuage public outcry by turning the remaining bits of the cemetery into a kind of park. I suppose it is better than it could have been.
Wellington, with its many hills and large bay is in a beautiful spot and the city fits in well with the surroundings. I loved it. The main flaw is the wind, which is often annoyingly strong.