Wellington

Ah, Wellington, New Zealand's answer to San Francisco.  From the bohemian vibe to the mixed Victorian and Modern style houses to the cable car, it seems Wellington sprouted from the same seed as its older and more famous cousin.  The similarities don't end there however, as even the landscape surrounding the city had me confused as to whether or not we had accidentally driven across the Pacific.  After we were clear of the mountains of Tongariro National Park, the landscape became softer and more undulating.  After crossing through a large, flat rural valley, views of soft grassy hills covered in shrubbery came into view.  A little further and we had reached the northern extent of the Wellington metro area, with the house covered hills turning into rugged rocky headlands as they reached into the sea.  The trees, Monterey Pines imported from California and planted for decoration and lumber supply, dominated the green belt of the city.  All this covered in a thin veil of fog rolling in off of a rough and tumble sea.

Toto, I don't think we're in New Zealand anymore

Wellington is located near the southern tip of the North Island on a large harbor and is the jumping off point to the South Island.  It is the political capital of New Zealand, but is also known as the cultural and nightlife capital due to the cities bohemian vibe and compact walkability. Squeezed in between the tall forested hills and the blue harbor, it's hardly an ugly city either.  Wellington is just shy of owning a monopoly on New Zealand's music scene, with the vast majority of NZ bands and artists hailing from it's bustling nightclubs and bars.  It is also the home to the NZ movie industry, with big name directors such as Peter Jackson utilizing the cities studios for the production of LOTR the The Hobbit.  If this is all sounding too good to be true, let me drop a reality bomb on you - Wellington is also nicknamed "Windy Welly" due to the intense gusts squeezing through the Cook Strait between the North and South Islands.  Besides the wind, there is also often cold and rainy weather, even in the summer.  I've heard many say that spending time in Wellington on a good day makes you want to pick up and move there, then the following day makes you want to leave.

 When we arrived in the city it just wasn't one of those good days.  The first day wasn't too exciting, as we had arrived a bit too early to pick up Megan, who had a horrendous flight delay from SF and wasn't due to arrive in the city until late afternoon.  After fumbling a lot in the small but horribly marked Wellington airport, we finally had her and we all went out to dinner and a drink before going to bed.  The following day was shaping up to be another bad weather day, but it burned off midday to become a beautiful and calm summers day.  The blue water in the harbor shone, and the city sparkled.  As we walked through the city center, it became remarkably clear just how small the city itself is, clearing the center in about 15 minutes.  Along the way we explored Cuba Street, which is a walkway between city blocks chalked full of great cafes, bars and replete with street performers and plenty of dreadlocks.  Before heading to the waterfront to walk back the way we came we passed through the gardens of governmental buildings.  Funny you could walk right up to the front doors with no security or hassling. 

San Francisco or Wellington? Would you be able to tell? 

The Excutive Wing of the Parliamentary Buildings aka "The Beehive"

Along the waterfront we wandered through the underground market so that Megan could do some souvenir shopping.  They happened to have a wine booth down there selling Ports from a small boutique winery outside the city, and Kayleigh and I bought a bottle.  After that we went to the

renowned Te Papa museum at the end of the waterfront and explored the exhibits for a few hours.  The last activity before sunset was to make a short hike to the top of Mt Victoria, which provides an excellent 360 degree view of the city and the harbor.

The Alien, ahem, Squid of Te Papa.

Wellington from Mt Victoria

After Kayleigh and I bought our bottle of wine we got it into our heads to go wine tasting, and low and behold there is a wine region just over the hills about an hour northeast of Wellington (yet another similarity to San Francisco).  So the next day we busied ourselves doing just that.  We tasted wines from three different wineries before we had to stop and have a platter to make sure we could drive back across the mountains to town.  The weather was again great, making an unusual two day spree of great Wellington weather.  Things were looking promising for a Southern Hemisphere sunny and warm Christmas at the beach.