17.02.2020 You can take the girl out of Scarborough........

You are going to have to wait a while to find out what that is all about?? I have been staying in Porirua, just outside of Wellington for three days - just to get my admin, washing and usual stuff sorted out so that I can repack my bags and the car before I have to drop it at the ferry and go over to the South Island where I will collect my next. I had booked in to a place in advance but just didn't like the look of it as I arrived. Parking was horrendous, the place looked half closed and just after I had checked in someone came and reported that something was missing from their room! I went to my room but knew that I would not stay there even though I would not get any refund. I could feel it just wasn't right and I knew that John would not have stayed there either. Booked somewhere else on line, dropped the key in at reception, not one there!!! and left. Within 15 minutes I was in a much better place and all set for three days. It was in easy walking distance of the station at Porirua so I took the train into Wellington - just about 30 minutes ride and much easier than trying to park the car. I spent most the day at Te Papa the New Zealand National museum which was fantastic especially their exhibition on Gallipoli and Anzac. I think it was especially interesting for me as John and I have visited the Anzac memorial in Gallipoli Turkey where so many very young men from Australia and New Zealand lost their lives. Wellington in a way reminds me of the waterfront at Cape Town or Stavanger - lots of wooden buildings, lots of people on the water and lots of bars and restaurants where people are just sitting watching the world go by - I joined them. There was a festival on the first day I went in with everything from gymnasts to live music all around the square.

There was a strange wooden bridge that I could see beyond the square and went to have a look - lots of maori looking carvings - turned out to be just a great place to sit and rest whilst looking out to the views across the harbour, read a book or listen to music...

A bit cloudy but still plenty going on on the water...

Long day wandering around - just couldn't stay for the light festival in the evening Anne Walker - sorry.

Porirua is a small town between two harbours. It looked a little sad to me when I arrived but the train station is so colourful and I found a walk around the harbour on Sunday morning where everyone was out in the sunshine and wind. Some sitting on bean bags drinking their coffee, some practising with their dragon boat canoe and the Sea Scouts who looked to have been having a raft making competition. There were still a few of them in the water thought most people were already packing up and heading home!!

I'm back in Wellington today and you will be glad to hear that I've had some rain after all the rain that you have been having. Have to say though that most of the time,despite the dark skies and strong winds, I have still been walking around in a long sleeved T shirt - so maybe not suffering as much as you guys.. Because of the weather I visited the New Zealand Academy of Art then went onto another small museum which was in what used to be one of the bonded warehouses on the waterfront. Lots of bits and pieces but in particular there was an exhibition called Suffrage in Stitches which was a series of embroidered panels done by family members and others to remember the women who went to parliament with a petition in 1893 for women's rights. The exhibition is 300m long - the same length as the petition, included 546 panels - the number of pages of the petition and 25,521 stitches - the number of signatures on the petition - although how they could count that I have no idea.

When I came out of this exhibition the weather had gotten worse - BUT like I said "you can take the girl out of Scarborough but you can't take Scarborough (or the funicular) out of the girl" - had to do it didn't I even though I couldn't see a thing from the top!!

Walked back down to the City and passed The Beehive which is part of their Parliamentary Buildings I'm hoping the weather is a bit better tomorrow and I understand the ferry journey is spectacular but there is a Cyclone out there somewhere so who knows...