My goodness this is a lovely city! The weather was a bit drizzly this morning when we woke, and I thought we may have seen the best of it yesterday but Wellington decided to ( eventually) turn on another beautiful day. But, today, I must admit we did finally get the notorious wind!
Our breakfast view was lovely, we are definitely getting the most out of our lounge access here.
After breakfast we set out to Miramar, a suburb not far away for my much anticipated visit to the Weta Workshop. I had booked us on the 9.40 am tour and we arrived in plenty of time to see all the wonderful things in the shop attached to the workshop. If you were a serious collector you could spend thousands! At the entrance there is a huge Cave troll and Gollum watches everyone who walks through the door.
We started our tour promptly at 9.40 and our guide was vivacious and lively and clearly loved her job. We were led through a series of rooms where they demonstrate the various techniques for creating the prosthetics and costumes etc that they have produced for a multitude of movies and TV shows. There were also rooms with all sorts of props from the movies and other items such as the actual Oscar and Bafta awards that they won for their work on the Lord of the Rings. It was sooooooo frustrating that we could not take photos – I was dying to take a picture of the actual Sauron costume ( over 7 foot tall!) that was used in the movies as well as Gimli’s axes, Gandalf and Aragorn’s swords and Legolas’ arrows – amongst so may others!! We were only allowed to take photos towards the end.
In the workshop we also were able to watch their craftsmen working on props for an upcoming ( un-named!) movie. He was working on a sword.. and I can’t help but wonder if it will appear in “The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum” which is coming out in 2027!
When we left the workshop we set out for a meandering drive all around the bay at the tip of the peninsula beyond Miramar. It was such a pretty drive, right down on the level of the water with the hillside rising steeply up beside. For the first part of the drive we drove north and had great views across the bay to the city but once we rounded the top of the headland at the lighthouse to head south the view was towards the East Harbour regional park. We stopped several times to take photos of the rocky shores and the ferries cruising in through the entrance of the harbour.
In several places we saw signs warning people to be careful not to hurt the penguins! Wellington is unique in that it’s the only capital city in the world to be home to the little Blue Penguins, also known by its Māori name, kororā . They are found nesting all along Wellington’s coastline, from rocky beaches and coastal scrub to urban areas. They make their nests in burrows, rock crevices, under vegetation, and sometimes even under houses or in boat sheds. I wish we had seen one!
Eventually we rounded the southern tip of the peninsula, at Hue Te Taka Point and I was gobsmacked that we could see the South Island! In fact we could see the southern alps, tipped with snow! I guess I really had no idea how close the two islands actually are.
Our drive then took us back inland where I directed Neil back to Victoria Park – we weren’t quite finished with The Lord of the Rings. In the bushy part of the park is a location that was used for fiming in the movie, specifically the time when the Hobbits first encounter the Black Riders and hide themselves in a hollow under a drooping tree. The city authorities have kindly set up signage to direct keen fans to the spot and it wasn’t hard to find. There are even a couple of park chairs nearby with plaques and appropriate quotes from the movie.
You’ll need to use your imagination for the shot of me copying the hobbits. The Tree was a CGI addition, and the hollow itself isn’t as deep as it was 25 years ago!
With my LOTR fan thrills satisfied ( for now!) we drove back to the hotel, left the car and set off on foot to the parliamentary end of town. The Beehive ( very distinctive!) is the Executive Wing of the New Zealand Parliament Buildings . Immediately next to the Beehive is Parliament House, which holds the debating chamber and is designed in an Edwardian neoclassical style.
We walked back along the waterfront and this time we really were feeling the wind, the water was so much choppier than yesterday.
We finished our walk by heading down to Cuba Street. I’d read that Cuba Street is “a vibrant, historic cultural hub known for its bohemian atmosphere, featuring an array of vintage shops, secondhand bookstores, cafes, restaurants, bars, and unique boutiques”. However, I’m afraid I was unimpressed. It may once have been a premier shopping area but now it just seems tired and a little seedy and sad. Or, maybe we just caught it on a bad day!
So we set off back to the hotel, picking up a couple of sandwiches, chips and a sausage roll to eat for late lunch back in the lounge. You really could spend ages here just admiring the view! The wind has been getting wilder throughout the afternoon, and I could really feel the gusts as they blew around the building. The wind and wild weather helped us decide to stay in house for dinner tonight. We went down to the bar to enjoy our last North Island beer and wine. After this we will be sticking to South Island produce! We enjoyed a couple of drinks in the bar and then moved to the restaurant for, in my case, a very tasty Chicken Rendang ( I’ve been craving a curry!) and Neil enjoyed a risotto. Tomorrow we head to Christchurch, I’m hoping it’s not tooooo windy in the morning for our flight out of Wellington!
