… to the capital city of Wellington …

… in the rain, which finally caught up to us. Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, is the southernmost national capital in the world.

The ship docked amid piers covered with piles of timber. Forklifts and cranes worked constantly moving timber from trucks to the dock, from the dock to ships. The timber industry is the most important in New Zealand; trees are grown like crops, with new seedlings planted as soon as the grown trees are harvested. The cycle takes between 25 and 30 years depending on the variety of tree, mostly pines. Much of the timber winds up in Asia, where it’s turned into furniture. Some of the furniture is then sent to New Zealand…

We rode the shuttle bus to the center of town, and had enough time to ride the Wellington Cable Car from Lambton Quay up a sheer grade to the Kelburn District at the top of the hill. The city is surrounded by hills, and long ago ran out of space for housing. Expensive homes perch precariously on every hillside.

 

 

The cable car has been transporting people between the harbor and the hills for more than 100 years. It’s a fun six-minute ride. At the top is the original Winding House, now functioning as a Cable Car Museum. Well worth a stop, it includes an early car, informative exhibits, and a nice gift shop. You can also enter the Botanic Gardens near the Museum.

We had to get back to the ship to join our scheduled panoramic bus tour of Wellington. On the tour we looked for the many private cable cars snaking up the hillsides to provide these exclusive home owners with easier access. We counted nine of them on our drive.

   

The bus took us up Mt. Victoria to an observation spot overlooking the city. By this time, the rain had stopped and the view of the city (and our ship) was outstanding.

 

From Mt. Victoria we rode down into the city through charming neighborhoods filled with quaint Victorian homes.

 

We passed the Beehive, which houses Parliament, before arriving at the Lady Norwood Rose Gardens and Begonia House, part of the Botanic Gardens.

  

We stopped again at historic Old St. Paul’s Church, built entirely from local wood in the gothic style; the architect substituted wood for stone because of the ever-present danger of earthquakes.

 

Back on the ship, we had a wonderful Le Cirque dinner with our friends in Holland America’s premium restaurant, the Pinnacle Grill, before watching the show and the following Indonesian Crew Show. We were again joined in spirit by our friends, Lee and Troy Harden.