WELLINGTON

The 'beehive', parliament building

We arrived in Wellington at 0900 on Monday 7 March; skies were overcast and the temperature still only 10c.  After breakfast we left to do some exploring, making first for the cable car that would take us up to the Botanical Gardens.  From there we planned to walk back down and look at the Beehive – the parliament building – and find the oldest wooden building in the Southern Hemisphere (and third oldest in the world).  These photos are included in this blog.

After that it was lunchtime and after purchasing some jewellery asked where we could find a good – but not too expensive – restaurant for lunch.  The sales girl directed us to a small restaurant called ‘Pravda’ which proved to be excellent.

We had the fish special of the day – New Zealand snapper on risotto with green lipped mussels together with a pear and rocket salad.  A fantastic glass – or two! – of Sauvignon Blanc each rounded off the lunch excellently!

After a final look around the shops we got the shuttle bus back to the ship at 1600 from where I am writing this blog.

In all, an excellent day, and apart from a shower or two, good weather.  At least the sun is shining now and we can catch up with a bit of sunshine on the balcony, as it is our side of the ship – starboard.

Off to Napier tomorrow from where the next blog will come.