We had no plans this day other than having dinner with my grad school friends again. Sally's son recommended we drive up and see the wind turbine at the top of the Brooklyn neighborhood and Sally recommended we take the car out and drive along the seawall, so we did both.
The road up to the wind turbine wound tightly and narrowly and we had to pull over and stop frequently to allow traffic to pass us. The views were spectacular, and it was neat to see a wind turbine so close up. We even figured out how to take panoramic photos (finally).
The road up to the wind turbine wound tightly and narrowly and we had to pull over and stop frequently to allow traffic to pass us. The views were spectacular, and it was neat to see a wind turbine so close up. We even figured out how to take panoramic photos (finally).
A wind turbine up close
A panorama from above
Blue skies and green hills
Wellington is geographically small and it took just a few minutes to reach the waterfront from the wind turbine. The road curved around the east side of the landmass and we stopped intermittently to take pictures.
We eventually made our way to Scorching Bay and decided to eat lunch at the Scorch-o-Rama. As we entered the restaurant, two hefty men sitting at a table near the door offered us samples of rice pudding. It was good rice pudding, so we resolved to stop and buy some on the way out. At Scorch-o-Rama we had decent sandwiches and fries and were served by a handsome waiter who looked like Sean Bean. As we exited the restaurant, we bought two containers of rice pudding for a snack later.
Taking selfies on a fishing dock while actual fishermen wonder what the hell we are doing.
The Seatoun Express ferry
Sadly, we never saw any wild penguins.
Finally found the source of the loud insect noise I had been hearing: a cicada!
We eventually made our way to Scorching Bay and decided to eat lunch at the Scorch-o-Rama. As we entered the restaurant, two hefty men sitting at a table near the door offered us samples of rice pudding. It was good rice pudding, so we resolved to stop and buy some on the way out. At Scorch-o-Rama we had decent sandwiches and fries and were served by a handsome waiter who looked like Sean Bean. As we exited the restaurant, we bought two containers of rice pudding for a snack later.
Mem at Scorch-o-Rama
Mem tests the water temperature
This is what it looks like when your phone takes a picture just as you drop it in the sand. Notice the rice pudding in my hand.
We drove all the way around the northern point until we reached Miramar, where we had visited Weta Workshop the day before. We stopped for petrol in Kilbirnie and then cut back across the land, a short half mile, until we were on the beach road again. We made a couple more photo stops along the way and then returned home.
Back at the house in Brooklyn we found Sally, who promptly made us tea (a New Zealand custom that I really enjoyed). We were scheduled to have dinner with my friends Shanna and Alex again so Sally offered to drive us downtown to meet them. She shuttled us down to Cuba Street, a pedestrian strip with a bohemian feel that reminded me of Capitol Hill in Seattle. Restaurants whose cuisines represented a multitude of nationalities lined the street, many offering ample vegetarian or vegan options. Colorful characters making peculiar fashion statements (or maybe I'm just a square) wandered around amusing themselves in the various establishments. We met our friends at Olive, a bistro serving haute versions of run-of-the-mill cuisine. It was nice to catch up some more and play with baby Lilah, who wrestled me for my fascinating necklace. Shanna also re-inspired me to consider doing a PhD, since she was nearly done with hers at that point.
After dinner, Mem and I walked up and down Cuba Street and eventually found ourselves back at the Victoria Street bus stop we had used a couple days before. We waited for the next 7 bus, which we knew would only take us as far as the bottom of Hell Hill (actually innocuously named Sugarloaf Hill), but it was better than sitting there another half hour to wait for door-to-door service.
We walked up the hill and, as we were about to turn into Sally's driveway, realized we had not yet been out to see the nearby Brooklyn War Memorial. We followed a paved path leading between two of the neighboring houses and walked along the grassy hill a few short minutes until we reached the memorial. It was perched upon the cliff's edge, rising several meters into the sky and bearing the names of 48 fallen soldiers from Brooklyn. Atop was the statue of an unnamed soldier with his hat in his hand.
We returned home, discussing our interest in history, and entered the house to find Sally watching Defiance, a World War II movie. We finished it with her and then turned in. We would depart early the next morning for our drive north to Rotorua.
The Wellington sign, with the last few letters blowing away in the wind.
Somewhere along The Esplanade at Houghton Bay
Rocky beach panorama
A beach sculpture at right with Taputeranga Island (part of a marine reserve) in the distance.
Mem explores
Alex and Lilah
Aunty Marie has the coolest necklaces.
Reading a bedtime book while Lilah keeps tabs on my necklace.
Old friends reunited (plus a new friend)!
I don't know, but she's probably up to no good.*
The view from the Brooklyn War Memorial
The memorial
The inscription
A pink sunset
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