A weekend of visitors
Trip Start
Aug 13, 2007
1
29
91
Trip End
Dec 31, 2008
Wellington,
New Zealand
Monday, November 26, 2007
We left Beckie and Phil sightseeing on Friday whilst we went to work, and then after work we met them at Mac's Brewery for a few drinks, before heading off to Lonestar for some yummy food. It was a sign of the rest of the weekend to come, food and beer. During the evening we also received a text message from my school friends Jemma and Rich to say they were arriving into Wellington on the ferry the next day
Plane coming into land
.Saturday started with a text message at 9am from my other school friends Jill and Paul, who are living in Palmerston North, two hours away from Wellington. They had some shopping to do in the city and wanted to meet us for lunch. So like buses, you wait ages for visitors and then 3 lots turn up at once. As we were meeting them for a late lunch we took Beckie and Phil up to Mount Victoria lookout as it was a lovely sunny days and the views are pretty good. On the way to Mt Vic we went on a little detour to Island Bay and then along the coast road to Lyall Bay to watch the planes landing at the airport. Since we were last at Mt Vic, they've created a really nice lookout area with some interesting information points. You can see most of Wellington especially the city centre.
We then drove into the city centre and parked near Te Papa museum, all day parking for $6. Te Papa Musuem is one of the must do items in Wellington. It's a fantastic museum and it's free to enter, apart from some specific exhibitions. It's exhibitions also change fairly regularly. There is a Whale exhibition opening on 1st Dec until May 2008 which we want to go to.
We walked along the waterfront to Queens Wharf, via the i-site shop and the use of the toilets there
Wellington City view from Mount Victoria
. We went to Chicago Sports Cafe, and found a table in the sunshine, waiting for Jill & Paul to arrive. We stayed there for lunch as well, and then had a mooch around the city centre before going to The Loaded Hog, to sit on the balcony, drinking some beers. It provided a perfect vantage point to watch the Interislander ferry come into Wellington.Once Jemma and Rich arrived, we all went back to our flat to get ready, as we'd already arranged to go out for a meal at a Turkish restaurant with a couple of guys from work and their friends. Jill and Paul couldn't make the meal as they had to get back to Palmerston North. We ate at Cafe Istanbul, and I have to say the food was absolutely delicious. So much so, that I will definitely be recommending it to any other visitors that we get. Graham and I both had Chicken Shish and the chicken just fell off the sticks, it was that tender. Jemma and I both found that the spicy red pesto bread was too hot for us. We gulped down a bottle of water each, but Graham and Rich seemed to enjoy it. Apart from that though, we really enjoyed it and so did our friends so that was perfect. There was even a belly dancer partway through the meal which kept us entertained.
After the meal it was back to the flat for an early night although it was after midnight when we went to bed
Beckie, Phil and Graham at Mt Vic
! Jem and Rich were in a campervan so we didn't have to worry about space as the flat is only two bedrooms, although there would have been space in the living room for them to crash but luckily they were happy enough in the van. This morning, Beckie and Phil left early to catch the early morning ferry to the south island, so we didn't see them. We'd already said our goodbyes on the Saturday night, as we suspected we would be too tired to get up in the morning at 6.30am. However, it's really light in the mornings now and it gets quite warm in the bedroom so I tend not to be able to lie in past 9am although I did manage to stay in bed until 8.30am. By 9am I was showered and dressed and getting as much of the tidying up and washing etc done before everyone else was up.
By mid morning we were all ready to go out. We decided to leave Jem and Rich to go to Te Papa museum by themselves and we arranged to meet them at 2pm. So off they went to the museum and off we went to the supermarket! It was a good idea as Sunday mornings, especially on a sunny day are really quiet. So after doing Sunday chores, we walked into the city centre again as it was such a gorgeous day. It must have been warm as I was wearing a skirt. Summer is definitely on its way.
The four of us at Mt Vic
We met Jem and Rich outside Te Papa museum, and after lunch at One Red Dog, we caught the cable car up to the top of the Botanic Gardens and had a very pleasant stroll back down to the city, via the Rose Garden. We also walked round Parliament House or the Beehive as it's more commonly known. We got a lift back to our flat and then Jem & Rich left, heading up to Napier, whilst we had a BBQ with our neighbours Mark and Karen and a couple of their friends. All in all, a very busy and tiring weekend, and we've eaten way too much!
On a different note, I am changing jobs, starting on Monday. Well it's still within the same department, but in a slightly different team. Basically, one of the other team members applied for the job I'm currently contracting for and got it, so she is transferring into that team, and I am going to go and do her job. The good news is that her job is now going to be advertised internally as a permanent position and I can apply for it. So hopefully if that works out, Graham and I will both have permanent jobs which will make things a bit easier.
