March 16,2018 Wellington, NZ

March 16, 2018. Wellington capitol of NZ

Today’s forecast is 67 degrees F. Weather turned out to be slightly windy, overcast and it looked like it would rain.

Our first stop was the Zealandia eco sanctuary which is fully fenced to keep out intrusive mammals. The sanctuary was established 18 years ago with the goal to protect existing species of birds and introduce threatened species of birds so they can be save and possibly breed to grow the species.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zealandia_(wildlife_sanctuary)

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/07/new-zealand-invasives-islands-rats-kiwis-conservation/- watch the short video on the kiwi

We had 2.5 hours to visit. Our group was split into two and our guide was Shenaugh.  She took us into the preserve and pointed out the different species of birds, the bird calls and different types of plants.

Takahe- there was a pair on exhibit

 Parrot

 After our tour of the lake and woods we went back to the cafe for coffee.

Back of cafe/museum with view of fence

 At noon we got on the bus and in 5 mins. we were at the Ontario Wilton Preserve which was botanical preserve for native New Zealand plants.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otari-Wilton%27s_Bush

Again we were split into two groups and took a guided tour for about an hour through the gardens and rainforest.

Out bus driver dropped us off in the center of town at the shuttle bus stop. We headed over to Mc Donald’s for a quick lunch.

Afterwards we walked 1 block to the cable car station. It cost $7.50 pp for a round trip to the top and back.  

https://www.newzealand.com/in/plan/business/wellington-cable-car/

The ride was short and very smooth. At the top we got off to walk around the garden and visit the cable car museum. We had a great view of the city.

When we got to the top we discovered there was a botanical garden nearby as well as a bus to go to Zealandia.  If one has time to explore, one can take the tram, go to Zealandia on the free shuttle and then take the tram down to the city.

 Museum car

 views from top

We then rode the Cable car back down to the downtown and got on our shuttle bus pack to the ship.

After a brief rest we got ready for dinner. Tonight they had a roast beef which turned out to be like boneless prime rib. It was delicious. Dessert was Sacher torte.

I went to the theater show featuring Danny McMaster- Australian entertainer- and he was not that good.

Sea is choppy tonight.

Mar. 15, 2018 Napier, New Zealand, the Art Deco city

March 15, 2018. Napier, the Art Deco City 

Today’s weather forecast is 74 degrees F.

An earthquake struck this town in 1931 and the city fathers decided to rebuild the downtown buildings with an art deco theme.  

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/earthquake-helped-turn-city-art-deco-capital-world-1809580

The ship arrived at noon in the working port of Napier. There were many stacks of logs in the port waiting to be loaded on freighters.

We debarked and boarded a free shuttle to the downtown and got off in the center of city that looked like a movie set from the 30’s. There were even old American cars from the 30’s along with their drivers in 30’s clothing.

 there were 6 identical houses built for 6 sisters so the houses are now called the 6 sisters

We walked around the center of the city for several hours and then spotted a Starbucks where we stopped for coffee and used the WiFi to access emails and upload our photos.

Sausage roll

Around 4pm we got in the shuttle bus line to go back to the ship.  On the pier there were a group of people dressed in period clothes and vintage cars along with a jazz combo.

I did not complain about the dinners and small portions but tonight was the worst- the waiter recommended the lamb ragu which turned out to be a sheep (not lamb) stew with only a few pieces of gamy meat. I asked for the chicken pot pie which turned out to be pretty good.

The show tonight featured Kory Simon who did an act similar to Perry Grant from the Celebrity ships. Perry is so much better.

Tomorrow is an early start day in Wellington where we booked a tour of the Zealandia Eco-Reserve and Ontario Wilton Bush.

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March 14, 2018 Tauranga, New Zealand (north island) and a visit to Rotorua.

March 14, 2018

Today the weather was forecasted to be sunny and mild with a high of 74 degrees F.

We booked a tour of the Tia Puia Thermal Reserve, Maori arts and the Agrodome.

We left in the coach at 9:15 and our first stop was the agrodome which was in the area near Rotorua. 

https://wikitravel.org/en/Rotorua

 19 breeds of sheep on display

 herding demo

herding demo

some of the shorn wool

The agrodome is a large complex with many exhibits in different buildings as well as a arena where there thewas sheep shearing demo, a sheep of each of the 19different breeds of sheep and a short sheep dog demonstration.

After the this show we went out to a large pen where there was a demo of the sheepdog herding 4 sheep around and finally into a pen. The dog was directed by the sheep herder by a series of whistles.

We then drove to a park complex and thermal bath complexes in Rotorua   - government gardens where we were able to get off the coach and take pictures of the museum and hot water cistern..

https://www.rotorua-travel-secrets.com/government-gardens.html

 We then went to our last stop atthe TE Puia Maori Arts complex where we entered and with the assistance of a guide headed to the dining hall.

https://tepuia.com

We had a traditional Maori style meal-salad, soup, roast lamb and pork and potatoes and ice cream for dessert.

Afterwards we went to the meeting house to see native dances.

Our guide led us to the Pohutu geyser, mud pots, & steam vents.

We then went to  the kiwi exhibit where we were able to see two kiwis. 

They were in a special building that was very dark with a red light so we could observe them. Kiwis are nocturnal so they must be in the dark in order for people to observe them.

We learned about the Maori history and taken to a brand new building where young Maori people learn the traditional Maori skills like woodcarving and basket weaving.

The day was long and we arrived at the ship 15 mins before sailing.

We learned a lot today and saw a lot.