Back in Time

Monday 18th March
Before we bid Wellington farewell, we went to Te Papa the national museum and spent a few enjoyable hours learning about the Colossal squid, the heaviest, bulkiest squid in the world and the Awesome Forces among other interesting exhibits.
The colossal squid, originally thought to be between 8 and 10 meters in length (which include the tentacles) but when it was thawed out they found it was a mere 4.2 meters. It was believed that the shrinkage was due to dehydration after the squid had died. Whatever the reason, the squid was gigantic and truly awesome. To think that there are cephalopods (a class of mollusc) that freely prowl the oceans of the Antarctic today.
The Awesome forces exhibit shows how the plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and erosion have shaped a dynamic landscape. We experienced a small taste of the powerful geological forces in the earthquake house that simulated a minor quake.

Leaving a sodden Wellington behind, we drove through the rain towards the wine lands and the town of Martinborough where we spent a lovely afternoon and a quiet evening at the beautifully restored country style Martinborough Connection, a B&B run by Dave and Lorraine.
The town was a small, quaint 1950s style settlement that seemed to be stuck in time, but the B&B was comfortable and homely. Martinborough was founded by John Martin, an Irish immigrant who purchased farmland and planned and developed the town. The street layout is in the form of a Union Jack and the streets are named after places he visited in the 1870s such as New York, Cologne, Venice, Suez, Strasbourg, Kansas, Texas and more. Following World War I the residents decided to rename three streets, Kitchener, Jellicoe and Roberts, after the English War Lords.

Tuesday 19th March
After a hearty breakfast, we left Martinborough behind and set off for Napier on the coastline of Hawke's Bay. A drive of 3 1/2 hours through diverse countryside. The rain hadn't let up and after the torrential rain of the night before, most rivers were flowing strongly. The locals welcomed the rain since they had not had any since mid-February and it was badly needed, however, we were starting to be fed up with it as we had had it non-stop since we arrived in Wellington.

Wednesday 20th March
The days certainly have an autumnal feel here. The sun is getting up later (about 7:40) and the temperatures are dropping. Although there has not been much rain today - just the odd shower here and there, the temperatures stayed around 17 degrees and the wind was blowing so it felt a lot cooler. Still, not as cold as you all have it in England!
We spent the morning at the National Aquarium of New Zealand. The day started with the feeding of the penguins but as the day was quite a bit colder than it has been of late, the little birds didn't want to get out of their warm beds, not even for a feed. Can't say I blame them.

After watching the penguins being fed we went to the main tank where a diver was feeding the fish. A school group was there and the children interacted with the diver as he played to the crowd. It was great to watch all the antics and I bet the children won't forget their day in a hurry.









Feeding finished, we started at the beginning and followed the route though the aquarium. The little seahorses were so cute and the huge parrot beak turtle seemed to revel in the attention that Ian was giving him.

Much to our surprise, the aquarium had a kiwi section. Since these funny birds are nocturnal, the enclosure is kept very dark to simulate the night time but we were able to see the birds rooting around looking for worms and grubs. Unfortunately we were not able to get a picture of them as you cannot use a flash in the enclosure, so Ian took a picture of a display bird

Leaving the aquarium behind we went into the city of Napier, reported to have over 2200 hours of sunshine per year. Well we must just have been unlucky because we didn't see much of that, however we did enjoy the Art Deco design of the city.
On 3rd February 1931 the city was reduced to rubble by a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake and subsequent fire. Rising like a Phoenix from the ashes, the city was rebuilt within 2 years and is now known as the Art Deco Capital. Thousands of visitors come to Napier each year to take a guided Art Deco Walk and experience a fascinating trip down memory lane.