23/9/2011
A day spent in the city that's hailed as one of NZ's most 'liveable' cities! Quite a warm day today with clear skies. We woke up a bit later today as we have been getting up quite early the past few days. The hostel provided free breakfast and it was great! There were many kinds of bread to choose from and cereals and milk too. Kind of the best when it comes to free food :)
In the smaller end of the hostel's kitchen.
We consulted our Lonely Planet guidebook and decided to follow some of their sights and places to go. The first thing that attracts us was the Center of New Zealand place at the top of a hill. We went there to take a look to see if it was for real whether it's the center of NZ, not that we don't trust what's written! We walked towards there and saw some pretty nice street layout and will go back to check it out later after visiting the Centre of NZ thing. It is located at the botanical reserve which is a hill with various walking tracks on it. It used to be a square for gathering during the olden days.
Passed by a building that's also called the Christ Church Cathedral.
Looking down from the top of the stairs, in front of the Christ Church Cathedral building.
Trafalgar Street. Looks really happening and has a very beautiful look to it.
The sign pointing the direction to the Centre of New Zealand.
Crossing the short walking bridge across the Maitai River.
At the Botanical Reserve.
This beautiful lush green park is at the foot of the hill where NZ's first rugby match was played on 14 May 1870.
The climb was quite steep, as always, to get to the top quicker. After about 20 minutes we were at the monument which has a point pinpointing the center of NZ. According to the information board up there it is not the exact geographical location centre, but it used as the first point for surveying New Zealand and hence called the Centre of NZ. It was rather hot due to the walk and the warm temperatures and sun. The warmest day so far in New Zealand. Guess it was because we were up north compared to the past few days when we were around the southern alps.
After visiting the center of NZ, we went to the city centre where all the shops, markets, people and happenings were. We went to some shops to get some souvenirs and some t-shirts. Sweet As! My brother went to get a pair of boots and we went back to our hostel to put our shoppings away and went out again. We looked around for a bookstore to find the book of an autobiography of Bear Grylls. After asking for the book in a bookstore, the sales person said they didn't have that and recommended us a store just opposite. We went there and bingo, we found the book.
On the way back down the hill.
Skateboarding and alcohols are not allowed here.
Banner welcoming visitors in both English and Maori.
A huge sports store with many bikes lined up neatly. This is only one small section of what they had!
Nice looking streets!
Their street signs were also unique.
We went for lunch at Burger King. I wanted to try the special burger that could not be found in Singapore. It's called the Rodeo Stackers. You can choose how many patties you want to have. It was quite good but a little costly. Anyway, after lunch we went to the Anzac park where there is a Cenotaph as a memorial in remembrance for the people who died while in service for the New Zealand armed forces.
Burger King across the road.
Another cool looking car!
A structure at the entrance of the Anzac Park. Not sure why it's being partially wrapped up there.
Fallen leaves on the grass.
The cenotaph where the names of the people are engraved on the plague.
After walking through the Anzac park, we did some exploring of the city and we saw a live marimba band playing some music on the streets. They were really good and people were dancing, and enjoying, to their music. We went to a little street with some beautiful cottages that were built in 1860s. It is said that this street is the oldest fully intact Street in NZ. It has a very olden look to it in a modern setting. They looked like a really cozy and peaceful place to live in.
The live marimba band performing to the public.
A woman dressed in bright red dress dancing to the music.
The row of improbably quaint worker's cottages.
Really olden-age-looking cottages.
How nice would it be to live in one of such houses.
After that we wanted to go back to the hostel, but we came across a sign that shows a walking path to the coastal side of Nelson. We followed it and saw some good views of the Blind Channel from the coastal side of Nelson. The walk to the coast was tiring as we had to cross a hill with some steep uphills. The walk down was easy too but when we went back, we had to tackle the hill again. After having a look of the port, we went to New World to get some food to cook for dinner.
The walkway up the hill.
At the top, having a glimpse of the channel.
House with a very good view!
At Wakefield Quay road looking at the Blind Channel.
Walking back to the city centre.
Going into New World supermarket.
While looking at the meat section, we saw a raw meat package that spelt char siu wrongly.
Went back to the hostel to rest and cooked dinner later in the evening. Chatted with a few French traveler sover dinner in the dining room then went back to our room and called it a day.
