I could definitely live in Wellington
such a nice place, small yet it has everything!
it’s not as spread as Auckland, which makes it a walking/biking city.
the weather might be the only thing that sucks in the windy capital… at first it showed me how beautiful days can be, sunny and shiny and warm, and all was perfect from Tuesday to Saturday… but Sunday came, and with it a long white cloud and wind and rain, and it didn’t stop for 48 hours… and then sun again…

never the less, my days in Wellington were happy days.
I could just imagine myself living there for the rest of my life.
it’s a city with lots of things to do… there’s always a market or a concert or a play… there’s museums, cafes, and premieres of The Hobbit… people are nice and friendly, food is diverse, and nightlife is amazing!
everything is near, and if it isn’t, public transportation will make it near for you! it’s just perfect!

I was totally welcomed as a member of the Mills-Wallis Family.
my kiwi parents and siblings are just amazing! although they were all tight in a small apartment because their house is being renovated as you read, they gave me my own room!
and each one of them took me out to do something different.

so, on my first day I had breakfast with Jesse, then I visited the Te Papa Museum which is brilliant! it has a lot of stuff, from geological and natural to early and late human history of New Zealand… seems like it never ends, every floor has something really interesting to show.

in the evening I went with Mark to see the sunset from their house in Island Bay, and this is what Wellington had for me (the mountains that are in the far back, are actually part of the South Island):

the next day was all about doing some touristic stuff… I went on the cable car up to the botanic gardens, then had lunch with Ali, and finally I visited the Museum of Wellington City & Sea… not bad!

on Friday I went to “Weta Cave” – Weta Workshop is a special effects and prop company, producing effects for television and films such as The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Narnia, District 9, Avatar, Tintin, The Hobbit, etc- … arriving I met Caitlin from California. we toured together, then we had lunch with Jesse, and at night we went to have several beers in different bars… it was a GREAT night! unfortunately after this Caitlin went to Blenheim to live and work and I wasn’t able to see her again… maybe later we will be able to do some traveling together!

Saturday was my special day with Ali. we went to the Orongorongo Track outside of Wellington to do some hiking, this was my first track in NZ! I really loved it! it was nice to see green from up close, and to smell all those beautiful scents… I hope I can be able to do more “tramping” as they call it in New Zealand, and apparently the South Island has loads of tramping tracks, and that’s right where I’m heading!
in the evening we went to an awesome bar called Havana.

Sunday – FunDay: Saint Patrick’s Day!
Jesse invited me to spend the afternoon pub crawling around Wellington with his friends. mostly we visited Irish pubs, and on my favorite, Molly Malones, the band played a song I asked them to play by saying this: the next song is to Karen from Mexico… this is Rocky Road to Dublin!!!

finally, when my days in Wellington were coming to an end, I decided I should get tramping shoes for my walks in the South Island… and that’s when I discovered the magic of the Salvation Army Family Stores!
Tasarla and I went to have breakfast – mushrooms on toast… yum!!! – and then headed off to do some op shopping on Cuba Street.
I couldn’t find what I was looking for, and Tasarla needed to go to uni, so I went to the big Salvation Army Family Store in Newtown by myself… and there I bought a jumper ($10), 4 pairs of socks ($2.50), and a pair of tramping shoes ($6)…
total spent: $18.50
conclusion: op shopping is the best shopping!

on my very last day in Wellington I decided to finally walk up to the lookout on Mount Victoria. I think it’s the perfect place to see it all… 360° of buildings, mountains, ocean, ferries, and houses… 360° of joy… and that’s when it hit me, standing at the top of Wellington, I just thought “I love you New Zealand”… I’m HERE, and the journey is just beginning!

on my way down I met Christiane, 65 year old German teacher… she’s now traveling because she’s not working anymore back home… after a small chat of where we come from and what we do she said to me in a very sincere and empathic way: enjoy your life! may you find what you need to complete you in every direction!

and that’s all I have to say, about that..