WELLINGTON, NZ'S CAPITAL

Today was a very good day--Wellington is known for two things; wind and hills!  Both are extreme.  Today we had near Gale Force winds, and the hills.  We walked over 7 km.

We began by going to Te Papa, the National Museum.  It is very similar to the Provincial Museum in Victoria; I don't know who made one first, but there are many similarities in design and displays.  The exhibits are excellent and it is free!

We went to McDonalds for lunch, and it was the same quality as in North America.  Senior Coffee is free!  We walked to the Cable Car to go to the top of the large hill.  It is really steep.  At the top is a Botanical Garden which we skirted as we found our way to Victoria Bridge Club--we placed first and impressed them!

A lady at the club drove us to the Old St. Paul's Church (Anglican), which was constructed from 4 local woods.  It is Gothic in style, and even the arches are wooden.  It was very interesting.  Then it was time to walk our last 2 km to the ship just in time for dinner--tonight was East Indian cuisine and really delicious (not too spicy).  We listened again to a string quartet, and that's all for today!

g'day!