A wander in Wellington

It hasn't been so much of a wander but rather a very long walk today! My Fitbit tells me that in just four hours we managed almost 9kms! There is so much to see so we headed down to the harbour first. Along the way......

 The pattern below on the left is in fact coffee pods (in the Nespresso store), and the image on the right a recharge station for electric cars.......

 and these are public conveniences..........amazing!.......

 This reminded us of our time in Devon especially the harbour of Dartmouth (it was a very special day with Helen and John and we will never forget it....... especially the steam train ride).........

 We have been amazed at the resilience of the locals to the freezing cold with many wearing thongs (flip flops for those in the US!) with the rest of us all rugged up..............

 We found these plaques very special........

 This was our morning coffee stop and we went later back for lunch....just love those floor tiles.........

 A fascinating addition joining floors via the windows.........

 and the arcade also has an animated musical clock that plays the wedding march as it opens on the hour........ 

  the sign says it all!!........

This was once a government building but is now the Victoria University..........

 I was stunned that it is entirely made of timber...........

 Standing proud on top of one of the streets signs we found the iconic New Zealand Buzzy Bee........

 A very thoughtful way of using graffiti to share a message........

 We spent quite a bit of time in the gothic inspired timber church - Old St Paul's that was built in 1866.......... 

 It is so reminiscent of the style of the Arts and Crafts movement - I am sure William Morris would have been impressed........

 As we headed back to the hotel we passed the other side of the Houses of Parliament 'bee hive' and were constantly reminded of the British heritage.......

 

We will head out for dinner on our own tonight (to celebrate Father's Day), as our dinner plans are not to be. Anne sent me a distress call a short while ago to say that Roger had 'chopped his finger off' with a circular saw and is now awaiting surgery. Just devastating for him and we hope that the surgeons are able to save his finger. So I will finish with a much brighter story and one that brought me to tears at the quilt fair. Angela is a member of Wellington quilters and she shared with me the story of making her Kelmscott quilt from the first William Morris Appliqué book. Her daughter Melissa chose this design to hang at her wedding to Paul that was held in a farm barn.........

 

 And the quilt now hangs on the wall of Melissa and Paul's home. Angela also sent me a photo of herself in front of the quilt hanging at the Wellington Quilt Exhibition and I think I see a blue ribbon on it too. She didn't tell me about that! Congratulations Angela and thankyou so much for sharing your story and photos........