I took the overnight bus to Wellington this week! Here's what it looked like from the inside:
The train station:
I arrived in Wellington at around 7:00 AM and decided to explore the botanical gardens while I waited for my parliament tour. I walked all the way from the rose garden up to the cable car station at the top of the hill, where I grabbed some much needed coffee and took in the view.
Next it was parliament time! A tour guide brought us through the parliament chambers and other important rooms on the government grounds. We weren't allowed to take pictures in the chambers, but I took some photos of the outside of the buildings. It was really cool to learn a bit about the New Zealand political system and the meaning of some of the elements in each room.
Here's a picture of what the chambers looked like inside. On the walls of the chamber are the names of important battles and wars, and the carpet is green because parliament is meant to represent the common people. There is another room reserved for when the sovereign visits, and this carpet is red to represent royalty.
Next, I walked along the waterfront and toured the New Zealand Portrait Gallery and the Wellington Museum. I found all sorts of weirdly wonderful things!
Waterfront:
Portrait Gallery:
Found this nice piece that really reminded me of McModern World!
The Wellington Museum was by far my favorite stop of the day:
Costumes from one of my favorite NZ-made movies, What We Do in the Shadows!
Dame Whina Cooper, one of the most important leaders in the Maori land rights movement. We learned about her in my Maori 130 course.
Some other odds and ends.
I grabbed early dinner at Mr.Go's. I ordered the thai salmon and kumara salad and it was DE-LICIOUS! Then it was back to the hostel to rest and read for the next morning.
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