Tuesday, 15 November

Wellington, NZ, Again 

Another day in Wellington, aka “The Windy City.” The Cook Strait, which separates the two islands of New Zealand, is one of the most dangerous crossings in the world. Winds can reach 110 miles per hour, without warning, as the Tasman Sea and the South Pacific Ocean merge their powers. Wellington Harbour and its many bays are protected from the most violent storms, but still experience a great deal of wind and rain. The harbor is only two meters deep and there is the ever-present danger of running aground. Once a ship leaves the harbor and enters the Cook Strait, the depth drops suddenly to over two hundred meters.

For this cruiser, however, Wellington has been neither windy or rainy. The sun has been shining and the temperatures in the upper 70s for the two days of my visit. When my readers get to Wellington, in a few more days, the photos will bask in the beautiful weather.

Both islands of New Zealand are of volcanic origin and subject to many earthquakes, especially in the past century. Both Christchurch, on the South Island, and Napier, on the North Island, have suffered catastrophes still alive in the memories of their inhabitants.

Sunday, 13 Nov 2022

Lyttleton and Christchurch, New Zealand

The epicenter of a terrible earthquake in 2011, Christchurch is still in the process of re-building. Large areas of the CBD still show the scars and craters left from the devastation. The Cathedral is still undergoing extensive renovation--even 12 years after the earthquake. The city has changed a great deal since I first visited in January 1993. New high-rise construction has replaced the old two-level shops and cottages. And the suburbs have expanded exponentially, each area becoming its own self-governing entity. Progress, above all.

The Westerdam sails into the harbor of Lyttleton, a very small town that offers nothing to the tourist. But it is the departure point for coaches to Christchurch and for shore excursion buses as well.

The original shore excursion I chose (and paid for)--an all-day trip by bus and train to Arthur's Seat, the highest point on the Transalpine Express that runs across the width of the South Island--has been abruptly cancelled without explanation. So I use some of that money to pay for a substitute, "A Town and Country Experience," that turns out to be more interesting than I expected.

The tour drives a scenic route from the port down to Banks Peninsula, skirting the Canterbury Bight coastline, before passing Lake Elsmere and other bucolic sights of the agriculturally diverse and rich Canterbury Plain. Before reaching the coast again, we turn into a private sheep station (aka "ranch"), the working home of a sheep rancher and his wife. The house is quite lovely, set against the lake waters on one side and the rising hills where the sheep feed on the other. The home has a lovely garden and private swimming pool.

But we tourists are here to learn about sheep raising, a staple of the New Zealand economy. The master leads us out to meet his troop of dogs (including one not-quite-trained puppy) and to demonstrate how they work with the sheep, at the command of his specialized whistle. The dogs are trained for special jobs; some control the sheep with their eyes and body posture, others use their loud barks.

The Puppy with His Bowl

Sheep Grazing on Steep Hillsides

Three Dogs Ready for Action
(The One on the Left Is a Barker; the Others Use Their Eyes and Bodies)

Dog Approaches Wandering Sheep and . . .

. . . Puts Them into Proper Order

After the sheep are gathered and guided down the hillside by the dogs, they willingly enter the shearing barn. The herd shearing takes place in February, but our host selects a "volunteer" to demonstrate the quick process today.

At the end of our visit to the sheep station, out hosts serve coffee, tea, and biscuits (cookies). The bus driver takes a different return route that gives his passengers a view of the new residential construction in the Christchurch suburbs and a brief view of the city CBD and the still work-in-progress on the Cathedral.

Local Tram Runs in Front of Cathedral Re-Construction and Memorial Flame

Another View of Cathedral Repairs

And Plenty of New Construction as Well

There is time for a late lunch back on the Westerdam, with my favorite Australian dessert, Lamington Cake

Then it's time for a nap after all the exertions of lunch. But I am ready at 5pm for a scenic leave-taking of Lyttleton and its turquoise

waters.

A few days prior to the start of the cruise in Sydney, passengers were informed that the Westerdam would skip the next scheduled port, Kaikoura, and head directly to Wellington, the national capital, where we will spend two days and the first overnight of the cruise.