Wellington

I am in the middle of autumn break. I recently returned from a week-long trip to the North Island to see Wellington and hike in Tongariro National Park.

Wellington is a gorgeous city, and if I had no ties to the US I might even move there! Wellington is New Zealand's capital city, on the southernmost tip of the North Island. Often compared to San Francisco, it is hilly and overlooks a bay.

There is a bird sanctuary within walking distance of Wellington. It is well preserved and has a giant fence that's partially underground to keep predators out (NZ has no native mammals.) It's like stepping into a completely different place. It feels like you're in the middle of a forest, not near the second-largest city of NZ. I saw plenty of beautiful birds and heard exotic calls. Definitely a treat.

This is right outside Wellington, though you'd never guess from the photo!

None of the bird pictures turned out, but his fellow actually posed for me

I also toured the capitol. It's popularly known as the Beehive, and it's a humble-looking building. It has a friendlier, small-government feel compared to some of the other mammoth capitols I've seen. Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to take pictures inside.

The Beehive

Parliament

After that, I walked around the botanical gardens, then toured the Carter Observatory to learn about space.

I also did a Lord of the Rings tour in Wellington. We went to several filming locations, and our guide forced us to do embarrassing reenactments. He would innocently ask us if we wanted a picture, then pull out the most ridiculous costumes after we had accepted. We all had a good laugh over our embarrassment as random people passed by. We also drove to "Rivendell", a park with more filming locations.

Oh no! A black rider!

 Let's keep this picture small

All said, I had a splendid time in Wellington. Though overlooked by most, it's a charming city.