Wellington Bucket Fountain

 

 

Visitors to Wellington need to take time to see the Bucket Fountain.  It's been there as long as I can remember (ie a long time) and is one of the iconic (if somewhat kitsch) sculptures in the city.

 

It was apparently installed in Cuba Mall in 1969.  There are a variety of buckets which tip over when full and cascade down – not always into another bucket.

 

Part of the fun is that passers-by can get splashed particularly on windy days – and Wellinton has quite a few of those!  So as not to get offside with friends in Wellington I need to say that no city is as beautiful as Wellington on a fine day.

 

In 2016 one of the larger yellow buckets was stolen over night.  Disaster.  The Council appealed for its return and it was – anonymously and now painted a psychedelic pattern.  The Council, having a bout of good humour, said it was an improvement and re-installed it.

Mount Eden

 

Mount Eden is now an expensive suburb in Auckland.  When I was a kid it was full of big old houses converted into flats.  Students lived there.  Not very gentrified at all.

 

The suburb is only 4 kilometres from the CBD so is very central.  Not that much happens in the CBD in these Covid times.

 

The suburb and mountain are named after George Eden who was the first Earl of Auckland.  The city was also named after this Englishman.  I don't think he ever came to New Zealand – but I could be wrong.

 

Mount Eden is a dormant volcano which is the highest natural point on the Auckland Isthmus.

 

There is still a remand prison in Mt Eden.

 

Eden Park, the rugby stadium , Fortress New Zealand sits on the edge of the suburb.

 

The Auckland residence of the Governor-General, currently Dame Cindy Kiro, is also in Mount Eden.

Karangahake Gorge

 
 

The common pronunciation for this gorge is car+rang+a+ha+kay (not correct te reo).

 

So where do you find it – it's on the route between Auckland and Tauranga.  A spectacular piece of road. It is at the southern end of the Coromandel peninsula and is between the Coromandel and Kaimai ranges.

 

You can do a range of bush walks in the Karangahake.  But just driving through it is fab.

 

One Tree Hill or Maungakiekie

 
 

Auckland has a number of volcanoes (called maunga in te reo).  Two of the most popular are Mt Eden and the one closest to us, One Tree Hill or Maungakiekie.

 

One Tree Hill was the inspiration for a U2 hit of the same name – written in memory of a Kiwi roadie for the band.

 

The mountain erupted over 65000 years ago.  It is part of the One Tree Hill Domain owned by the Council and is adjacent to Cornwall Park (managed by a Trust Board).

 

There is an obelisk on the top of the mountain and also the grave of John Logan Campbell.  There also used to be a tree – a pine – which was atacked in 1994 and again in 2000 – by Maori activists.  The tree was removed.  After much consultation a number of young native trees – pohutukawa and totara – were planted in 2016.  It is yet to be seen which will be the best.

 

 

You used to be able to drive up to the summit but now have to walk from about half way.  An exception is made for people with limited mobility who can ask for the access code to the gate.

 

Spectacular views in all directions will reward your effort in summitting.

Eden Garden

 
 

Today's bit of Kiwiana for you is about Eden Garden (not the Garden of Eden).  You'll find this garden in the Auckland suburb of Mount Eden.

 

It is set in 2 hectares (c 5 acres) of former quarry land.  It was set up in 1964.  There is an admission fee – currently NZ$12 for an adult.  Children under 12 are free.

 

After looking round the garden, you could have tea or coffee at the café – or even a glass of wine.  If you book a high tea, the entrance fee is included.

 

It is run by a not for profit, The Eden Garden Society.

Bridge to Nowhere

  

New Zealand has its very own Bridge to Nowhere.  You'll find it in the North Island near Whanganui.  It is a concrete road bridge spanning a stream.  No roads are connected to it at either end.

 

It was built in the mid 30's with the intention of providing access to areas that could then be settled.  Despite the good intentions the land proved too remote and unsuitable for farming.

 

You can access this bridge by boat or by hiking.

Waitomo Caves

 
 

Just a 2 hour or so drive south of Auckland you will find the Waitomo district.  It is most famous for its glowworm caves.  You'll not only see the glowworms but also stalactites and stalagmites. (As an aside I remember which hang down and which grow up by saying tights come down and mites grow up)

 

There are easy tours of the caves in boats which I remember visiting as a youngster.  For adrenaline junkies you can do more extreme sports including black water rafting, caving and abseiling.

 

Waitomo is a combination of 2 Maori words – wai for water and tomo for hole or shaft.

 

The caves were operated by private hotel businesses until 1989 when they were returned to the original iwi that owned them.

Hobbiton

 
 

Ok, first an admission.  I haven't been to Hobbiton.  But I do know that many Lord of the Rings and Hobbit fans have made the trek to Matamata which is where the hobbit homes were filmed.

 

It has now been turned into a visitor attraction – I imagine it is not very busy given we are not having international visitors for the forseeable future.  It is about a 2 hour drive south from central Auckland.

 

So, well done Peter Jackson for choosing such iconic landscape.

Auckland Harbour Bridge

 

The original Harbour Bridge was a 4 lane affair – finished in the late 50's.  In the late 60's 2 more lanes were clipped on each side – known politically incorrectly as the Nippon clip-ons.

 

Before there was a bridge people from the North Shore used ferries to reach the city.

 

For many years you had to pay a toll to cross – a hugely inefficient way to fund it.  When I was at university there was a lot of fun to be had during capping week to bike over the bridge and offer a big note or otherwise lots of 5 cents pieces.

 

For many years nothing separated the lanes of traffic – which could be scary – some clever Kiwis then designed a mobile barrier that could both separate the traffic and increase the number of lanes available at rush hour.

 

There will need to be an additional harbour crossing in the next few years – I personally hope for a tunnel (including for rail) but who knows.

Cape Reinga

 

You can't go much further north in New Zealand than Cape Reinga.  It is more than 100k's north of the nearest small town Kaitaia.  It is the point at which the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea meet.

 

In Maori culture this Cape is where spirits depart for the underworld.  They leap off the cliff, climb down the roots of a pohutukawa tree and on down to the underworld – the ancestral home of Hawaiki.

 

There is now a sealed road all the way to the Cape.

Sky Tower

 

 

The Sky Tower is only 20 or so years old.  It was built as part of Auckland's one and only casino.  It is the tallest freestanding structure in the Southern Hemisphere.  I remember when it was being built and people living out West of the city used to swear that it was not straight…

 

There is a revolving restaurant – which I have only been to once.  Not really my thing.

 

They also run a sort of bungee jump off the observation deck – I won't be doing that any time soon!

 

The tower is designed to sway up to 1 metre sideways in high winds… and to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake.

 

The tower is lit up at night by LED lights which change colours for the occasion.  

It is now an inescapable part of the city's skyline.

 

Ladies' Bay

 

 

Ladies' Bay is a small inner city beach in Auckland which is nevertheless isolated by steep access.  As kids we used to climb down the cliffs to try to watch the nudists that were said to go swimming there.  At that time it was all pretty tame – not like Gentleman's' Bay round the Achilles Point corner which was more of a gay hang out.

Of course those were the days when groups of kids were free to roam around so long as they came home for tea.

They've built a fancy new wide walkway down to the beach from the top of the cliff – this may have had the result of making this beach less secluded.