BLOG POST 23
Next on our itinerary was the Wellington Botanical Gardens which is a 25 hectare garden. The entrance had a huge board with a map of the Wellington Botanic Garden, as well as paper maps.
It had many pathways, Pukatea Bushwalk specially was actually like a real bushwalk. We had a bizarre feeling of being in a dense forest but knowing we were in the middle of the city! In fact, we could hear calls of native birds that may have flown over from the nearby bird sanctuary of Zealandia
The major conifer species which we saw prominently were planted as part of a program to import plant species from other parts of the world and assess their economic potential to the new country. The very large specimens of Pinus radiata that now dominate the landscape were grown from the first seeds of species imported from California.
A special feature of the gardens are major seasonal floral displays, spectacular in spring, with a massed display of 30,000 tulips. There are several key attractions in the garden that visitors can experience such as glow worms in the Main Garden, public art throughout the garden, children’s play area, Botanic Garden Café located in the Lady Norwood Rose Garden and the Carter Observatory. The information centre was located in the spectacular Tree House and nearby there was a rock garden, an extensive fern collection and a camellia walk. There were extensive, well-maintained, walking paths throughout the garden. Wellington Botanic Garden is home to several organisations, including:
• Carter Observatory, the National Observatory of New Zealand
• Wellington Cable Car Museum
• Meteorological service of New Zealand
The Garden was first established in 1868. It was initially managed by the New Zealand, The Wellington City Council began managing the garden in 1891, developing various parts of the garden such as:
• Lady Norwood Rose Garden (1950)
• Begonia House (1960)
• Tree house Visitor Centre (1990) in conjunction with the World Wildlife Fund
The lantern in the Peace Garden contains a flame lit from the fires of the Hiroshima bombing, given by Japan in recognition of New Zealand's work against nuclear weapons
The stunning bushwalk took us over tiny footbridges surrounded by a colourful array of flowers and native ferns. The Rock Garden was indeed befitting its name very rocky, displaying mostly cacti.The tree house was a visitor centre with a few displays and placed very strategically
We passed a fernery and the Fragrant Garden which were filled with lovely and fragrant flowers.
As we were walking around, we had the constant clicking of cicadas in our ears. We saw the Duck Pond which was quite small but had small streams running in and out of it which gave it its quaint charm
ROSE GARDEN
Lady Norwood Rose Garden was situated near the Botanical Gardens, only a short walk or drive from downtown Wellington. We were lucky to catch the roses in full bloom .
There were 110 beds set out in a formal geometric design with columnades on three sides and the Begonia House as a backdrop which displayed tropical and temperate plants and a tropical conservatory with a seasonal display of orchids. Victoria amazonica, the giant water lily could be found here .
The flowering season starts in November and continues until the end of April. The gardens were named after Lady Norwood, whose husband is a former mayor of Wellington and who has donated generous large sums for the garden.
Each bed contained a different variety of rose, ranging from old favourites to recently released varieties. David Austin, patio and climbing roses were on show around the perimeter of the gardens. A trial garden on the western side monitors new varieties for three years before a decision is made on their inclusion in the gardens.
The roses are cared for using an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program which uses monitoring to determine pest and disease control, with low toxicity chemicals and natural predators such as ladybirds used.
In 2015, the Lady Norwood Rose Garden received the Garden of Excellence award from the World Federation Of Rose Societies.
RIDE IN THE CABLE CAR
We had our lunch and rested for some time and went out again for the cable ride, we almost missed the booking office which was very near our hotel, fortunately we spotted the miniature cable car on the pole at the entrance to the station and took two way tickets.
The Wellington cable car is a funicular railway which runs between Lambton Quay the main shopping street and the top Kelburn, a suburb in the hills overlooking the central city, rising 120 m (394 ft) over a length of 612 m (2,008 ft) and it is the most direct way to get from the top part of the garden to Wellington's Central Business District .
The one way trip takes approximately five minutes. The Wellington Cable Car is widely recognised as a symbol of Wellington and serves both the locals and the tourists
The line consists of 628 metres (2,060 ft) of mostly straight 1,000 mm gauge single track with pine sleepers. The only curves are at the passing loop in the middle, at Talavera station. Except for the lowest part the line rises at a constant grade of 1 in 5.06 (17.86%), through three tunnels and over three bridges.
The lower Terminus is in Cable Car Lane, off Lambton Quay. The upper terminus is next to the Wellington botanic garden at the city end of Upland Road, Kelburn's main street. There are three other equally-spaced stations—from Lambton Quay, they are Clifton, Talavera and Salamanca (also referred to as University), all named after nearby streets
Cable Car is used by slightly under a million people each year. In the mornings and evenings, it is used by commuters travelling between Kelburn and the city, at other times of the day, it is used by people travelling between the city and the Wellington Botanical Garden and by students attending Victoria University and living in nearby student hostels, and by many tourists, especially during summer.
The cable car was lovely and beautifully maintained .' We could get snaps of the city from the top lookout area, and good video of the cable-cars coming up from the internal viewing platform. The small tunnels en route have coloured lights in them which we found interesting Going up we sat at the very front to get the best pictures
The Cable Car Museum was just next door with free entry, so we went inside to have a look at what the Wellington Cable Car used to look like in the past .
We were stunned to see that people sat on the open outside seats and had nothing but a leather strap to hold onto. Downstairs in the museum was a slightly more sophisticated cable car where passengers can actually sit inside the vehicle. We also saw inner workings of the old wheel house, and read about the history of this beloved mode of public transport.
There was a souvenir shop which had an excellent selection of things at fair prices, from magnets to a small selection of quality locally made textiles and art, and usual postcards ,T shirts and pens.
At the top after a look at the museum and shop we spent time at the view point.
Fanned by the lovely breeze we spent a lot of time enjoying nice views of the city and harbor from the cafe at the top. One can either return on the cable car or walk back down through the Botanical gardens.
We could see that botanical gardens and winding hill paths of the Garden are a popular spot for Wellington residents. We saw people walking, jogging and taking children to the playground, and tourists enjoying going through the Garden'via the downhill path to the city.
WELLINGTON VIEW POINT
Rising 196m above the city, the Mount Victoria Lookout is a Wellington must-do. We headed upto the lookout after a tough maneuvering of the bus which our Megan very skilfully handled and were duly rewarded with stunning panoramic views of Wellington city and harbour, and beyond.
Located right next to the central business district, one can drive all the way up, or take a walkway through the bush-covered Town Belt.
At the top, we found a monument to U.S. Navy Admiral Byrd, the polar explorer.
We had to climb up few steps and could enjoy the 360 degree views of Tinakori Hill, the Hutt Valley and Eastern harbour bays, Matiu/Somes Island and the Miramar Peninsula. Beyond were Baring and Pencarrow Heads and further to the right, Wellington’s Southern suburbs and Mt Mathews, Wellington’s highest point to the East.
We saw some people enjoying their picnics on the hillside and relaxing while watching ferries and cruise ships sail into the harbour and planes fly in and out of the airport.
We were told that this was also one of the best spots in the city for seeing a sunrise or sunset. However, as to be expected in wellington, it was exceptionally windy, though the air was fresh and pristine.
The most interesting part of our day was our lunch, Tony had taken pains to find out an Indian restaurant which was a little distance from our hotel ,we could easily trace our way there .We saw an Indian name for the restaurant ,went in eager anticipation and found a non Indian owner sitting at the counter ,we ordered rice and chicken curries
Lo Behold! we were served by a six footer beautiful Russian girl ,so pretty and courteous ,she took care of us took a snap of us and finally we left the restaurant having eaten Indian food after a long time in a non Indian restaurant
Next on our itinerary was the Wellington Botanical Gardens which is a 25 hectare garden. The entrance had a huge board with a map of the Wellington Botanic Garden, as well as paper maps.
It had many pathways, Pukatea Bushwalk specially was actually like a real bushwalk. We had a bizarre feeling of being in a dense forest but knowing we were in the middle of the city! In fact, we could hear calls of native birds that may have flown over from the nearby bird sanctuary of Zealandia
The major conifer species which we saw prominently were planted as part of a program to import plant species from other parts of the world and assess their economic potential to the new country. The very large specimens of Pinus radiata that now dominate the landscape were grown from the first seeds of species imported from California.
A special feature of the gardens are major seasonal floral displays, spectacular in spring, with a massed display of 30,000 tulips. There are several key attractions in the garden that visitors can experience such as glow worms in the Main Garden, public art throughout the garden, children’s play area, Botanic Garden Café located in the Lady Norwood Rose Garden and the Carter Observatory. The information centre was located in the spectacular Tree House and nearby there was a rock garden, an extensive fern collection and a camellia walk. There were extensive, well-maintained, walking paths throughout the garden. Wellington Botanic Garden is home to several organisations, including:
• Carter Observatory, the National Observatory of New Zealand
• Wellington Cable Car Museum
• Meteorological service of New Zealand
The Garden was first established in 1868. It was initially managed by the New Zealand, The Wellington City Council began managing the garden in 1891, developing various parts of the garden such as:
• Lady Norwood Rose Garden (1950)
• Begonia House (1960)
• Tree house Visitor Centre (1990) in conjunction with the World Wildlife Fund
The lantern in the Peace Garden contains a flame lit from the fires of the Hiroshima bombing, given by Japan in recognition of New Zealand's work against nuclear weapons
The stunning bushwalk took us over tiny footbridges surrounded by a colourful array of flowers and native ferns. The Rock Garden was indeed befitting its name very rocky, displaying mostly cacti.The tree house was a visitor centre with a few displays and placed very strategically
We passed a fernery and the Fragrant Garden which were filled with lovely and fragrant flowers.
As we were walking around, we had the constant clicking of cicadas in our ears. We saw the Duck Pond which was quite small but had small streams running in and out of it which gave it its quaint charm
ROSE GARDEN
Lady Norwood Rose Garden was situated near the Botanical Gardens, only a short walk or drive from downtown Wellington. We were lucky to catch the roses in full bloom .
Each bed contained a different variety of rose, ranging from old favourites to recently released varieties. David Austin, patio and climbing roses were on show around the perimeter of the gardens. A trial garden on the western side monitors new varieties for three years before a decision is made on their inclusion in the gardens.
The roses are cared for using an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program which uses monitoring to determine pest and disease control, with low toxicity chemicals and natural predators such as ladybirds used.
In 2015, the Lady Norwood Rose Garden received the Garden of Excellence award from the World Federation Of Rose Societies.
RIDE IN THE CABLE CAR
We had our lunch and rested for some time and went out again for the cable ride, we almost missed the booking office which was very near our hotel, fortunately we spotted the miniature cable car on the pole at the entrance to the station and took two way tickets.
The Wellington cable car is a funicular railway which runs between Lambton Quay the main shopping street and the top Kelburn, a suburb in the hills overlooking the central city, rising 120 m (394 ft) over a length of 612 m (2,008 ft) and it is the most direct way to get from the top part of the garden to Wellington's Central Business District .
The one way trip takes approximately five minutes. The Wellington Cable Car is widely recognised as a symbol of Wellington and serves both the locals and the tourists
The line consists of 628 metres (2,060 ft) of mostly straight 1,000 mm gauge single track with pine sleepers. The only curves are at the passing loop in the middle, at Talavera station. Except for the lowest part the line rises at a constant grade of 1 in 5.06 (17.86%), through three tunnels and over three bridges.
Cable Car is used by slightly under a million people each year. In the mornings and evenings, it is used by commuters travelling between Kelburn and the city, at other times of the day, it is used by people travelling between the city and the Wellington Botanical Garden and by students attending Victoria University and living in nearby student hostels, and by many tourists, especially during summer.
The cable car was lovely and beautifully maintained .' We could get snaps of the city from the top lookout area, and good video of the cable-cars coming up from the internal viewing platform. The small tunnels en route have coloured lights in them which we found interesting Going up we sat at the very front to get the best pictures
We were stunned to see that people sat on the open outside seats and had nothing but a leather strap to hold onto. Downstairs in the museum was a slightly more sophisticated cable car where passengers can actually sit inside the vehicle. We also saw inner workings of the old wheel house, and read about the history of this beloved mode of public transport.
At the top after a look at the museum and shop we spent time at the view point.
WELLINGTON VIEW POINT
Rising 196m above the city, the Mount Victoria Lookout is a Wellington must-do. We headed upto the lookout after a tough maneuvering of the bus which our Megan very skilfully handled and were duly rewarded with stunning panoramic views of Wellington city and harbour, and beyond.
Located right next to the central business district, one can drive all the way up, or take a walkway through the bush-covered Town Belt.
At the top, we found a monument to U.S. Navy Admiral Byrd, the polar explorer.
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