Day 15 & 16: Wellington

I decided not to go to the All Blacks Hotel last night, it felt a little stalkerish!! In the end I popped next door to the small supermarket and had a nice hotel picnic and an early night, I’m so Hard Core..Not 😂

I had a quiet and leisurely morning, wandered down to the waterfront stopped for coffee and yet another Cheese Scone!! (Slightly obsessed 😋) then I met up with the lovely Angela and Brendan, Corys Dad and Step Mum. They very kindly came and picked me up from the city centre then we headed out around the Coast to Island Bay which is where they live. It was amazing, the coast is very beautiful and then as you come round the bend there before you across the sea are the snow capped Mountains of South Island!! It was stunning. I had no idea you could see the South Island from Wellington. We stopped and had a yummy brunch in a fab place by the beach called The Beach House. Then Angela and Brendan showed me their stunning home. Well I thought I had a pretty good view from my apartment, but the view from their house is awesome, between the hills across the sea and South Island!! The whole area of Island Bay is fab, definitely somewhere I could live! 😁

After lunch Brendan had to head out to meet friends to prepare for the match! So Angela took me up to the lookout at the top of Mount Victoria which has gorgeous views across Wellington and out through the mountains. It was a little cloudy, which just made it feel more atmospheric. Such a fabulous Day, thank you Angela and Brendan, you stars!!

After this I went back to the hotel to make my own preparations for the Match! My preparations involved putting on a warm jumper, grabbing my new All Black Scarf and flag and heading to the pub for a couple of pre match JD’s! The pub was packed with people having drinks and food before the game, the atmosphere was great, friendly and lively. I did feel a little odd as I was the only person in their own, I was also the only one not wearing black I had on a rather conspicuous Red Jacket! but hey ho! 😁 I headed to the stadium a little early as I’d never been before and wanted to get my bearings. I simply followed the crowds. It was a pretty short walk and a very simple process to get in. I found my seat which was almost as high up as you could get!! But the view!! Wow!! I was so excited to be there. My first ever live rugby match and it’s watching the All Blacks v Springboks in New Zealand, it doesn’t get better than that!! Whilst I was supporting the All Blacks a part of me was secretly  cheering on the Springboks, Clint would have loved this.

The stadium seemed pretty empty for a while and then about 10 mins before kick off it was full! The All Blacks and Rugby is almost like a religion here, they also had a couple of local Wellington lads playing so the crowds where buzzing!

Watching the Haka live was absolutely bloody brilliant!

I ended up sitting next to a very prim and proper young woman who was drinking her Lemon, honey and ginger tea, I was on the bourbon! She was lovely but quite reserved, that is until the loud party group sat on the other side of her offered her a bourbon! Then she was well away!! 😂

The match was great, the Springboks definitely played better in the first half, then in the 2nd half the All Blacks were great and were on for the win until 2 mins before the final whistle when the Springboks scored a Try and converted it!! This meant it was a draw, a fair score in my opinion but I think this opinion was a minority one! 😂 A really amazing experience for me, I bloody loved it.

I headed back to the hotel on a bit of a high, stopped for a quick drink in the hotel bar and then bed. A ripper of a day! 😍🏉😍

Today I have moved out of my hotel and back to the YHA. I had a wander around an area called Cuba Street, which is full of great food places, shops and charity/vintage shops, it was nice but I think it might be better tomorrow when everything is open.  So I headed back to the waterfront and went to the Te Papa Museum. I wasn’t sure what to expect but it was fantastic.

The Museum is very interesting and has lots of exhibitions, ones about the natural world,  volcanoes and earthquakes, lost species. The story of Light and Shadow, the land the people and stories of Rongowhakaata. Art exhibits and photography exhibitions, but the one I found the most powerful was Called ‘Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War’ which has been put on by the museum in conjunction with Weta Workshops, Weta are a special effects company founded by Peter Jackson they did the special effects for Lord of the Rings,  The Hobbit and Avatar among others. The exhibition is unbelievable, it tells the story of Gallipoli through the eyes of 8 ordinary New Zealander’s who found themselves in extraordinary circumstances. The displays and models made by Weta are staggering, they are on a huge scale at least 3 times larger than life but so incredibly detailed they look completely real. I found the exhibition very informative and deeply moving. When I came out a sat with another lady who was also very moved, we sat together in contemplation until we were calm and composed.

Tonight I am staying in, having another Hotel/hostel picnic and getting an early night. I feel a little tired today! Far to much excitement me thinks! 😂

Kia Ora Gorgeous ones. ❤️❤️❤️

Author: hereandthereclaire

Hi, my name is Claire and I am 60 years young, welcome to my blog. I am new to the whole travel and blog writing world, so no judging! I recently made some big life changes, leaving my job in education and moving myself and my younger children to Newquay in Cornwall, I then started a business with some fantastic friends #coffeeonthecornernewquay. And now I am about to embark on my first big travel adventure...I would love to share this with you. Since starting this blog in 2018 I have made more changes, and now in 2024 I will be traveling full time for the next year! Please join me in sharing my Big Adventure! ❤️ View all posts by hereandthereclaire