Rest Day in Wellington
March 28th 2014
Distance cycled: 20 km
Total distance to date: 1703 km
Today I had a day off in Wellington. I took my time leaving Susan's house in Stokes Valley. At noon I finally rolled out of her driveway and started down the Hutt River Trail towards Lower Hutt to visit the Dowes Museum.
The Dowes was quite quaint and very quiet compared to Te Papa. They had a Jimi Hendrix piece called "Are You Experienced Yet?" which I liked since it reminded me of home (both Seattle and Berlin, for different reasons).
They also apparently have a robot that guards the local aquifer, but I couldn't find it.
The final 15km or so into the Wellington city center were uninspired, as the bike trail was sandwiched between the railway line and the highway. But it did provide views of the harbor.
I met Julie, my host for the evening, outside of Te Papa. We rode along the waterfront towards her place. It was an outstanding ride, flat until the very end when we had to climb a steep hill to get to her house about 100m up. The view from her house was fantastic!
And that was only from the street. Inside was even better. I'd never leave home if I lived in her house. On a clear day you can see the South Island! The drawback is that it is very, very windy up there. Wellington is apparently a very Windy City.
Julie's partner Thomas came home and we shared a home cooked meal of curry with roti bread and rice. I was delighted since I'd been craving Indian food all day. They had me show them my route through the North Island on a map which was a nice way to cap off my tour there. I am done with the whole island! I can hardly believe it. They are both avid mountain bikers and have done many of the same rides in the North Island as I have. They also did a 22-month tour through much of the world, including North and South America, Europe, and Asia. So inspiring!
posted by Kyla @ 02:29
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