December 8th (Sun)
Today, I plan to spend entire day walking around Wellington. Perhaps it is Sunday, there were no people visible from my hotel room, and a strong wind was blowing making the temperature feel like Tokyo’s winter, around 10°C.

Initially, I rode the renowned cable car in Wellington. I purchased round-trip tickets for NZ$12 at the ticket office and boarded the red cable car.

Arrived at the terminal station at the top.

The view from here is amazing, with a panoramic view of Wellington Bay and the city. In the foreground are large ferns, typical of New Zealand.

A short walk away was Space Place, a space-themed museum that also offered planetarium screenings. However the first screening was for preschool children, and I did not have time to wait for the next screening. Therefore, I paid NZ$11 and explored the museum.

The exhibits are designed to be easy for children to understand, but adults can enjoy them too.

There is a cable car museum near the top station that visitors can access free of charge. The Wellington Cable Car a long history, having been in operation since 1889. Inside, there are exhibits showcasing past vehicles.

There were no windows on the sides of the car, and the seats were arranged in tiered rows. This red cable car was in from the 1950s to late 1970s.

A vehicle used in the early 1900s.

At lunchtime, I searched for a dim sum on Google Maps, but it was not at the indicated location. Perhaps the information was outdated. Consequently, wandered around and discovered a Japanese restaurant named “Arashi”. I seen many Japanese restaurants in Auckland and Wellington, such as sushi establishments. Among Japanese restaurants overseas, there are some that serve imitation Japanese food., I entered cautiously.

When I looked into the kitchen, saw a chef who appeared to be Japanese, so ordered a chicken teraki set meal with confidence. taste was to what I in Japan, allowing me to relax

I got tired from walking, so I took a bus back to Wellington Station, but only a special card was accepted, and when I told the driver I was going to Wellington Station, he gave me a free ride. I was grateful for his kindness. Near the station is a former government building, which seems to be used as part of a school now.

After I entered through the entrance and took some photos of the calm atmosphere inside, a security guard came and told me to leave because it was currently closed, so I had no choice but to leave.

I entered through the entrance on the left side of the building, and the whole thing is quite a large building.

Crossing the road, I could see the circular building containing the Prime Minister’s office, connected by a walkway to the National Diet Building. The Prime Minister’s office is on the fifth floor of the circular building, and there is apparently a shelter in the basement for use in emergencies.

The Maori totem pole performing the haka at the entrance to the Parliament Building is charming. I heard was a complimentary guided tour, so I joined it. After passing through security at the entrance, I left my large bag and SLR camera in the cloakroom. For some reason, they allowed the use of smartphones for photography inside, so the photos were taken with a smartphone.

This room is where ceremonies such as the appointment of the Prime Minister are held.

In the parliamentary chamber, the Prime Minister sits in the fourth seat from the back on the left side. The New Zealand Parliament is unicameral and has a fixed number of 123 members, making it a compact chamber compared to Japan. New Zealand was also the first country in the world to grant women the right to vote, granting them the right to vote in 1893 and the right to be elected in 1919.

The library in Parliament.

The woman standing and giving a talk at the press conference venue acted as our tour guide.

Next we went to St Paul’s Cathedral, located next to Wellington.

A choir was practicing in the back, and I spent some time listening to their beautiful voices.

During my walk, encountered the Wellington Memorial.

Since there were few restaurants open on Sunday, I had dinner at the hotel. I ordered a wine from Martinborough, a famous winery nearby. It was a very delicious wine with a fruity and refreshing taste.

To begin with, I ordered two varieties oysters.

The menu said it was a sustainably sourced fish dish, I think it was pan-fried sea bass.

This dish was made by roasting pork with its skin on, and went perfectly with the slightly sweet sauce containing star anise, making it a very delicious dish.

After walking a long distance in strong winds, I took a relaxing bath to prepare for the next day.

December 9th (Mon)
Today, I participated in a local ZOZO Travel tour to visit three wineries Martinborough. I departed from the hotel by coach at 9:30 AM and was joined by a group of four British men and two British couples on the journey Martinborough mountain roads.

The Remutaka Crossing Memorial, at the top of the pass, commemorates the 60,000 New Zealand soldiers who crossed between the military camp at Featherston and the Hutt Valley between 1915 and 1919. The memorial was opened to the public in 2015.

The first winery in Martinborough is called Poppies.

We tasted five types of wine here: Rose, Semillon, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, and Riesling. This winery makes wine in the French Burgundy style, and all five wines were delicious.

The vineyards in front of the winery

Next we headed to a winery called MOY HALL.

Take a seat and start with a tasting of rose and sauvignon blanc

Next we sampled the Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir.

It was now lunchtime, and I savored the Pinot Gris white wine that I had tasted earlier with my meal.

Every winery is located close to the vineyards.

The last place I visited was Palliser Estate, where I sampled five types of wine. The wines from this winery seem to suit my best. I was pleasantly surprised discover that the Sauvignon Blanc I had at the hotel restaurant yesterday was produced here. It was evident that they use organically grown grapes.

At Palliser Estate, you get a 10% discount on the selling price of the bottle if you sample it, so I bought a Pinot Gris white wine here and had it with some prepared food I bought at a supermarket near the hotel for dinner tonight. The hotel restaurant served the wine for a little over 2.5 times the selling price, so it felt like a good deal.

December 10th (Tue)
I departed for Sydney on QF162, which left Wellington Airport at6:00. However, the hotel front informed me that it was acceptable to leave the hotel at :00, as the airport only opens at 4:30, which have experienced many times. I arrived the airport before 4:00, believing that it should normally open two hours prior indeed, the check counter was open at 4:00 as expected. I am unsure why the front desk staff misunderstood this information.
I arrived at Sydney Airport at 7:45 AM, and due to the two-hour time difference, the flight duration was three hours and 45 minutes. After a respite in the Qantas Lounge I boarded flight JL52 to Haneda, departed at 915 AM. While flying over the Gold Coast, I observed an unusually shaped island.

When I went to the bar counter on the plane, I found Sky Gallery, which is a website provided by Canon. I had known about it for a while, but this was the first time I had really looked at it. It was very relaxing.

This time, I traveled around the North Island New Zealand, and the food wine were, making it very satisfying trip. Additionally, the journey on the Northern Explorer was delightful. Although it was early summer in the Southern Hemisphere, the temperature was not much different from when I departed from Tokyo, making it easy to dress appropriately. This was my last trip in 2024, but 12 trips year have been enjoyable I will continue traveling next year and look forward to new experiences.