Fenced in

Today was my last full day in Wellington, so I decided to take a trip out to their little zoo. I thought I should at least attempt to see a Kangaroo while I'm over on this side of the world. Although, according to one person, if I had just stayed outside of Sydney a bit, they'd likely have been hopping around in the wild for me to see in their natural habitat. I told them that "outside of Sydney" also has all of the poisionous snakes and spiders...so a zoo works just fine for me at this point.









The zoo was fine, but seemed a bit...sad. So many of the animals are in smaller cages or high fenced-in areas. Many of the them seemed bored and, although I got a lot more shots of animals (including a few sad-looking kangaroos) through cages, I just didn't feel like posting them.

Between the overcast day and witnessing a large monkey swing wildly from a rope, release....and slam headfirst into a metal shed (insert image of cartoon birds twirling around his stunned furry cranium), I didn't feel like hanging out much longer, so I headed back to the hotel.

I realize that the animals can't all just run amok (I've seen "Jurassic Park"), but if they've got to be penned up, it's nicer to see a larger venue or reserve where they have more space to roam and exist, with less chance of having some stupid teenagers throwing sticks at them to get their attention (That happened while I was looking at the lions. It took all of my willpower not to "accidently" throw the older two teen boys over into the cage with the very animals that they were trying to "rustle up").

I hear there is a much nicer zoo in Auckland, so I may try to see that while I'm there.

The rest of the day was spent walking around the city one last time, then over to Scotty and Mal's bar tonight for a couple drinks and goodbyes. Although it kept threatening to rain throughout the day, it was still nice to take one last stroll before flying off to Auckland tomorrow morning.

Along the way, I found some fun signs that I thought you might enjoy....


It didn't really entice me to come in for a snack...


I wonder if employees are ever allowed to wear skirts....


I thought I smelled gin and regret....


I'd like to buy an "i", Alex.


Well....Mr. You're Welcome!


Thankfully those haven't hit the states....yet.

That shirt says "ass"...

(Insert Beevis and Butthead laugh here)

Blame it on the rain

Oh balls....rain.

Well, I woke up to the sound of rain outside my window this morning. Generally, I really enjoy it. However, it kind of kills the sightseeing motivation at that point. However, I have an umbrella (a new one I got in Queenstown that replaced the old, tattered one from Christchurch), so I headed out to the internet cafe, then to the gym, then wandered around the streets a bit to see what the wet kids were up to.



I guess that even the Scots don't mind a wee bit o' rain, when the bagpipe rhythm gets'em. I heard the familiar bleeting sound when I was at the internet cafe and, when I finished, I came out to find this man, under a huge umbrella, just squeezing to his hearts content. The bagpipe is not a soothing instrument, by any means. But, I give him credit for dragging his pipes out in this weather to entertain everyone.

After going to the gym and wandering around a few stores, I decided to head back into the Wellington Museum of Air and Sea. I was told that I had missed one of the best presentations during my last visit a couple of days ago.



They were actually right.

There is a holographic presentation about how the harbour came into being, as told my a Kiwi woman in a nice white dress. It was actually really cool to watch...not the kind of technology you'd expect in a small museum like this. She just walks out onto this small stage, clear and three dimensional as can be, and starts talking to the audience.You'll have to forgive my unclear pictures of her. She moves and talks throughout the presentation and, since she's a tiny hologram...you can't really ask her to sit still for one cotton-pickin' moment while you snap a quick shot.





She tells this whole story about how the sea or river (I was too busy trying to get a good picture to get the whole story) decided to make its way through the land or something. Blah, Blah, blah....could the transparent woman JUST sit still for one second?

Is that too much to ask?!

There were lots of colorful holographic visuals going on in the little porthole to her right....kind of like the Guardian of Forever from "Star Trek", but without Joan Collins. There is a whole story about a mythical sea phenomenon or creature that ended up making the harbor or flowing into the harbor...or harbored a grudge....who knows? I just liked the pretty visuals.





Then she told another story about how some native boy tricked his magic granny into giving him fire, which she would do by removing one of her fingernails. And, as all kids do...he just kept putting the fire out in a stream so that he could see what would happen if he got her down to her last fingernail/flame.



Well, she got pissed (and not "drunk", which is what it means here in New Zealand) and set the whole area on fire...he turned into a bird or something and flew into the trees...and that's why the natives rub sticks together to make fire.

Or something like that...

I'd already sat through the thing three times in a feeble attempt to get just ONE good shot of the lady in white, but no....it wasn't going to happen.

Honestly, if she had just ONCE, during any of my three viewings, bent down and said "Help us, Obi Wan, you're our only hope!". I would have been happy.

But no....she just walked past the wee furniture, blew out her candle and disappeared behind a lamp.

I'm getting tired of women just disappearing before I can get a good photo of them....

Perception

Today was kind of overcast and windy, so I put on my fanciest outfit, unleased my traveling companion, Rusty, and we went out and caught up on regular stuff...got some food, went to the gym, answered emails and such. It's cheaper for me to go into town to use the internet (it's $3/hour, rather than $6/hour at the hotel), so it's worth the walk.

I took a little nap, then headed over to Scotty and Mal's bar and hung out there for the evening.



I talked to a lot of different people throughout the night. The guy on the right lives in Florida, but will be moving here next month to work at a restaurant with the gal in the center...so he's very excited and looking forward to the change. The guy on the left is one of the bartenders, also very nice.

I have found, over many conversations the past month or so, that America is often perceived as a very dangerous place to live and visit. People always mention "There are so many shootings and so much violent crime...what is it like to live around that?". I tell them that it's not like we live in a military zone or anything, but that some of the bigger cities do have different levels of shootings and crime. It all depends on where you live.



The door guy from the bar is from Fiji and his father lives and works as a lawyer in Sacramento. He's a really nice/friendly guy, but softspoken and humble. I asked him if he ever got over to California to visit his dad. He said "Not yet, but I really want to go to America one day, but it is so dangerous...I don't want to be shot.". I responded with the usual "Well, you'll probably be just fine. Sacramento is a pretty safe place, for California anyway.". Then he told me about his younger cousin who went to visit his father in Sacramento (their fathers are friends) a couple of years ago. It was his first visit to the states also and he was looking forward to seeing what it was like there. A couple days after arriving, his cousin went out to do some clothes shopping. As he was walking along the sidewalk looking at stores, he was shot in a random driveby, once in the head and once in the chest.

Dead.

In Sacramento.

Awful.

Another girl from Wellington said she was visiting Colorado a year ago and was stuck waiting for a bus with a friend. The news was on TV above them and she said it was just one violent story after another...shootings, assaults, crime. She turned to her friend and said "Do we have to watch this?" and went to wait away from the screen.

The girl next to her said "I visited Los Angeles once...I felt very uncomfortable in that city most of the time. It really made me appreciate where I live."

A little later, a guy asked me if I was from Canada. I said, "No, I'm visiting from Los Angeles." and before I could say anythng else, another guy from behind me said to his friend "Good call mate...the Canadians HATE to be mistaken for Americans...it's always safer to ask if someone is from Canada first!"

I have heard that exact statment from someone in every city that I've visited on this trip.

Our country really needs an extreme makeover....and quick.

A precious day

As some of you know, I was interviewing for a possible job with WETA Studios here in Wellington (It’s Peter “Lord of the Rings” Jackson’s production studio) right before I started this trip. I had randomly sent them an email and it turned out they were hiring for a Marketing Manager for their two Web sites. I submitted a resume and cover letter and made it to the “final” stage, then did a phone interview before leaving. I found out, while in Sydney that, although I was one of the final two, I didn’t get the job.



Honestly, I was surprised to make it as far as I did and, as they said, it was less risky (financially and as a company) to hire someone local at this time. But, they were really nice about it and we arranged to meet for lunch today, which was great. I wasn’t able to get a full studio tour (they are working on many highly confidential projects), but I did get a little tour and spent the next hour or so just catching up with my interviewer. He is a really nice guy and has been working here for about three months. He commutes here, away from his family, from Auckland each Tuesday, and then flies back on Friday nights. That is how much he wanted to work in this fun/creative environment. Although this particular job is already taken…who knows what could happen in the future. Anything is possible…



With the help of a local girl and a bus driver, I was able to get back into the city and go to the Wellington Botanic Gardens. You take a cable car up a big hill to the gardens and the amazing view over the city. It was a beautiful day and I walked around for a couple of hours, just looking at the various gardens and enjoying the peaceful surroundings.







And, as much as I don’t enjoy most bugs, I saw this really colorful caterpillar on a branch and, next to it, was this unusual pod that looked like it was lit from within.



Not sure what it was, but it was really interesting and it didn't jump on me, so that's always appreciated.



I walked back to the hotel and took a little siesta, then headed a couple blocks away to see a one woman show “Marilyn Forever Blonde”. I’m not a particularly big Marilyn Monroe fan, but I know who she was and I had heard that the play was good…so I decided to go. It turned out to be a very good show and gave me a lot of interesting background information on Marilyn that I didn’t really know. But, what made the show worth it, was Ruth.

About 5 minutes before the show started, this very short woman, around 75-80 years old, walked over and took the seat next to me. She sat down with her little plastic cup of red wine and immediately began chatting with me. She, like me, had decided to see the show at the last minute and had cancelled her plans with other friends to see this because they all told her it was good.

At intermission, we chatted a bit about how she had moved from Ireland to New Zealand 54 years ago to marry her “True Blue Kiwi” husband. She also told me, on numerous occasions, how she felt that everyone who lived in Wellington is “privileged” to live in such a lovely city and country. She was very witty and self-deprecating and, when I told her I was a writer, she smiled and said “Oh, you’re creative and handsome.” She said that she hoped I got a job here because this city has so much culture and really could use more creative people. She also made a comment about how she had not noticed all of the lovely white and red feather boas that were covering the stairwells and draped around various areas. I told her she should get one and she laughed and agreed that it might look nice on her. I was going to try to buy one from the people in the lobby as we were leaving, but they were too busy.



After the show ended, we walked down to the lobby together. I told her how nice it was to meet her and that I was glad she was sitting next to me during the show. She said she felt the same thing and said “Well, if you leave us here in New Zealand, I do hope you’ll come back and tell friends to come too. We really are privileged to live here and we are always happy to welcome visitors”.

I reached down and hugged her goodbye and she said “Oh…why thank you. It was so nice to meet you too…AND you smell good”. Then she wished me a good night and rest of my trip, waved over her shoulder and walked out the front door. As the door closed behind her, I decided that I wanted to get a picture of her and rushed out….but she was gone. There was no local parking garage, no waiting taxis or place she could have gone in those three seconds…

She just disappeared.

It was really weird and as I walked back to my hotel, I actually felt a strong sense of sadness. My first thought was that it felt like she was sent to sit with me tonight, for some reason. It is the middle of my trip and I have been feeling a bit lonely lately and missing my friends and family, so it kind of hit me after she disappeared. Maybe it was also that she reminded me of Frank a little and, in some way, it was like he was around me too tonight.

Sometimes strangers come into your life for very short periods of time…maybe even only for a minute, but they end up playing some kind of significant part in your day or life. Maybe it’s just someone who gives you directions, when you’re lost…or helps you with a car problem, when you’re stranded…or just makes eye contact with you and smiles, when you’re having a particularly difficult day.

They’re there…and they’re gone…and you may never see them again.

But, they make a difference.

Whatever it was tonight for me, it felt nice and lifted my spirits after a while.

So, thank you Ruth…wherever you are.

You made a difference.

Come Te Papa

As I continue my journey. I’ve tried to infuse some kind of culture from each city into my trip. Which usually means, go to the local museums. It’s a great way to find out about the city or country you’re visiting and, for me, it’s another chance to see if, like all other countries, they have creepy dolls or babies on display.



So, I left the hotel and headed to the Te Papa museum, again…because everyone said “You have to go to Te Papa!”. Since it was only a couple blocks away from my hotel, I really didn’t have much of an excuse not to. I took a picture of the statue (above) because it is the first/last thing I see when I enter/exit the hotel. I should really learn who she is, but I just think it’s a cool statue…hence…the picture.



The museum is massive (6 floors) and there is a lot to see and interact with (thankfully no large bug museum). There is a lot of information on the origins of New Zealand, with lots of native artifacts and “press this button” chances to hear people talk about it.



As enjoyable and informative as it all is, I lose interest really quickly and mainly just wander around and look for things that catch my attention or that I think are interesting.


Like this real woman.

When I got to the first floor of the museum, I saw this woman reading the newspaper, with the dog in her lap. Just sitting there…not engrossed in the history and splendor that is the museum….just reading the paper, like she was at home waiting for the kettle to boil so she could make her tea.





Of course, I spent the next two hours wandering around and taking in as much information as my limited brain-space could handle. New Zealand really is, compared to most countries, a new country. So, it was interesting to hear about how they first started and what they went through to get to be the country that they are today. That’s all interesting….





But, really…when you see a display called the “Queen of Wool”…you have to at least take a look. Since sheep were such a big commodity here in New Zealand, it was only a matter of time before someone was able to capitalize on it….and, evidently, Mary-Annette Hay was just the gal. Although, I’m not sure how comfortable a wool wedding dress would be, it looks nice and, at the end of the day, people only care how it looks. Comfort is negotiable.





There was a really cool “Golden Days” presentation. It was a room filled with old furniture, toys, radios and the like. Even the audience chairs were mismatched/tattered chairs. As you watch the history of New Zealand on the screen in front of you, lights would come up on certain artifacts (as they related to the story) and they would move or activate from one side of the stage to the other. And, it was here that I finally found my first creepy dolls.



I knew I’d find at least one in this museum! I’m starting to think that it’s a staple in every museum and, once you know, it just becomes like an Easter Egg hunt to find where they’ve hidden them.



After I left that, I found this painting and…if you look behind the girls…you’ll see they have creepy dolls in the background. And, like with all other museum visits…they generally mark the end of my museum visit. Hopefully, I’ll never run into them right at the beginning…I’d hate to miss all the culturey-stuff.







So, I headed out of the museum and towards the harbor which runs directly behind it. Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and, as such, has tried to keep the waterfront open for “the people” to enjoy and walk around (rather than bombard it with expensive hotels and condos like we’d do in the states). So, it makes for a nice walk. I also saw the much smaller, yet interesting, Museum of Wellington. It is only 3 small floors and, even though it is such a small venue….I found one of the “King of Creepy Dolls”…



The voodoo doll.

I think that there is some kind of “creepy doll” ordinance that requires that every museum has at least some kind of creepy doll representation, in order to get funding from the state. So, far…I’ve found at least one in every museum.

I’m just sayin’….



So, I headed back to the hotel for a nice nap, then over to S&M’s to see what the kids were up to. It was a quiet night, but there were plenty of people around to chat with, so that is always enjoyable. It turned out that it was Scott and Mal’s five year wedding anniversary (they have been together for 13 years, but were married in Hawaii five years ago and had everything paid for by a local radio station there…EVERYTHING! Their airfare, accommodations, rings, clothing, spending money and it the whole event was broadcast live in New Zealand each day, leading up to the wedding), so they stopped in after having dinner with friends and hung out with us for a while.

They remind me of my friends Larry and Basil in Palm Springs. Just really nice guys who run a business, but at the end of the day…just like hanging out with good people.

Nothing wrong with that at all.



Can you imagine how much less traffic there would be in the world if this was an actual law?

I mean, it's wrong on so many levels...however...

All is Well….ington

Well, it was raining all morning as I packed up to leave Queenstown. I lucked out with the weather over the last week. If I had arrived today, I would have been a bit disappointed. Right before I left, I saw a rainbow over the hotel (insert song here...).



Figured it was a good sign. Then, as I was about to roll my luggage out to the shuttle, the rain stopped for a minute…long enough for me to get my raggedy bag into the shuttle without getting it wet (and then I put in my luggage…GOOD NIGHT! I’ll be here all week long! Tip the waiters, try the veal!).

The flight to Wellington was fine and went quick (another flight where I didn’t have to go through airport security…always a pleasure). I got to the hotel and checked into my room. This particular hotel has one wing for backpackers (dorms with bunks) and another wing with regular rooms at a discounted price. So, I took the regular room and it’s pretty nice. The building is old and there is a lot of character around with the crown mouldings and windows. The bathroom door in the room has a frosted glass window with “Bathroom” in old style writing.



When I got to the hotel, I was the first to be dropped off and, initially, thought perhaps I was staying out in the boonies. But, I headed down the street looking for an internet café and found quite the opposite. One block away, I turned down the street recommended by the hotel and it turned out to be one of the central streets with all of the bars, restaurants and other interesting sights.



So, I’m pretty centrally located and around enough things to see and do that I shouldn’t have to do more than put on my walkin’ shoes, which is fine with me. When I walked around tonight, I saw two different Burger Kings...one with a 50's theme on the inside and another, a couple blocks down, that was in an old bank building. Certainly a while different look/feel than our regular ones in the states, huh?





I also found the ONE gay bar in Wellington…



It’s a really nice, upper-class looking bar…very elegant and, if someone hadn’t told me it was a gay bar, I would never have known. The guys that run it (Scott and Mal, hence the sign) were really great and welcoming (one gave me some aspirin, cause my head felt like it was gonna bust open). I hung out there for a little while until one of their friends offered to take me for a quick drive around the city (he had to leave early, since he had to work in the morning), which was nice. I now have a better idea of how to get around the city (there is also a cool city view up into the hills, which I’ll need to see again in the daytime for photo opps).

He dropped me off at my hotel and I wandered back out to the busy area to find something to eat. When I saw this place….



I just had to try it.

You know, “I” make a pretty good cheeseburger…and it’s very affordable.

OH…I’m sitting here alone in the backpacker lounge and the TV station just started playing the original “Bionic Woman”.

Enjoyable.