Had a bit of a lie in this morning after my late night at the Symphony. It was relatively mild outside, so I made myself some coffee and sat outside to journal and read. At 9 o’clock Mary and I headed out, picked up her friends Bronwyn and Kelda, and went to Princess Bay to go for a swim! It was a little chilly to start with, but we soon got acclimated and had a wonderful time swimming around in the very clear water, watching the clouds roll in and out. We were joined a little later by a couple of people that Bronwyn knew, who both happen to be Americans, one from Florida, and one from Chicago. We joked around about how much more knowledgeable New Zealanders are about things in the US than Americans seem to be. When we got out of the water, it was lovely and warm. Mary had hot water for tea or Milo (similar to chocolate milk) and Bronwyn had brought chocolate fudge with pistachios in it. So we sat and watched scuba divers nearby and enjoyed the lovely Sunday morning – we could even see the snow on the top of the Kaikoura ranges in the South Island. What an awesome start to the day! I Bronwyn had a really cool shirt, New Zealand’s version of our women Supreme Court justices. While I know many Americans know who Jacinda is, I’ll bet they will have to Google the other three names in relation to New Zealand women’s history.
On my way to meet Annemarie I stopped in at the local coffee shop, Caribe cafe, for coffee and a breakfast sammie – peppery scrambled eggs with spinach on homemade sourdough then toasted on a panini press.
Today we played mini golf at Carlucciland, a fantastic place full of all kinds of art made from recycled and natural materials. It is situated on the road to the local tip (dump), and the artist only uses stone, wood or man-made items that have been discarded. The artist, Carl Gifford, is passionate about rocks, recycling, making steel sculptures, art and education. There’s old recycled furniture, curios from the past, metal sculptures, and rock art everywhere. From tiny little people and kiwi birds to huge metallic spiders and snakes, all with a decidedly homemade feel. The mini golf course is fun with lots of spirals and tracks for the colorful golf balls to go down.
What amazed me is that you pay for it on the honor system, there wasn’t anybody there when we arrived, just a note on how to use the charge machine or where to put cash. We had so much fun, and because it was a relatively sunny, only slightly breezy Sunday it was a busy place, lots of happy family and friend groups. There was also a short little hike where you could see more sculptures throughout the property. The women’s bathroom was a mirrored mosaic! It was a fun, joyful place and a great way to spend the afternoon.
As a thank you to Mary and Owen for being such wonderful hosts, I took them out to dinner at the local restaurant down the street, Salty Pidgin, where we had their Christmas special dinner. The food was absolutely delicious, and I tried a new to me wine, Pinot Blanc. I’ll definitely have that again, it was great. The restaurant is shaped like a wedge, and like many places in Wellington, slants down the hillside, so has four different levels, each a few steps apart from the next. The layout creates lots of intimate eating areas, including the table for four situated at the bottom tip of the restaurant where there are windows all around that look out into the bush.
It’s still a bit weird for me to not leave a tip in a restaurant (much less a coffee shop as has become the expectation at home) but they don’t even give you that option when you go to pay. All restaurant staff get paid a living wage here – one of Mary‘s friends owns a small restaurant in Wellington, and she mentioned the other day that her dishwashing staff had all been there for more than four years. The restaurant is only open four days a week, but they earn enough in that time to make a living. What a concept!
As dusk was descending we walked off part of our meal with a stroll up to the Brooklyn War Memorial and then back home.
