#1280 ... Pita Lineup

Typically around the city it is people waiting in line for sushi ... but here is a new take on standing in line ... there were at least another 10 people already inside the new Pita Pit outlet ... it's like another take on the Subway concept ... except here you fill your pita bread with yummy healthy stuff.

#1279 ... A Welcome Sign

My wife had to go into Wellington Hospital today to have an antibiotic administered by dripfeed! ... she had an infected elbow ... which wasn't responding to oral antibiotics ... so that meant an overnight stay in hospital ... and this caused me to reflect on those in real critical medical emergencies .. and how they probably feel some relief at seeing this sign and realising they are not far away from medical help.

#1278 ... Bird, beach, boat & chilled wine

Maybe not quite as you imagined but great all the same. Oriental Bay, 22 degrees, gentle warm breeze ... absolutely, positively, awesome !!

#1277 ... Today WLG ... tomorrow SGN

Tran has lived with us this year, as she completes her last year at Wellington Girls College. The contrasts for her will be enormous over the next 24 hours. A last night in Wellington with a dinner of fish and chips at Oriental Parade ... and even though by Wellington standards there were a lot of people out enjoying the summer evening ... by Tran's measures it would seem as though the place was deserted. Ho Chi Minh (SGN in airline speak) is much much more populated !!! ... and the temperature is 38 degrees !!! Safe travels Tran and see you in 2011.

#1276 ... Sun sets on the Academic Year

The warm glow of the evening sun setting on Victoria University's Karori Campus ... where many of the education related degree courses are based. My daughter has just completed her Early Childhood Education degree here. In the foreground you can see the unbiquitous cabbage trees

#1275 ... C view

C view on a number of levels ... this building is across the road from the wharf ... from where I took the photo. So you can choose ... see view or sea view and these two guys are making sure you can do both !!!

#1274 ... Maranui Cafe

Maranui Cafe ... the servery and no the piece of boat in the background is not real ... a fiberglass replica ... but it does look the real deal.

Maranui Cafe is a quirky, 1940s-style cafe situated in the clubrooms of the Maranui Surf Club. Delicious meals and counter food served, with great views out across Lyall Bay. The Cafe was badly damaged by fire in August 2009 but is now back in business. The Maranui Surf Club is nearly 100. It was established in 1911 and is the second-oldest surf lifesaving club in New Zealand. Its distinctive white wooden clubhouse on Lyall Parade was built in 1930 and a second storey was added in 1956. It is not on the Historic Places Trust register but is listed as a heritage building by Wellington City Council. According to its heritage listing, the clubroom building is "moderne in style, its strong cubic form and narrow horizontal weatherboards making it a prominent structure on the sweep of Lyall Bay".

The club is one of New Zealand's most successful surf lifesaving clubs and has won many national, provincial and local titles. Several members have completed Cook Strait crossings, including Brien McCrea, who in 1972 became the first person to make the crossing on surf skis.

#1273 ... Nap Time

The bus depot in Kilbirnie where the GO Wellington "big yellows" take their mid-day nap. Joanne in the office kindly allowed for photo to be taken and like all the other Go Wellington bus staff ... professional and polite. Our bus drivers in Wellington are a real plus for the Greatest Little Capital in the World.

#1272 ... 2-4-3

Two on the case for TV3 ... Tova and her camerman Solomona working on the "kiwifruit" PSA virus story ... just completed an interview at MAF, checking their gear and off to the next job. Thanks for stopping ... albeit quickly.

#1271 ... Political Murder Scene

The new bus lane through Manners Mall is nearly ready to go ... all the underground stuff has been done, new tarmac and road markings ... just the canvas to make a further political statement by those against the changes ... Oh the openess of a democracy with freedom of speech ... and thick chalk maybe !!

#1270 ... Urban Nature

Designer's Notes: In Urban nature the idea of graffiti and its permanent character is explored through the combination of knitted textiles and grass. More recent forms of graffiti, such as stickers, knit and moss graffiti are affected by the environment into which they are placed. Glimpses of nature and graffiti are frequently seen in urban structures, unexpected and often unwanted. Scaffolding that temporary construction in the urban environment has been used here to explore the ideas of transience and impermanence.

This was one of the many awesome exhibits at the Massey University "BLOW 2010" exhibition which highlights all the amazing work done by the various design students. I highly recommend that you put this into your calendar for a must see each November.

#1269 ... Fly Zoe Fly

Zoe does some flying for the Flybuys promotion ... apologies about the image quality ... only had the phone and strong backlights ... but you will get the happy idea.

#1268 ... Shapes & Shadows

Looking north from the southern end of the Lagoon (right hand side) ... up to the City to Sea Bridge ... with the wooden sculptures ... shapes, shadows and structures.

#1267 ... Te Papa Night

Te Papa at night ... looking across the lake to the main building of the museum .. a warm glow

#1266 ... Wind Drama

Drama tonight on the Hutt Road, Thorndon. High winds had blown the "Flamingo" sign away ... firetruck, cherry picker, Police, the fluro-orange "Guardians of the City" cones ... and traffic delays as the signage was secured and made safe. Thanks emergency services.

#1265 ... Quilted Clouds

Quilted clouds over Ngaio at dusk ... patterns of the evening

#1264 ... Reindeer on the loose

Reindeer on the loose in Wellington ... perhaps looking for a man in a red suit and a sleigh ... it is the Christmas parade today ... not typical weather for sleighs ... 20 deg at 9:30am ... so maybe summer is appearing

#1263 ... 1BG

Robin Gibb ... the last of the BeeGees performing in Wellington ... apparently a good concert ... for the memories and the music. PHOTO by Rumi ... thanks

#1262 ... Three in a Row

The giraffes at the Wellington Zoo .. heading the other way. Graceful, gentle, delightful animals. Photo courtesy of Josh Blandford... THX

So what is interesting about these animals ...

• Each giraffe has a unique spot pattern. 
• Giraffes can spend up to 20 hours a day feeding and can eat up to 66kg of food daily.
• Giraffes drink water if it is available but can go weeks without it; they rely on the morning dew and the water content of their food.
• Giraffe can run at speeds up to 50kph but only for short bursts at a time.
• Females give birth to a single baby after a 15 month pregnancy.  The baby is 1.8m tall when it is born, and is born feet first.  Calves can stand within an hour of birth.
• Although generally quiet giraffes have been heard to grunt, snort and bleat.
• Giraffes sleep the least of any mammal – they only sleep for between 10 minutes and two hours a day. 
• They have only seven vertebrae in their neck, the same number as humans.
• They have special two way valves in their veins so they can bend over without getting a head rush. A giraffe’s heart is as big as a basketball and weighs around 12kg.
• A giraffe’s horns are not really horns at all – they are bony masses covered with skin and tufts of hair called ossicones.
• Giraffes have lived at Wellington Zoo since 1988.

#1261 ... Roof shiner

Well YES ... a photo of the new indoor stadium under construction at Kilbirnie ... looking south from across Evans Bay ... the shiny roof of the new stadium can be centre photo ... between the old wharf piles.

#1260 ... Dangerous Toilet

If you need to visit .... please see the Site Foreman!!!! Toilet rebuild at the eastern end of Courtenay Place.

#1259 ...Building a tree

YES it's that time of year again ... the building of the christmas tree on Midland Park ... even though it is not a very big tree ... it still takes three days to build the framework and add the branches ... maybe we should do the same as the Rockefeller Centre in NY and put in a real one; I think they still do that.

It would be great if they could get the sunburst at the top of the photo to sparkle from the top of the tree !!

#1258 ... Metal to metal, ... with a bit of fun

Macaulay Metals offered guided plant tours of their operation including car crushing this weekend. They are New Zealand’s largest, privately owned scrap metal recycling business.

They have the values of an independent, Kiwi owned company. There are over 90 staff nationwide working hard to provide good customer service based on honesty, fairness and integrity. True Kiwi values from your local company - going strong since 1959. Macaulay Metals buys, sells and exports scrap metal from sources such as manufacturing off-cuts and stampings, demolition and obsolete equipment. Most commonly traded commodities is;
* steel
* stainless steel
* aluminium
* copper
* brass
* insulated cables
* spent vehicle batteries
 THANKS TO RUMI FOR THE PHOTOS

#1257 ... Late Halloween

A little late for last week but these guys deserved a mention ... they were all very polite, happy and full of fun ... seems like Halloween is the thing for intermediate age school kids. Thanks for stopping by pretty monsters !!!

#1256 ... Art and the Artists

Two very clever art graduates from Weltec proudly displaying their creations at the Thistle Hall gallery in upper Cuba Street. The range of techniques they had used in their works was fascinating ... they kindly explained it all to me ... thanks for your time Lee & friends

#1255 ... Not Guy Fawkes BUT ...

Although it looks quite benign this was the southerly front that started coming through about 4pm ... by 6pm cold rain and hail. Christchurch fireworks had been cancelled. Wellington under close watch. Cold wind and light rain right through till 9pm when the fireworks went off ... 12 minute display that survived the rough weather.

#1254 ... Sir Jon

Sir Jon Trimmer relaxing at the St James Theatre, before going in to watch a matinee show of "The Nutcracker" by the NZ Ballet.
Jon has been a mainstay of the Royal New Zealand Ballet for 50 of the company’s 53 years. Jon started dancing at his sister’s ballet school in Wellington at the age of 12. He spent a year with the then New Zealand Ballet, before studying at the Royal Ballet School in 1959. He danced with both The Australian Ballet and the Royal Danish Ballet.

He has performed with Dame Margot Fonteyn, Rudolf Nureyev, Erik Bruhn and many of the world’s top dancers. Career highlights include being nominated for the best actor award in the Fireraiser television series (1986) and dancing the title role in Petrouchka, and the role of Albrecht in Giselle. The last 20 years have seen Jon performing mainly character roles with the RNZB, alongside dramatic roles in television and stage plays. In 2004 he toured New Zealand with the play Meeting Karpovsky.

Jon was awarded Television Performer of the Year in 1971, received an MBE in 1974, recieved a Fulbright Scholarship in 1981, and in 1986 was the third recipient of the Turnovsky Award. He received a knighthood in 1999 for services to ballet. To celebrate Sir Jon’s 50th anniversary with the Royal New Zealand Ballet he took to the stage last year as "The Don" in Don Quixote.

Thank you Sir Jon for allowing to me stop, chat and take your photo. 

#1253 ... Hospice Strawberries

Photo of photo taker of photo of strawberry and icecream servers. The annual fundraiser for the Mary Potter Hospice ... strawberries and icecream ... here at Midland Park, Lambton Quay ... yum ... could almost imagine being at Wimbledon. Note the Paul Henry street art on the concrete bollard. Another topical touch to the tropical day!

#1252 ... The Master

Leonard Cohen, Wellington, NZ, 01-11-10

#1251 ...‘Coolest Little Capital in the World'

Lonely Planet Dubs Wellington ‘Coolest Little Capital in the World’

Wellington is named as the 4th top city in the world to visit in 2011 by Lonely Planet Best in Travel 2011, released today.

In its first recognition of a New Zealand city in the annual collection of the world’s best trends, destinations, journeys and experiences, the publication refers to Wellington under the banner of “coolest little capital in the world”. Lonely Planet’s Asia-Pacific Travel Editor Shawn Low said Best in Travel 2011 draws on the knowledge, passion and kilometres travelled by Lonely Planet’s staff, authors and online community. Previously the top 10 countries, regions and cities have been listed alphabetically, but Lonely Planet has revealed them in ranked order for the first time in its sixth edition.

“This book started with hundreds of ideas from everyone at Lonely Planet, including our extended family of travellers, bloggers and tweeters,” Mr Low said. “These ideas were then whittled down by a panel of in-house travel experts, based on scores for topicality, excitement, value for money and that special X-factor.

“In the case of Wellington, Best in Travel 2011 suggests that New Zealand’s most innovative and inspiring city might just be the ‘Best Little Capital in the World’.” Best in Travel 2011 writer Catherine Le Nevez describes Wellington in the book as “Cool-with-a-capital-C”. The abundance of arts and cultural events, the culinary and film scene, and the city’s attitude to sport are among the things that make the Wellington stand out. Wellingtonians also get a well deserved mention.

“Wellingtonians are modest-as; they just figure if you’re going to do something, why not do it well?,” she writes.

“Its compact size energises its sense of community. Locals love their city…and get a kick out of helping visitors fall in love with it too.”

Positively Wellington Tourism Chief Executive David Perks said sharing a top 10 podium with the likes of New York and edgy destinations such as Tel Aviv is priceless recognition for New Zealand and its capital.

“To have Lonely Planet – a global brand respected for frank opinions and having its finger on the pulse – come out and refer to Wellington as the ‘coolest little capital in the world’ and among the top 10 cities you must visit for 2011 is quite simply incredible.”

The announcement comes as the 85,000 international travellers expected to visit New Zealand for Rugby World Cup 2011 look to plan their visit in more detail. Best in Travel 2011 lists Rugby World Cup in Wellington on its planner of major events around the world for the year. Coupled with Wellington’s regular placing as New Zealand’s favourite destination in the quarterly Fly Buys/Colmar Brunton Mood of the Traveller poll, the Lonely Planet recognition creates an exciting platform for the city for 2011, Mr Perks says.

Year three of Visa Wellington On a Plate in August and an expanded Montana WOW Awards Show season will lead into RWC 2011 kick off in September. Hundreds of writers will then descend on the city for the Society of American Travel Writers conference in November, as another bumper cruise season settles in for summer.

“Wellington never suffered the hits from the downturn that many other destinations did, but things haven’t been as strong as we’re used to either – especially over winter. 2011 is set to be an exciting year but the job’s not done; it’s only just beginning.”

#1250 ... Fixed Gear

This is Gareth ... outside the local dairy in Tinakori Road ... met him last night and you can see that he is obviously proud of this fixed gear cycle which he built himself. Vintage frame, front wheel from the UK back wheel from the US etc. The fixed gear community are very passionate about their sport. Some of the cycle couriers use these bikes although the hilly nature of Wellington usually dictates a geared model !!

A fixed-gear bicycle (or fixed-wheel bicycle, commonly known in the USA as a fixie) is a bicycle that has no freewheel, meaning it cannot coast — the pedals are always in motion when the bicycle is moving. The sprocket is screwed directly onto a fixed hub. When the rear wheel turns, the pedals turn in the same direction. This allows a cyclist to stop without using a brake, by resisting the rotation of the cranks, and also to ride in reverse.

Track cycling in a velodrome has always used fixed-gear track bikes, but fixed-gear bicycles are now again used on the road, a trend generally seen as being led by bicycle messengers. Recently, fixed-gear bikes have emerged as part of the hipster trend due to their appeal as a "vintage" accessory.