Day 21 - Wellington

Early in the morning, I had to pack my 7 + x things. While doing so, I noticed that the bicycle is not running smoothly again, I will have to thoroughly examine and take apart my bike in the coming days.

This time I got along really well with the bus driver. After I had safely stowed everything on the bus, I carried out my planned activities from the previous day, I booked a seat on the ferry and a seat on the bus from Picton to Nelson, from there I want to ride the approximately 180 kilometers of the Great Taste Trail.

The journey from Whanganui to Wellington felt quite long. The distance took around 4.5 hours in total. As is usual in New Zealand, there were 3 designated stops, in addition to that, there are about 20 stops along the route that can be visited if needed. Our bus driver already mentioned at departure that we would be stopping at an unusually high number of places.

Arriving in Wellington, I first visited the local bicycle shops. There I explained my problem and we both noticed that the inside of the mudguards was not properly tightened. This makes it easier to roll, although the problems are not completely gone, but I can handle them better again. Besides that, I unfortunately had to realize that I was sold the wrong brake pads in Auckland. Very annoying!

Upon arriving at my accommodation, I noticed the countless tarps in this small backyard. Moreover, the place was completely dirty, not a nice place to camp. I quickly set up my tent as I wanted to explore the city in the afternoon. I rode along the city promenade for a while before I wanted to visit the National Museum of New Zealand. The city seemed very different to me compared to Auckland, Tauranga or Taupo. Wellington is lively, fast-paced and hip. There are countless artists on the streets, everything is colorful and in motion.

The museum is located in close proximity to the capital's marina. The museum really impressed me, it's not really a museum in the classical sense, as I have experienced museum so far. On 6 floors, there were exhibition spaces that were always created around a topic related to New Zealand. This ranged from the struggles for New Zealanders' involvement in the Battle of Gallipoli, to the coexistence of the Maori with the Kiwis, to contemporary art by New Zealand artists. The highlight was that there were often experience-oriented attractions. A great museum!

Returning to the campsite, there were many people of all ages. I quickly realized that they were not tourists. So I started talking to some of them. I learned that almost all the people who were there were homeless. After the devastating earthquakes on the northern part of the South Island, many people flocked to Wellington in desperation, but housing is very scarce there. Many had been sleeping under a simple tarp for almost a year. I felt somewhat uncomfortable with all my equipment. That evening, it became apparent what several other campers had told me during the tour, that drug use in New Zealand spans all generations. Overall, the conversations that evening were very interesting, but I fell asleep with an uneasy feeling.