Wellington.

Looking down into the center of Wellington from the street on which my hostel sits.

So it's been an interesting day -- as I was walking down the promenade some teenage hooligan boys called out "hey, four eyes!" real mature. and creative.

But back to the nitty gritty. I set my mental alarm clock this morning for 7:30 and it actually worked. I was a bit surprised, but I guess I shouldn't be... considering that I'm psychic and all. I wouldn't normally wake up that early on a Saturday, but there's free breakfast in the hostel and I wanted to make sure I a) got some; and b) got the best of it (why was I concerned for this? Because of just missing nutella time and time again in Europe two summers ago). Anyway the breakfast wasnt that great (rice crispies and toast) but I discovered I could make a mocha, which brightened up my day (in more ways then one).


Mushrooms in the Botanic Gardens

Then it was off to the Botanic Gardens for a stroll and some photos, then down to the Te Papa Museum for some New Zealand culture. Much of the museum was typical history/culture stuff, although there was a re-creation of the native bush for one of the exhibits. And they seem to have a lot of interactive exhibits -- a lot more Please Touch than it seems there is in the states. Actually it was quite different than any museum Ive been to in the states now that I think about it... it was everything under one roof -- whale skeletons, history, old and modern art, an espresso bar and big comfy chairs, seasonally rotating exhibitions. No omni theater though.

OK (my thoughts are winding around quite a bit tonight -- I can't get this USB drive to acknowledge my photos, the bitch -- so sorry if no photos, if there are photos, then I'm a technological goddess). What I want to write about is an exhibit called Blood Earth Fire (which I first thought was Earth Wind Fire... haha and it made me think of Kashaka). The exhibit was all about the transformation of NZ's land since human arrival (about 800 yrs ago). Quite thought provoking indeed.... something like 25% of the native bush remains. 50% of NZ land is grassland (damn the sheep!) and all the moas are extinct.... (stupid birds that didn't have any predators except each other -- cannibals!).

There seems to be so much cultural awareness on the effect humans have on the land -- which seems to be so different than anywhere else I know of. Obviously we can realize (and sometimes acknowledge) that we cut down trees, or build roads, or hey there's trash in the river and it's brown, it wasn't always like that -- but it doesn't seem we (Americans) go much farther than that.

I'm sure there's no reason to, of course. These Kiwis are crazy!

But.

Awareness is only one step. and a beginning step. and a small step. It seems we need a change of consciousness. The woman I stayed with last week has only one hygiene related paper product in her house -- toilet paper (no napkins, no paper towels, no q-tips. ok she had pads and tampons, but the tampons were o.b. -- and the person that asks us ladies to live without pads and tampons.... is a person who hopes to never meet me and endure the wrath of katie). only toilet paper! lots and lots of dish towels, for all napkin and paper towel needs. It made me think though -- more than once my mind thought I needed a napkin. But of course I made do (no throwing myself into the ocean in a hysterical fit over the lack of napkin for me, thank you). Kinda highlights the difference between needs and wants.

The past few paragraphs were for your thinking pleasure (or pain, depending on how much you love your consumption...).

After the museum I wandered around, ate two PB&J sandwiches, went to the i-Site (Kiwi speak for information center), tried on some clothes (I think I'm a size 8 here. Low rise pants are still popular here -- damn them! I hate the low rise!), then hoofed it to the top of Mt Victoria. Quite nice really. (Nope USB port still isn't working... I'll put up photos later. Stupid machines.) It was windy all day today (Wellington's known for that actually) -- at the top of the mountain the clouds were moving like they had to get to the hospital to give birth, but the sun found ways to peak through -- I saw a few instances of sunrays shining down onto the harbor -- quite nice.

View from the top of Mt Victoria

Oh and I read a bunch of the two towers. And ate another PB&J, and had an apple. I'm still hungry... time for a beer! (hopefully the damned rugby match is off the telly, otherwise I'm defintely going to have to pay for my own beer....)

Cheers!