By Gurbir Singh, New Zealand
At the bottom of the world at the water’s edge, is a little city with a big heart. Dubbed as the ‘world's windiest city’, Wellington is the capital of New Zealand since 1865. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island on Cook Strait and separates the North and South Islands.
As a capital, Wellington is also the seat of the Government with the Parliament, Supreme Court, National Gallery, National Museum, etc located here. The High Commission of India and diplomatic offices of other countries are also housed in the city.
Surrounded by ocean and hill, Wellington is a compact city with a powerful mix of culture, history, nature and cuisine, and is often referred to as New Zealand’s art and culture capital.
For the last 25 years or so, every year Wellington showcases ‘World of Wearable Art’, a combination of fashion and art, and over 50,000 attend these shows.
Wellington is also described as the “powerhouse in feature film production” and it is associated with several highly acclaimed and blockbuster movies, including The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Avatar and The Hobbit.
With a population of 496,000, it is the third most populous urban area in the country. This vibrant city has been rated as having the “world’s best quality of life” and the world’s “coolest little capital”.
Wellington encompasses a stretched waterfront walkway, sandy beaches, a working harbour, colourful timber houses clinging to lush green surrounding hills, making the city famous for its gorgeous picturesque views.
A pedestrian city, Wellington is easily the country's most bustling and energetic metropolitan hub with a unique inner-city focus. More people (30%) use public transport in Wellington than anywhere else in New Zealand and about 10% walk to work. Malls and side alleys connect its streets, cafes spill from refurbished Victorian buildings and diverse street art is scattered throughout.
Some of the country's best art galleries, restaurants, microbreweries, and coffee outfits are located here. In fact, Wellington has more cafes, bars and restaurants per head of population than even New York. You will not have to go far for Indian food also as there are at least 70tandoori places spread across the city centre and sprawling suburbs.
The city is also popular amongst domestic and international students for its three universities, three institutes of technology and a large number of private training establishments.
Earthquakes are a big reality in Wellington as the fault line runs through the middle of the city. Last year alone, there were 145 jolts,mostly of minor nature.
The vibrant local population comprises of 17250 Indians and amongst other religious centres, there is a Sikh Gurdwara, Gita Mandir, Shri Swaminarayan Mandir and a temple devoted to Sai Baba.
When to visit
Best time to visit Wellington is during spring or summer, between the months of September and March.
Wellington is, however equally attractive during other periods also as the average temperature in mid-summer is only 20.3 degrees C, and in mid-winter 5.9 degrees C. But it is common for Wellington to have four seasons in one day also.
How to reach Wellington
As there are no direct flights from India to New Zealand, you could fly first to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur or Hong Kong and then chose to fly to Auckland or Wellington.
If travelling from Auckland, you can take a direct flight to Wellington and takes an hour and a half. At times, fare varies depending upon the time of day you fly and you could take advantage of frequent fare deals.
If time permits, you could travel by luxury train, Northern Explorer and experience extraordinary range of scenery on the way. Train journey costs $159, runs thrice a week and takes about 12 hours.
You could also easily rent a car with your valid Indian driving licence and drive yourself from Auckland to Wellington. The 645 kms distance would take 8-9 hours and you could stop and enjoy several other towns on the way.
Driving would definitely prove economical and enjoyable when compared to other modes, especially if you are travelling as a family. But drive only if you are confident and experienced of driving on fast speed motorways and understand road rules.
Wellington has lot to offer to tourists,so keep aside at least 2-3 days to really enjoy the various attractions in the city.
Gurbir Singh is a New Zealand-based freelance writer & journalist. He can be contacted at: gurbir@journalist.com
Editor’s note: In the next series, Gurbir would be writing about the five top attractions of Wellington.
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Gurbir Singh, Feature Writer & Journalist
gurbir@journalist.com
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