On 2019 Wellington Anniversary Day Will and I headed to Eastbourne for a Fat Freddy's Drop show. We've seen them live quite a few times now, but we never get sick of them and they always put on a great show. A public holiday is a great excuse to have ice-cream for lunch!
We met up with my badminton partner Stephen and some of his friends and family, and had a great afternoon/evening, topped off by a lovely sunset on the way back home.
A couple of weeks later it was off to Whanganui for the NZ Masters games. At the end of 2018 I made the decision to resign from my permanent teaching job and do some relief-teaching instead, mostly for the greater freedom and flexibility it offered. It was very nice not having to worry about taking time off work to play some badminton.
Us Wellington players managed to put together two teams, with my team picking up the bronze medal and the other Welly team taking out the silver. I wasn't initially in any of the teams as it was a bit hit and miss whether I 'd be recovered enough after my infection dramas from the end of the previous year. However, unfortunately my regular doubles partner Isla injured her calf, meaning I was able to take her place in one of the teams.
Stephen and I like busting out our 'Welly Tigers' strip every now and then!
We had 6 days in Whanganui, and had a fantastic time. It was super hot, so the outdoor pool at our accommodation got plenty of use, and plenty of pink gin was drunk in the interest of staying hydrated! We had one totally free day (when the hard-core players were playing singles) so we took the opportunity to embark on the Stephen Nelson tour of Whanganui.
First up was the Durie Hill elevator which is an underground elevator that is the only one of its kind in the southern hemisphere. A long tunnel took us to the elevator itself, where for $2 each we were taken up to through the hill to the top.
Once up the top we climbed the 176 steps up to the top of the Durie Hill memorial tower.
At the top we were rewarded with lovely views over Whanganui.
Next was a visit to Cooks Gardens, where Peter Snell set a new world record and was the first kiwi to run a sub 4-minute mile. Obviously we had to reenact the occasion!
Next on the tour was a visit to Virginia Lake park.
We enjoyed a walk through the free-flight aviary
As well as the winter garden, inside a very cool old-school greenhouse.
After that, we dropped a couple of people back at our accommodation and the rest of us headed out to Jerusalem, about 66km out of Whanganui. On the way we stopped to check out a hand-carved culvert in the bush.
Jerusalem is a tiny little settlement centred around a church and convent where Suzanne Aubert (known as Mother Mary Joseph) founded the Sisters of Compassion Order which is still active in Wellington. The NZ poet James K. Baxter also founded a commune and lived there in the 70s.
The church was beautiful inside. A bible had been left open on the altar so I decided that Martin was in need of a sermon... I was impressed by how attentively he listened!
The surrounding grounds were also beautiful
It was a baking hot day, and just as we were leaving the settlement we saw a sign advertising cold drinks and ice-cream. It turned out to be an enterprising local running a small shop out of one of the rooms in her house! I can't imagine she gets a huge amount of walk-by business.
On the way back to Whanganui we stopped at a couple of viewpoints for photo ops.
Apart from the badminton and tour of Whanganui and surrounds, another highlight was our team's performance in the Masters Games quiz night. The Tigers ended up first-equal at the end of the quiz, but unfortunately we lost the tie-break question. Nevertheless, we still ended up getting loads of free stuff as over the last few days we had befriended Tasha, the games organiser, and she looked after us well!
So there it is, another NZMG done and dusted, and a new appreciation of what a cool place Whanganui is with a surprising amount to offer.
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