“When do we get back, Dad?” asked the boy, kicking rocks along the tree covered path.
“Soon.” Dad answered, leading the way through the twists and turns in the Sanctuary.
When they day started out, I didn’t really know what I was going to do. I’d had several things I wanted to do on Thursday, but after researching the train and bus schedules, I realized most of what I wanted to do was not possible in a day. I had a couple posts to write (before I got another email from Mom asking for more reading material), so I figured a bus to the city, a cafe, and more wandering were all the plans I was going to have.
The bus headed to Eastbourne was dropping off a woman as I approached the road. She looked both ways and crossed to the other stop, which would take her back the direction she just came.
“The 83, it goes back to Queensgate?” Asked the shy Chinese lady.
I answered yes, and she felt relieved. Another one who got on the wrong bus. The 91 goes to Queensgate, and she got off the 81. Same thing had happened to that other girl on my first or second day. I understand now how the mixup happens; it’s hard to distinguish some of the LED numbers from a distance.
I prefer the 81 going back to Courtenay Place, as it doesn’t stop, but I’d have to wait another half hour for that one, so it was the 83 for me as well, and a much longer journey to the city in the slightly rainy day. I had no preference where I would get off the bus, so I picked a random stop and followed a few other riders as they exited.
There were several small busy cafes along the street, but I picked one that was larger and emptier. I needed a place I could sit in peace and edit the posts I had waiting in the queue. I find that I can’t write fast enough for my family – but they’re just going to have to wait, I’m trying to have a vacation here ( and an expensive one at that, so please forgive me if I want to spend my time wandering and outdoors, and not home typing *cough* mom *cough* =) ).
“Mr. Buns” cafes are all over. I see at least three or four a day while traveling on the bus. Most were smaller, but this one seemed to be the larger one. Again with the mushrooms, tomatoes, and spinach. One of these days I’ll get something different, somewhere – and regret it immediately, you’ll see. Either way, it was still good and helped me get through a rather odd day to come.
I think I spent a couple hours sifting through notes and attempting to get my posts up. WP seems to dislike me some days, and I have to hold off on photo inputs till I get home. I’m missing the wacom pens, hell a mouse would be awesome; I get tired of tapping. I was sitting in a nice slinking, laid back, comfy leather chair (comfy chair) with strong arm rests. There were several of these in the cafe, surrounding rather small square wooden coffee tables with teeny lamps on them. There were other metal tables in the middle of the cafe, larger and taller. The space had larger windows than most, as if the place had been a giant department store before a cafe. I watched the people walk by, as it rained on and off during the time I spent there.
I left, and wandered the streets again. I keep making my way back to the Civic Center without even trying now. Then I end up going up several streets, finding Cuba street, and coming back down to Lambton Quay. Speaking of this, I should mention it’s Lambtom “key” in pronunciation. Quay = Key. I keep trying to understand how to say things, but every time I think I get it, something new pops up. Like, when I think the ‘g’ is silent, someone pronounces it; Or when I think the ‘n’s’ will be a rolling ‘r’, it’s really not. Sometimes they pronounce words that have no ‘r’, as if they did!
I suddenly declared this day to be shopping day. I did the window browsing and wandered into a couple of other stores. I then found myself underground – in a food court. The smell was incredibly overwhelming and washed over me in such a punch I felt nauseous immediately.
Who decides it’s a good idea to have twenty fast food restaurants UNDERGROUND?
I made my way through the maze, and walked through a video game store. I picked up a few games to look at. Noticing the price, I did a double take. Ladies and Gentlemen – no more complaining that $60 is too much for a video game, these people have to pay $110 on some, and even $88 for a USED game. I put the games back, and went back out the other side. I had no idea where I was, I walked for a bit underneath. There was a store I passed that was very busy, looked like candy. I stepped one foot in and realized
– Nope, that’s soap *cough choke die* Whew!
I went up some steps. Most of the underground mall was under construction. It looked just like a mall at home, but on one level and with lower ceilings. I think I’d made my way a block or so, as a sign said “Old Bank Arcade”. I remembered that was on a few streets away from where I had entered the mall. At the top of the steps, I saw a tie rack in a window – so that was happening.
A few minutes later, and some mild conversation with the sharply dressed gentlemen in the store, I had a new white and black plaid tie. I think they thought I might have been selfish having bought myself a tie, but it was rude to assume it was a gift!
I make my presents I said with a big grin and a wink. I thanked them and left. And yes, they did comment on my card.
I walked up and found a street exit. A few steps more and I knew where I was.
Now that I seem to know where the Cable Car is, I find that I just end up back there – as if it’s rubbing it in my face that I couldn’t find it the first time. It’s a fun, short ride, and there’s things to do at the top which makes it not such a bad idea to pass the time. Today I decided to try the Zealandia pick up spot at the top. I bought a roundtrip ticket for the car, as I always do, and hop on just in time to go up. A woman in a long plaid green and black skirt, black long sleeve shirt, and 20s styled shoes got on before me and took my front seat. Lamesauce. She seemed to know the driver since he asked her about her family, and daughter specifically. I imagine she rides it every day, and might work up at the top or live in the surrounding residential area.
The spoke awhile, as the driver waited for other people to pile on. It filled up a bit, but thankfully everyone went on into the Boat Cafe at the top, or down through the Gardens when we reached the top. Construction was still going on, and I think the workers are getting used to people now. It’s robotic when they move ladders so people can manuever around them or when they hault. It’s probably hard to do your job when lots of people are walking where you’re working every other ten minutes in a day.
I wandered around through a group of younger workers on a break and found the Zealandia sign. I checked the time, I had about twenty minutes or so till the next pick up. I decided to grab some tea to “take away” from the Boat Cafe. Don’t say ‘to go’ when you plan on not staying at a cafe, btw. It’s very confusing for the baristas. You have to say “take away”. I headed back down the sidewalk, through the lunchtime boys, up the steps and into the cafe for the second time in a week.
“You guys wouldn’t be on a lunch break now, would you? ” I commented, as I came back out, and worked my way past the lazy boys. Seriously, sarcasm, don’t you get it? Apparently they didn’t, hardly a chuckle, and more “yes ma’am”. MA’AM??? Ugh.
I went back to the Zealandia sign, and hopped up to sit on the wall lining the sidewalk. A few cars came down and turned around in the ‘dead-en roundabout’ of the Cable Car and Garden sign in the road. Either they were lost, or just needed to turn around.
Not soon after I heard the boys laughing at some weird thing one of them had done, I saw the shuttle to Zealandia. I could have walked, but I knew that the Sanctuary had its own tracks and trails and would be just as much walking as the city. It was a giant space for the the last of some native birds to roam freely and be taken care of, so it was bound to be large. It was built with a Dam running through it, and in the middle of some mountains.
The shuttle driver was a very nice old man. I seem to always be alone on some shuttles, buses and other locations. Just the way I like it – and my driver seems to always be some nice old man (but not in the creepy way).
He struck up a conversation about the sanctuary and the dam, pointed out a few interesting tidbits. The ride was short, but longer than I expected. He dropped me off in front of a fancy glass door in front of a tall wire fence. Almost every place has a sliding glass door in this city, I can’t remember when I last walked into a store and had to actually open the door.
The cashier was a girl, maybe my age, with long straight light brown hair, and a voice that wouldn’t stop talking. I heard her from down the tile stairs in the tall glass building. I walked up the stairs and saw the girl helping a german couple. Germans are everywhere around here. I waited patiently as the girl explained where to go, in great length to the couple. She stood in the middle of a typical wooden island helpdesk next to a museum store. They sell the same things in all the stores, the artist carvings, the screen printed tea towels, post cards, etc.
Finally, it as my turn. She gave me the same spiel, in length. There was a couple behind me, and I could sense the man’s annoyance and impatience, but I couldn’t just interrupt the girl – she was just doing her job. Again, more comments on my card. It’s never-ending. Then I took the map, and headed out towards the next glass door. This one I got to open, but mostly because we have to check to make sure that nothing gets in or out. It’s a sanctuary – one wrong animal and there’d be a great disturbance in the force.
I went through another area to check my bag and make sure there were no ill characters following me, and proceeded into the complex. It was kind of like walking into a mountain area, next to a lake. There was a long wooden fence on my left, indicating things we should be aware of, such as traps for certain creatures, and feed boxes for the birds. I came up to the main entrance and realized, I was a bit too short. I had to reach around the tall fence to pull up on a plastic lock, and then push a door on my right. Ya, that wasn’t gonna happen. Thankfully a woman was coming out. We both made a joke about being short, and continued on our ways; she to the entrance gate, and I to a gazebo on the end of a small dock that led to the lake.
The gazebo was red and off-white, with a tall, and very pointy roof. Inside were some photos and stories , and in the middle on the floor was a sealed entrance that led down under the lake. This was a part of a century old piece of the dam. I can’t remember the name of what it actually was, but it went very far down into the lake.
I came upon several ducks on my way in, some just hanging out on the side of the walkway. I had some conversation with some of them. They’re very nice, not afraid of anything. The male duck seemed to be looking for food. Later I’d find Mrs. Duck huddling with her little ducklings in the shade.
Here’s where I explain the ‘shag’ part. No, it’s not what Mr. and Mrs. Duck did, and it’s certainly not anything to do with me. It’s the birds. There was a sign that explained several types of birds, and there were about three or four different types of Shags. There’s the Black Shag, and the Little Shag, and the Pied Shag. I think there was a Red Shag?
I saw several of the Black Shag’s across the lake in a tree. They kept talking to each other. In fact, that’s about all I heard or saw on the walk through the Sanctuary, besides some water, clouds, and a lot of trees. Maybe a bug or two – but not a Weta sadly. That’s a famous bug native to New Zealand, and while some like to believe it’s what the digital company is named after, it originally had a different name/meaning. Now they just refer to the bug.
I made my way up and down several paths. My feet were starting to hurt after all the walking I’d done already, but I suppose it was to be expected. I followed different signs, with no real clue where I was going, I mean, I had a map but I had put it in my bag – I wasn’t actually going to LOOK at it. Who does that?
Eventually, I ended up at the top of the dam. Yep, I walked out and suddenly had the image of “The Fugitive”, with Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones at the end of the sewer, you know? Where Ford turns around, hands on his head, and does, to quote Jones, “a Peter Pan right here off of this dam, right here.” Love that movie, and a few days later I’d be surprised with it twice on a New Zealand movie channel. Coincidence? Probably. But, they don’t do commercials until the end, if at all, so I’m not arguing.
In the middle of the damn, a father and son were looking through a lens. I don’t know if they saw anything, I didn’t. I had to take off my hat and hold on to it, the wind was crazy strong up there. I was trying not to fall off while taking photos, holding a hat and not running or tripping over the boy as he ran around.
After the dam came another path that led to a suspension bridge. This was not like the rope bridge I’d see earlier. This was like an old railroad bridge, that shook more than the rope bridge and had crazy tall entrance/exits. Another little boy and his family began to cross, and then he started to jump up and down. It was annoying as I was trying to walk and take photos and not lose my hat. I wanted to spend some more time, but I also wanted to lose the families. Off I went back into the trees.
The original quiet boy and his father had made it ahead of me. I watched as they meandered off, side by side up to the next path. I checked the time. I had about a half hour to get back before the shuttle left for the Cable Car. I didn’t want to miss that, otherwise it’d be a very long walk. I hurried up and ran through more trees, and a few up and down hills. Luckily, I found myself at the beginning without even trying.
In the store I had an idea for a joke gift for someone. I picked out the one I thought was best, and purchased it from the girl.
“Here for long?” She asked.
“Oh not too much longer, just next week. Might extend the trip a few days if I can.”
“Oh you should. There’s lots to see, especially if you haven’t made it to the South Island.”
“I know. But sadly, the South Island doesn’t seem doable at this point. Oh well! Thanks!”
I waved and hurried out to the shuttle, where the nice man was letting a few others on.
