Home » New Zealand » New Zealand

New Zealand is a small but incredibly beautiful country that sits like a semicolon at the end of the sentence that is Australia.

New Zealand

Hank Shiffman
2003-11-29 15:02:00

Displayed times (last time: )

The bus let me off in front of the Höglund Glass shop where I relieved myself of a few more dollars before checking out the rest of the street. And up the street a little way I had a little brush with Lord Of The Rings. A sign in front of a small clothing shop advertised itself as weavers for the film. The woman inside explained that the cloaks given to the Fellowship by Galadriel were woven on hand-operated looms. And no modern dyes either; the wool for these garments came from a very special flock of grey sheep. I was fascinated by the lengths the filmmakers went to preserve the illusion; no cutting corners for these guys. But much as I wanted a cloak like Frodo's, I just couldn't bring myself to spend $1000 US on such a garment. I settled for a throw rug of the same material, a memorable souvenir both of New Zealand and Middle Earth.

From Parnell Village I wandered up the hill to get a closer look at St. Mary's Church. I'm not normally interested in houses of worship, but St. Mary's is kind of special. Built of native kauri and rimu, it is reputedly the best wooden church in the country. Much warmer and friendlier than the brick cathedral next door. Which wasn't always next door; two decades ago St. Mary's was put on rollers and moved across the street to its present location. Which raises an interesting question: Why did the church cross the road?

Kiwis seem to have taken up recycling long before it became fashionable in my corner of the planet. Kelly Tarlton's reuse of those old water tanks for his aquarium is just one example; here are two more. Victoria Park Market at left is a tourist-oriented shopping mall that began life as a rubbish incinerator. What was once a place to drop off all the crap you have no use for is now a place to pick up all kinds of new crap you have no use for. At right is the former Customs House, now the city's biggest duty free shop. So instead of paying duty, you go there to avoid paying it. Gee, talk about irony!

On my last day before heading home, I decided to wander over to the Ferry Building. My destination was Devonport, across the harbour to the north. Back before there was a Harbour Bridge, Devonport's car ferry terminal was the main gateway between the northern suburbs and town. These days it's quieter and more relaxed, just a nice suburb full of handsome Victorian cottages and flowers and some splendid views of Auckland from the tops of its volcanic cones. And all just a pleasant boat trip from downtown.

The Esplanade Hotel greets you as you step off the ferry, a grand Victorian that wouldn't look out of place at Brighton or any of those other places where Brits go to get some sun. (Or more likely to rust, English weather being what it is.) And around the corner are some magnificent old trees, like the Moreton Bay fig tree at right, an import from Australia that has the most impressively bizarre root structure I've ever seen. The base looks more like a set of channels for marble races than anything designed to support a tree.

Submitted for your approval: the bronze plaque at right, adorning an ordinary looking wall on an ordinary Devonport street. Part of the fun of wandering a new place is looking for something just the tiniest bit interesting or peculiar, the kind of thing another, less dedicated tourist might miss. Like this seemingly unassuming bit of wall. But looks often deceive. This is a historic wall, one that once served to house a bear. Don't you feel better for knowing that? This is just the sort of history you just don't get from your typical guidebook.