(Last one on NZ. One last one to come.)
In acquiescence to the limited amount of time I had left, instead of hitch hiking I took a 6 hour bus down to Wellington--NZ's capital. Spent just a few nights in Wellington, Couch Surfing in a few guys basement flat.
Wellington is a nice little oceanside city, ensconced in mountains--typical NZ.
Went up to a hilltop/volcano cone with my hosts to look out over Wellington and around,
Walked through the botanical gardens. There were:
some great aromatic "fragrant gardens",
with many varieties,
succulents
An informative "herb garden",
And a bountiful "rose gardens" (from above),
with all sorts of roses...like these 'heart throb roses',
Nota Bene: a great time to go to such gardens is when you're fasting. I had been on about 36 hours fast (inspired by a woman I met hitch hiking on a 5 day fast, something I'd been meaning to do for a while) when I walked through the park. For when you are hungry, your olfactory bulb is more easily illuminated. And stimulating it with the smell of flowers is a pleasant evasion from food.
Paid a visit to the Parliament House and the Beahive (where the prime minister and company work, on the left there).
Had a listen to some interesting excerpts of famous speeches given in the NZ Parliament over the past 70 years or so. Went for a really nice tour of the building and learned a good bit about their government, politics, Maori relations, etc. E.g. NZ is not independent of England; as part of 'The Commonwealth" they are still a constitutional monarchy (like Australia and Canada) in which their governor general must sign on behalf of the Queen for laws to be passed.
Checked out the (free) Te Papa Tongarewa museum of NZ's animals, meteorology, tectonic landscape, and Maori culture/history. On the 'Ring of Fire,' there is a lot going on in and under NZ. Free national museums are great.
Lastly, I found the City Gallery Wellington. I'm usually not one for art, but I quite liked Bill Hammond's work of mostly these avian human things.
(not my photo)
There was also a really cool screening of 2 short films titled "Doomed" and "Love" in which the producer (Tracey Moffat) sampled small pieces of films spanning about 60 years and spliced them together into a montage pursuing the above themes, with a soundtrack threading the story. Very dramatic.
Something interesting I learned staying with a few younger Kiwis: they told me that it was normal for young people to move out of their parent's place when they are young. Three of the 6 or so I spoke with moved out @ age 16...
Last thoughts on NZ
Of all the places that I've traveled, I would recommend NZ the highest for others to visit. It is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to, prices are reasonable (very cheap if you travel like me ;) ), the people are really friendly/generous/hospitable, it is well organized for tourists (good hostels, etc.), and they speak English (key).
Mind you, it takes time to see the country: no less than a month...for one island (North or South Islands), if you ask me. There is just so much to see and traveling takes time.
The North Island is a bit warmer, more tropical, more people, somewhat more developed. The South Island (from what I gathered cycling it 5 years ago and from what I've heard) is more rugged and barren but more scenic, mountainous and gorgeous (with the fiords and all). But really, with either, you can't go wrong. Of course, flights are not cheap and peak season is between Christmas and most of January.
As for me, hitchhiking, often crashing at local people's places, making friends and doing things with the local people I met, I really felt I like I was able to have an authentic individual experience in NZ. I did not feel like the impersonal statistic of a tourist that I kinda felt like in Europe: where traveling by bus/train, living amongst other backpackers/tourists in youth hostels, and visiting must see museums/churches/ruins/etc. can confine one to a somewhat circumscribed experience that is jaded by the presence/knowledge of the masses of others who are doing/have done the same thing. But that was just my experience.
