It took a day or so before I worked out why there was a nagging sense of familiarity about Wellington. When we took the cable car up to gaze over the city it finally hit me. Weatherboard houses clinging to steep hill sides + cable car = San Francisco!

Once again I could not bear carrying around my heavy camera, and I really wished I’d taken my little digital one with me. I didn’t get a photo of Knit World, which proved to be just as big and well stocked as the Christchurch store. I decided to take the opportunity to buy some 10ply yarn for Starsky as well as yet another ball for my knee rug.

We also visited Te Papa, the big museum. Which was… a bit disappointing. Part seemed aimed at children, with the sort of spoon-feeding of easily digestible info that I dislike in modern museums. And much of the rest was the opposite, and seemed aimed too much at locals who already know their history rather than foreigners who might only know what they’d read in their guidebook.

After a day and a half in Wellington, we had another early morning start, catching the Overlander north.

I managed to get out into the viewing carriage and take some photos.

The train left at 7:25 am and arrived in Hamilton at 5:30 pm, so it was quite a long trip. But I managed to fit in knitting, reading, crosswords and even a nap. I imagine this trip would be fantastic with a group of knitters. It was possibly a bit long for just the two of us, and would best be broken up into two journeys.

At Hamilton our New Zealand friend picked us up and took us back to his house, where we stayed for the rest of the trip.

Next: thermal valleys, lots of closed knitting stores, and birds, birds, birds.