Wellington is the Capital of New Zealand with a population of over 410000 and was ranked 12th in 2006 for the best quality of living in the world! it has a big cafe culture and nightlife is very vibrant around the Cuba area. it also is home of the Museum of New Zealand called Te Papa.

Auckland was the capital since 1841 when in 1865 it was decided to move the capital south to Wellington near the Cook straight as their was fear that the southern�region may�separate following the find of gold fields in the Southern Island.

I would spend�4 days in Wellington where i would spend days with my friend Heath who was visiting his family - touring around the area, going to local bars and restaurant, meeting his family and catching up. it was great seeing him again, as despite both of us living in London, we hadnt spent that much time over the last couple of years with both our lifes keeping us busy - we had to meet half�around the world to spend time to catch up! LOL life can be funny sometime!

during that time, we went to watch a Super 14 game between the Hurricanes v Highlanders - the local won to the satisfaction of the public on the stadium - i even went clubbing for the first time in months with Heath and a group of his friends, but weirdly enough, i left after 1h30 as i wasnt getting into it - may be i am getting too old for this, or may be i feel content as i am now with my travel and John in my life! probably both! LOL

on sunday, I got invited for a sunday roast at Heath's friends house in the countryside- it was a really�nice day and we had a good laugh with his 2 lesbian couples - one of them was more manly than lots of men i know! LOL after few hours lunching, i left the party as i made my way north east to Napier -

Napier,�well known for its pear / apple and stone fruits production as well as its wineries (Hawkes Bay), is also reknown for its art deco style. it also has one of the most photographed tourist attraction in the country - a statue called Pania of the Reef.

In M?ori mythology, Pania of the Reef was a beautiful maiden who lived in the sea on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. By daylight she swam about with creatures of her reef world but after sunset would go to a stream that ran into the bay where the city of Napier now exists. She would travel up the stream to an area where she could rest among the flax bushes.

Karitoki, the very handsome son of a M?ori chief, quenched his thirst every evening at the stream where Pania rested because it had the sweetest water. He was unaware she was observing him for many weeks until one night she whispered a faint spell. It carried on the wind to Karitoki who turned around to see Pania emerge from her hiding place.

Karitoki had never seen someone so beautiful and instantly fell in love. Pania fell in love also, and they pledged their lives to each other and were secretly married. Pania and Karitoki went to his whare (house), but because it was dark no-one saw them enter. At sunrise, Pania prepared to leave but Karitoki tried to stop her. She explained that as a creature of the ocean, when the sirens of the sea called her each morning, she could not survive if she did not go to them. She promised to return every evening and their marriage continued on that basis.

Karitoki boasted to his friends about his beautiful wife, but no one believed him because they had never seen her. Frustrated by this, Karitoki consulted a kaumatua (wise elder) in the village who believed Karitoki as he knew ocean maidens did exist. The kaumatua told Karitoki that being a sea creature, Pania would not be allowed to return to the sea if she swallowed cooked food.

That night, as Pania slept, Karitoki took a morsel of cooked food and put it in Pania's mouth. As he did so, Ruru the morepork (owl) called a loud warning and Pania was startled from her sleep. Horrified that Karitoki had put her life in jeopardy, Pania fled from the whare and ran to the sea. Her people came to the surface and drew her down into the depths as Karitoki swam frantically about the ocean looking for her. He never saw her again.

When people now look deep into the water over the reef, some say they can see Pania with arms outstretched, appealing to her former lover. It is unknown whether she is imploring him to explain his treachery, or expressing her continuing love.

during my time there i went to the National aquarium of NZ where they have a long under water tunnel which allow great views of small sharks and stinkrays among other fishes. I also went to visit a sheepskins factory where i had a tour of the skin treatment which was really interesting to see. unfortunately all the little lamb had been slaughtered! LOL but hey nice rugs though!! LOL