Wellington!

While in Wellington, we took the Thiessens to some of our favorite places. On arrival, it was sunny and clear, so we said "Quick!! We have to go up to Mount Victoria Lookout!!" It's a lookout perched on top of a huge hill (small mountain?) right at the edge of Wellington...Accessed by a treacherous, windy, white-knuckle road with a sheer drop on the side towards the ocean...and lots of cute little houses tucked along the way, with little car-parks on stilts! It's one of the neighborhoods that reminds us so much of San Francisco - in a very Kiwi way. (By the way, Patrick likes to run up the hiking trail when we're in Welly...of course!) From the top you can see great views of the harbor and greenbelt surrounding the city. And to go on a clear day is a pretty special thing in Windy Wellington.





After checking out the lookout (and the Thiessens checked out Te Papa, the fabulous museum, like a cooler, more modern Smithsonian...in a very Kiwi way, of course!), we took them to Cuba Street. Cuba Street is a pedestrian walkway filled with fun coffeeshops, cafes, shops, street performers, a fun fountain...and delicious restaurants!! We took them to Floridita's -- we had been wanting to try it, and it's now one of our favorites in Wellington.





Of course, Wellington just isn't Wellington without a visit to our actual most favorite restaurant, Ernesto's, for breakfast. (That's right, if you're noticing the many Che references on Cuba Street, you are not mistaken. Ernesto's has lots of Che memorabilia...interesting, but the real star is the FOOD!) Donna is here showing off her brioche french toast topped with marscapone cheese...We were also all impressed with their hash-browns. Seriously...the hashbrowns are usually the fillers, but their hashbrowns have heaps of flavor. You can't even imagine how delicious these are. They put them into little cakes that take the place of an english muffin in a sort of eggs-benedict dish.




Then, while the boys checked out Parliament and the governmental buildings, the girls went shopping, and then we met up to ride the Cable Car. Some more gorgeous views from the top, before we took off back to Wanganui. Ahhh...I *heart* Wellington.