01/28/12 Napier

 Greetings from Napier on the North Island of New Zealand.  We’re docked at the main port, with a cargo ship of containers on one side and a Chinese ship waiting to be filled with timber on the other side. The only other ship in port is the Princess Sun two docks over.

The Maori had a fortified settlement here long before Captain Cook landed. By 1839 there was a European settlement here.  But in 1931 a severe earthquake and the subsequent fires literally destroyed the town. Rebuilt following that, the town is a wonderful collection of art deco buildings.

The Napier Rotary Pathway runs along the shore for several miles, with wonderful ocean views (Picture 1) as well as views of the headlands to the south (Picture 2). The beach is flat pebbles (Rick described them as skipping stones) and no one swims here, as there is a vicious riptide. We followed the pathway until we were out of town and then took the street along the path, the Marine Parade, back into town—a relaxing couple of miles.

Along the way we saw a couple of interesting sites. Today was the New Zealand National Scooter Championship in the Skate Park. This involved boys between about 8 and 15 doing some very interesting flips and turns (Picture 3). Then we saw a putt-putt golf course that looked like one of the more basic ones in the US (not the Myrtle Beach variety), but added the novelty of children playing in the water hazards (Picture 4).

We even got a little homesick when we saw a Starbucks and “enjoyed” a bagpipe concert—enjoyable bagpipes does seem a bit of an oxymoron (Picture 5)! We wandered through the downtown, enjoying the art deco architecture and doing a little shopping. It was a lovely afternoon.

Tomorrow Wellington—one of my favorite cities in the world!