Pam and Brian drove us to the airport on Friday, as we departed Nelson and headed back to Wellington. We had of course left enough time for a farewell coffee before our flight departed.
We really enjoyed our 6 weeks in Nelson, and look forward to another long-term visit in the coming years. With 45,000 people Nelson is big enough to have all of the city-style amenities, yet small enough to not feel crowded. There is good hiking in town and even better hiking in the surrounding area, and the people that we met were very welcoming. Cafes abound, with a good variety of sweet and savoury snacks, and with 41 fine days out of 42, we certainly could not complain about the weather. I would vote Nelson to be New Zealand's most livable city.
We decided early in our stay that when there was a rainy day we would go and sit in the public gallery at the local courthouse and watch a few court cases, but the rainy day did not come, so that will have to wait for another visit.
Since we arrived back in Wellington, the weather has certainly changed - not just in Wellington but all over New Zealand. We have had two days of rain, and a cooler southerly wind. The sun is now out again, and it is forecast to be fine for the next week or more, but temperatures will not get much above 20 celsius.
Wellington City was down to 12 days of water supply remaining on Saturday, so we hope that they were able to harness some of the recent rain to provide bit more of a buffer. It would be a shame if there was no water for coffee, but I guess we could drink wine and beer. The drought is estimated to cost New Zealand between 1 & 2 billion dollars, mainly due to the impacts on agriculture.
We will have a few quiet days with Margaret this week, and then on Saturday we are heading up to Napier and Palmerston North with Tricia for a few days. Our trip is rapidly coming to an end.
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