Ever since the 70s when touring Malawi with our sister- and brother-in-law we have used "extra-value day" as a humorous way to say "exhausting schedule." Today was such, scheduled by David who had noticed three musical events all within a short distance of the Botanical Garden. So we started by walking across downtown to catch the cable car up to the top of the steep ridge on which the Botanical Garden sits.
The morning started out absolutely clear, as brilliant a day as we've seen yet. By noon when we took the picture here some clouds had blown in but just enough to add contrast. Wellington was showing its best side today.
Dear Wellington Tourist Bureau: how much are we offered for this pic?
The Botanical Garden is laid out across a fan of ridges and deep stream gullies. Over 3 hours we walked almost all the main paths, saw all the sculpture and the special gardens, covered about 2.5 kilometers and easily 1000 feet of elevation change: up and down and up and... We haven't really sorted out the pictures yet but here are a couple that pop out.
Don't know why there was a dragon, but there was.
Then we had a light lunch in the Skyline restaurant looking at the view.
Yeah, we're braggin'... good weather makes us smug...
Next up was a free concert in the adjacent Cable Car Museum. Part of the Arboretum's spring festival, they sponsored performances by a Celtic group, "Celia Briar and friends," a folk singer/ranconteur named David Hart, and a 30s-era group Big Yellow Caravan. That was three hours of free music from 1-4.
Next in the schedule was a free concert on the nearby campus of Victoria University of Wellington, at 6pm. David had assumed that on an urban U. campus there would be some sort of food available on a Saturday. Hah! Place was deserted, nothing open except some sitting areas in the Student Union. Some friendly office clerks directed us to a nearby "dairy" (these places, generically called "dairies" but very much like 7-11 stores, are found in every neighborhood around NZ) so supper was sort of ad-hoc. And another kilometer of hilly walking to earn it!
But, at 6, in the campus art gallery we heard a free performance by percussionist Shoji Hano. This dude rocks! He delivered one intense 15-minute drum solo after another with amazing variety of tone and tempo, and did an impressive and also intense Tai Chi workout between them.
The final event of the evening was one we actually had to pay for, but it was well worth it. The New Zealand School of Music has a specialty of supporting Asian music, especially Indonesian Gamelan (xylophone/gong) ensembles, and in promoting fusions of those traditions with western forms. So in celebration of one professor's 40th year of teaching and composition they put on the "Gong Crazy" festival featuring two types of Gamelan (Indonesian and Sumatran) with the New Zealand String Quartet, a Chinese Sheng (mouth-organ) virtuoso, a brilliant bassoonista, and other quirky and unusual instruments including at one point, an electrified spinning wheel. Several of the 15 compositions were just lovely, involving and beautiful. Some not so much although none unpleasant and all interesting. Photos obviously can't do justice to the sound but here is a bit of the look.
One style of gamelan uses these pot-shaped gongs, here with the second violinist of the string quartet.
We loved this meandering, meditative piece that featured long flutes and other unfamiliar instruments.
Chinese Sheng with Viola, gamelan accompaniment.
We got back to our hotel about 13 hours after we left it, tired from several kilometers and at least 300 meters of elevation change, but pleased at a super value day.
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