We booked a twilight tour of Zealandia starting at 7:00 pm this evening, so we didn’t want to do anything too strenuous today. But we did want to do something. Ideally something that would let us enjoy the lovely weather. I’ve started using the AllTrails app, so I looked to it for inspiration. One of the easy walks it recommended was the Oriental Parade Path, along the Wellington waterfront and the Oriental Beaches. It sounded perfect. It was surprisingly busy for a Friday. I’m guessing that it will be packed on the weekend.

This area was once a whaling station, and the art along the walk acknowledges that history.

Further along, we were treated to views like this.

Even the manhole covers have a bit of artistic flair.

There are many Norfolk Island Pines around the city, and this year we noticed that some of them are growing huge pinecones. We had never noticed that on previous visits.

Here is another example of the type of art installation so common in New Zealand. This was part of a wall along Orient Beach. It is meant to highlight environmentally sensitive areas, and the need to protect them. It is also lovely art.

One of the things we enjoy when we travel, believe it or not, is visiting grocery stores to look for interesting new flavors. After our walk, we were craving something sweet … perhaps a chocolate coated biscuit, and I spotted these.

I mentioned at the start of this post that we are going on a twilight tour at Zealandia later today. It’s late now, so I’ll save Zealandia for a separate post tomorrow.