Westport

On Sunday, we headed north to Westport. We’d been expecting rain almost completely throughout our sojourn on the West Coast – it is famous for it, and it’s part of the “West Coast Experience”. But Sunday was warm and sunny. We’d left the sun screen back at home in the expectation of not needing it, so were caught a bit short there.

Our first stop was at the Pancake Rocks at Punakaiki. We’d set out reasonably early, and this proved to be a boon, because we got there before the car park had filled up, and also it was high tide at the time we were there, which is the best time to get the full effects of the surf and blowholes. It’s almost as though we’d planned it that way…almost.

The pancake rocks are a geological formation of questionable origin. Seriously, the scientists don’t have an accepted theory why they formed that way. The current theory is that it’s something to do with grain aggregation which leads to layers of rock forming with differing rates of erosion, which leads to their appearance, like a stack of pancakes. Also, the sea has eroded various blowholes and caves throughout the rock formation, so at high tide the air and water are forced up through the blowholes into the clifftops above. There is a specially-constructed walkway through the rock formations, where we saw korimako and white-fronted terns as well as more common seabirds.

Observe the pancake-ness

Korimako (bellbird)

Tara (white-fronted tern)

After a quick beverage at the café, and the purchase of a been-there-done-that t-shirt, we continued northwards to Cape Foulwind. The opportunities for fnarr-ing here should have been endless, but we failed to find a signpost at sufficient elevation to get a picture. The main purpose of the visit is to see the seal colony, which is at greater distance, and more protected from, the general public than the one at Red Rocks in Wellington. I didn’t have my long lens with me so the pics aren’t great. We did, however, witness a fight (it was more handbags at dawn, really) between two males, and also saw a seal pup.

Get off my rock!

Cuteness

Most of Westport was shut as it was Sunday, and they still do things like that round there. We found a café open for lunch, though, and after that we headed inland. We stopped to take pictures of the scenic scenery, and this is where stage two of our unpreparedness struck. Despite having managed brought insect repellent with us for just such an eventuality, we hadn’t actually taken the precaution of using it…largely as we hadn’t expected to leave the car. As we were returning, I noticed insects on my legs and swatted them off. Too late! The problem with sandflies (for it was indeed they) is that you don’t feel the bites, and you don’t notice until much later that you’ve been bitten. As it was, I suffered several bites. Fortunately, as antihistamines course through my blood throughout the summer due to the hay fever tablets I take each morning, it wasn’t too bad. Should really have learned this lesson by now, though.

We continued along the inland road until we reached Reefton. Again, not much was open, but we found a café for a refreshment stop, before heading back to Greymouth. There, we discovered that the hotel restaurant was closed because they only have one chef, and he needs a night off. We were therefore directed to the Monteith’s bar further down the road for dinner.

Hokitika

The first day we spent in the West Coast was centred on Hokitika. It was raining overnight (we could hear it on the roof of the hotel, we’re on the top floor with panoramic views over scenic Greymouth), and continued to rain as we set out to Hokitika. The west Coast is known for its rain: it’s the rainiest region in New Zealand, with some places measuring rainfall in metres rather than the more traditional millimetres.

Our first stop was the Hokitika Gorge, where we saw the spectacularly blue Hokitika river. This is due to the glacial meltwater and clay-sized rock particles in the water. It was still raining, so we decided not to do the entire one-hour loop track, but instead made it as far as the swing bridge and beach before turning back – about 15 minutes’ walk. We then headed into Hokitika town, in search of lunch. There’s not a great deal of choice so we ended up in Stumper’s Bar, where we had pub food. The rain was easing but never completely stopped throughout the day.

After lunch we went for a drive around Lake Kaniere, stopping at Dorothy Falls for some scenic pics. We then drove back the way we’d come to Greymouth, where the weather had cleared up a bit and we were able to explore the river bank a little, before going across the road to Sevenpenny, one of the few establishments in the town to catch our eye. 

Dorothy Falls

The weather forecast looks better for Sunday...

West Coast

We’ve lived in New Zealand for 12 years now, and I’ve never visited the West Coast. Nicola has been here once before, around 20 years ago. The region is known for its wet weather, but we thought we might get lucky. We left Wellington in sunshine, but there was a low brewing in the Tasman Sea…

We decided to use a reward voucher at Wellington Airport to use the lounge, as these were due to expire soon. This provided us with a free lunch, and we then flew to Christchurch. Our accommodation was centrally located on Bealey Avenue, and from there we walked into town for a pre-booked dinner at Twenty Seven Steps. This is in a newly-built area of central Christchurch, and it was noticeable – to me, at least – how ersatz it all looks. All the buildings are new, mostly characterless modern blocks, and some are built in old-style looks, but appear completely fake. I dunno, maybe it’ll look more natural in fifty years’ time, but at the moment it’s ugly.

No matter. Up the stairs (I didn’t count) and we were seated with efficiency, cocktails brought, and food ordered. The food was delicious – grilled sardines, venison and chocolate mousse for me, smoked salmon, hapuka and crème brûlée for Nicola – and the service excellent. Definitely gets a thumbs up from me!

We were up at sparrow fart the next morning to get on the Tranzalpine train at 8:15. I tried ordering a car from Zoomy, having checked availability whilst we were having breakfast. Looked like there were cars in the area around seven minutes away, so it seemed like no problem. When I tried after breakfast, that had gone out to 10 minutes. Then I clicked “book journey”: no cars available. What the actual? Why not? So a bit of a panicked call to a local cab company, who were fortunately able to send a car and got us to the station in time to get the train. Not trusting Zoomy again.

The Tranzalpine does exactly what it says on the tin: it goes across the country, via the Southern Alps. It’s a scenic journey, with scenery, and the train includes an open-air viewing car to be able to take it all in, and take unobstructed photos, as we traversed the Alps. We stopped at Arthur’s Pass and a number of passengers disembarked at that point for a day’s tramping in the Alps. We were sternly admonished not to wander off with these groups and miss the train, as they wouldn’t be checking us back on. We managed to safely reboard. I was on the lookout for kea, but there weren’t any. At Arthur’s Pass they add a few more engines to the train to complete the final incline, then it was downhill all the way as we headed into the West Coast and arrived at Greymouth at around lunchtime. We went and got ourselves a lunch at the Speight’s Alehouse opposite the station, then picked up our hire car for our final journey to the hotel (around 400m away), and checked in.

In the afternoon we had a look around Greymouth CBD. It’s not exactly a tourist town, more a functional place, so there’s not really much to sea. As the afternoon progressed, the rain set in…we dined in the hotel rather than venture out into what passes for dining experiences in Greymouth. Maybe tomorrow night?

 

 

Owls Do Cry

Owls Do Cry is an iconic New Zealand novel by iconic New Zealand writer Janet Frame. It was her first iconic book. She also wrote the iconic An Angel At My Table, filmed by iconic New Zealand director Jane Campion. Have you got that? It’s iconic.

Making a theatrical production of such a work has its challenges. The book doesn’t follow a traditional route, and is informed by Frame’s struggles with mental health, being variously institutionalised throughout her young life. One of the characters, Daphne, reflects this, and another, Toby, is epileptic. Because of this, Red Leap Theatre have decided to do an “interpretation”, rather than just adapt the book into a play. There’s a lot of singing, dancing, acrobatics, lighting effects, and general mayhem, interspersed with moments of lucidity that the ordinary punter can understand.

At the beginning of the performance, the cast handed out copies of the book to all of the audience, and then encouraged us to use the books as percussion instruments – variously tapping on them, banging them, and riffling through the pages. This is supposed to help us familiarise ourselves with the work.

For those of us who haven’t read the book, this performance is a confusing display of disparate elements without a real story to tie it together. Those that have read the book apparently say the same thing. Yes, it’s interesting to go and see new things in theatre; they don’t always work though. This one was a definite “miss” for me.

Afterwards we went for dinner at Field & Green. They’ve changed up their menu a bit to the now-ubiquitous “shared plates” and “we’ll bring you the food when it’s ready” model, which can be a bit tiresome…especially if the kitchen loses your order. After receiving the ceviche fairly promptly, we had a 30 minute wait before the next dish arrived. They gave us a free scoop of their legendary ice cream as an apology, but overall, the concept Needs Work. The food is good, though, when it finally arrives.

 

The Wasp

This week’s entertainment was at Circa Theatre, to see The Wasp. Normally we’d go together, but on this occasion, Nicola went and saw it a day early as she was auditioning for a part at Circa. The part for which she was trying out was not, alas, on the stage, but as an usher. Yes, she’ll be getting in to see some of the shows for free from now on (assuming she’s accepted!) whereas I’ll have to remain as a paying punter. On the downside, you don’t get to choose which show you have to ush (is that a word?), so may have to take the rough with the smooth.

As I was on my own I decided to try out Circa Theatre’s in-house food offerings. They have a short menu, from which I selected the dumplings. These were tasty, but somewhat overpowered by the chili sauce, which they were served in, rather than on the side.

The play is described as a thriller, and is a two-hander with Miriama McDowell and Bree Peters, both of whom we’ve seen before at Circa, notably in Burn Her. Heather and Carla were at school together, and meet again twenty years later. Their lives have diverged somewhat since school, and the meeting has been initiated by Heather, now living a comfortable middle-class existence, compared to Carla’s poverty. The difference between the two is not only class, however: there’s also the matter of babies. Heather has so far failed to conceive, whereas Carla is pregnant with her fifth. This becomes a crucial issue as the history of the two characters unfolds. Normally, I’d say “spoiler alert” but the play was first performed in the UK in 2015, so you may know how it ends. It’s also “in development” as a film, which means it may or may not come to fruition in the next twenty years.

As ever, the production is excellent, and the details are fascinating – down to Heather’s fluffy slippers. The ending is unexpected and shocking. Go see it!

Postmodern Jukebox

Postmodern Jukebox are a cover band. They do versions of (mostly) modern pop songs in various jazz styles, sometimes re-writing them so much that they’re almost unrecognisable from the original. What’s not to like about that?

First, of course, we went to dinner. Having been disappointed by Floriditas last time we went out, we decided to go whole hog and just do Logan Brown instead, which is always top quality. They, too, have been affected by inflation, and their three-course dinner is now $89; but even so, with cocktails and wine, it came to about the same as Floriditas, but with Logan Brown food. So guess where we’ll stick to next time?

 A short walk down Cuba Street took us to the Michael Fowler Centre, where we took our seats in the circle. The band came on, and played a load of mostly American hits – Thriller, I’ll Be There For You (the Friends theme song), Last Nite, Seven Nation Army, and All About That Bass were notable numbers. I’d post the entire set list, but setlist.fm don’t even acknowledge that the gig took place (although they do recognise Auckland’s), let alone remind me what the songs were.

At the beginning of the show, and in direct contravention of the usual rules applicable at Wellington venues, the MC explicitly allowed us to take pics and video, and encouraged us to post them online with a #PMJ tag. I’m sure there were a few pursed lips from venue staff who usually police the “no photography” clause with neo-nazi ruthlessness.

The songs are performed by various singers, sometimes solo, some duos and some in three-part harmony. Also included in the entertainment was a tap dancer, who tapped his way through a couple of numbers…fortunately not too many, because tap dancing, for me at least, wears thin pretty quickly.

Here’s a sample of them in action:

The party went on quite late, and we stayed up past 11 o’clock!

…Thursday Night, ‘Round Ten

You Am I have been around the Australian music scene for decades. Somehow, I have six of their albums…I think I bought the first one from a bargain bin because I vaguely recognised the name. It turned out to be You Am I’s #4 Record (that’s what it’s called) and contains, amongst other gems, the seminal Heavy Heart. They’ve never really hit the big time, but they’ve always been part of the background. They announced their tour of New Zealand in 2020, so you can imagine how that went. Yes, after two postponements, they managed to finally get to play at the San Fran in Cuba Street on Thursday.

The San Fran is one of those trendy places frequented by young people – you know, the ones who stay up past 10 o’clock. Doors opened at 8pm, so we decided to go for dinner at Floriditas first. We’ve not been there in a while, so thought we’d give it a go. The food was good, but not great. The price, however, was great, but not good. Yes, I know we’ve all been suffering from inflation, but frankly, we could dine at Capitol or Logan Brown for that…and the quality definitely wasn’t up to that level. They’re good for daytime café stuff, but won’t be going there again in the evening in a hurry.

We were amongst the first in at San Fran, so managed to secure that rarity – a table! The support band came on at around 9 o’clock, a local outfit called Voodoo Bloo, who play a kind of alternative rock/punk style, with a bass player whose energy, frankly, was exhausting just to watch. I googled whilst they were playing, and found out that their singer was called Rory. When they finished, they headed back out to the audience, so I introduced myself to him…us Rorys have to stick together! We had a brief chat, then he went to join the rest of the band. 

Voodoo Bloo

At around 10 o’clock, You Am I came on. They played a long set, maybe 90 minutes, of which I knew about a third. They’ve been busy releasing albums since my last purchase, which was Convicts in 2008. Guess I’ll have to go shopping again – their latest, The Lives Of Others, came out in 2021. They played a good mix of old and new, and generally rocked the house. I was a little surprised at the size of the audience – they’re an established band, but even playing a small venue like San Fran, the crowd was only about 200 or so (the capacity is 500)…this despite Wellington being the birthplace of bassist Andy Kent. Last time we were there was for The Muttonbirds, and the place was packed. 

Tim Rogers

They didn’t play an encore – as Tim Rogers explained, he considers them condescending. Around 1130 they finished up, and we headed home.

 

Oh, and if you’re wondering about the title of this post: ...Saturday Night, 'Round Ten

That's All, Folks!

It may surprise you to know that New Zealand is still operating under the Orange traffic light setting for Covid 19. Where nearly all other countries have dropped any kind of restrictions – as was evident on our recent trip to the UK and Europe, where there was very little, if any, mask-wearing in evidence – New Zealand still has restrictions on people entering the country, and requirements for testing upon entry. 

At least, up until yesterday. At the stroke of midnight, all restrictions for people in New Zealand, and those entering, were dropped. This brings us into line with…er…most of the rest of the world. There are some exceptions (medical facilities and aged care in particular), but we are now free from requirements to wear masks on buses, planes etc, and can come and go as we please from other countries. The government, rather than moving to the Green setting on the traffic light system, has scrapped the system completely. So poor Green never saw the light of day, it was only a theoretical setting.

So that’s it, until the next one.

 

Midnight Oil

Spring has sprung, so naturally the night we went to see Midnight Oil was the coldest night of the year. So far this winter has been warm and wet – the wettest on record – in New Zealand. Why am I telling you this? It’s a matter of gig logistics. Going to any kind of performance is easier in the summer, you just rock up in your t-shirt and shorts. In winter, you’re going from an extremely cold environment to one that gets extremely warm very quickly, as the heat thrown off by thousands of bodies, and also the lighting rig, heat up the interior. How to dress for that? Fortunately we were seated so could put our coats under the seat, but many people were sitting in thick outdoors coats throughout, and as for those downstairs in the mosh pit, what did they do?

This gig has been rescheduled twice. Originally planned for September 2021, then for May this year, it has been affected by the country’s Covid response. Also, fortunately, the venue has changed to the Michael Fowler Centre, which has much more comfortable seating than the Opera House. Just as a reminder, New Zealand is still officially in Orange traffic light setting, so we were supposed to wear masks throughout the performance. Ha ha, didn’t happen. We arrived in plenty of time, queued to buy a new t-shirt, grabbed a drink then found our seats in the upper gallery.

First on was support act Liz Stringer, who also sings as backing vocalist to the band. She’s released 6 albums in Australia, but only broken through with her most recent, First Time Really Feeling. She does a lot of explaining her songs, and the songs are quite long, so she only played four. And that was quite enough for me.

Liz Stringer

At 9 o’clock, the lights dimmed a second time, and the Oils came out fighting with King Of The Mountain, to get the crowd going. The set list contains a lot of new material, as they’ve released two works over the last couple of years: The Makarrata Project, a mini-album featuring collaborations with First Nations artists; and Resist, their final(?) album, released earlier this year. They also played some obscure album tracks from earlier in their career, so the set was very different from last time we saw them for the Great Circle tour in 2017, where it was all pretty much Greatest Hits. Also, we had a much better view of the stage this time, and were able to fully appreciate Peter Garrett’s trademark manic, spasmodic dancing style. Halfway through the set, Rob Hirst came out from behind his drum kit when they slowed down for a couple of acoustic guitar songs – In The Valley and Luritja Way – and the band performed from the front of the stage. We had a little dramedy for Blue Sky Mine, as MOGP* Dan was pulled up on stage…he’d been holding a sign that said “I’m a drummer, can I come and play drums on Blue Sky Mine?” They didn’t let him drum, but they gave him a tambourine and gave him strict instructions to stay in time!

The main set finished with Beds Are Burning and Forgotten Years, then a three-song encore ensued, starting with We Are Not Afraid, from the latest album, then Read About It and Hercules.

We finished up and re-donned our outdoor clothing for the walk to the car, and got home about 11:30. Is this the last time we’ll see them? They’ve packed it in twice before, and come back twice, so maybe not?

 

* Member Of (the) General Public

 

Les Misérables

Les Misérables is playing in Wellington for a three week run. We’d bought tickets, like, ages ago (i.e. before we left for Europe), so off we went. It’s the first production in the newly-strengthened St James Theatre, which has been closed for the last three years after being assessed for earthquake strengthiness, and falling short of the required standard.

We decided to go for cocktails first at CGR Merchant, one of Wellington’s premiere cocktail lounges on Courtenay Place. I had a gin infused with carrot cake concoction, and Nicola had a floral fizz of some kind. If they published their menu online I could tell you what they were. Our plan was then to trot around the corner to Mr. Go’s, our Go-to (see what I did there?) Asian food place. Unfortunately, it seems everyone else had had the same idea, and the place was packed. The maître d' found us some space at the bar, and we ordered dumplings, Korean chicken wings, and bok choi. Despite the busy-ness, the food was delivered in short order and we had plenty of time to consume it.

St James looks much the same as it did before, or at least as I remember it. Maybe there’s a few more columns in the foyer? We were in the stalls and had a good view of what was going on.

The production is a bit of a marathon. If you know the story, and the film, you’ll know that they do go on a bit…this one was over three hours including interval, so it was a bit wearing on the buttocks. The seats in St James haven’t been modernised, but they’re a bit better than the Opera House, at any rate. The interval didn’t come until we’d got through two hours of musicalizing. It was all done to a high standard with a revolving stage to assist with the scene changes, and a big barricade for the second half, and a cast of thousands…OK, maybe around thirty. We finished up at around quarter to eleven, and poured ourselves out into the darkness of Courtenay Place.

 

The Trojan War

We’re back in Wellington, and it’s the middle of winter, but nevertheless there’s stuff going on! We got back just in time to book (now sold out) tickets to go and see The Trojan War, as performed by fave alternative drama collective, A Slightly Isolated Dog.

But first, inevitably, dinner. Now Wellington On A Plate is in full swing at the moment, however we managed to get a table at Capitol, where we haven’t been in simply ages – largely because we’ve been in the Northern hemisphere. You know, that one. It’s also handily Bluff oyster season, so I was able to order a half dozen of these delectable beauties for my starter, whilst Nicola had the Dine Wellington dish, a crayfish soufflé. For the main I had veal saltimbocca, and it duly leapt into my mouth. Nicola had the gnocchi. The quality at Capitol remains consistent, and it’s one of the best places to go in Wellington.

Then a quick dash around the corner to BATS Theatre in the driving rain – the whole of New Zealand is in the midst of a tropical deluge at the moment, and it’s causing major problems in some parts of the country. We were just in time as the doors were opening. There’s no allocated seating at BATS, so you need to get in quick to get a good seat. We were greeted by members of the troupe as we entered – this is part of their modus operandi, as they assess victims for the audience participation parts of the show. We haven’t been to an ASID show for donkey’s years – the last one was Don Juan in 2016 – but I’ve been following their adventures on Facebook, waiting for them to return to Wellington.

Unlike most theatrical productions, they start by announcing that we can take as many pictures as we want – it’s encouraged, so here’s some:

Paris in blonde wig

 

Achilles

The Greek fleet sets sail for Troy

Grand finale

As usual, the show is an anarchic mix of acting, storytelling, audience participation, and songs. The chief characters – Helen, Paris, and Achilles – are played at various stages by all the actors, who don special headgear to indicate the character: a veil for Helen, a blonde wig for Paris, and an improvised helmet (made from a plastic bucket and a broom head) for Achilles. Also in the audience are the gods – Zeus, Aphrodite, Athena, and Eris, who all have parts to play. And Fate is a major recurring character as well. The story is told in a reasonably easy to understand way, but is interspersed with various side plots. It inevitably ends with (spoiler alert) the building of the wooden horse and the sacking of Troy.

Did I mention that they do all this in cod French accents? It’s their signature move…they’re actually playing characters, playing the characters in the play, all the time. It’s bizarre, it’s hilarious, and if it comes anywhere near you, you should go and see it!

Hereford

We’re travelling down to Jonny & Sarah’s wedding in Gloucestershire and decided to stop off on the way at Hereford. Sattie directed us to a car park; when we arrived there was plenty of space but no machine. A sign informed us that the only way to pay is via the app, so I downloaded the app, and tried to use it. In this I was hindered by the fact that it was in Russian. Fortunately there was another car park round the corner, with a machine, so I deleted the app and we parked there instead.

A short walk into town and we spotted a sign which directed us towards the cathedral. Hereford cathedral has all the usual cathedral-ly things about it, and we looked at all of them. This included some old stained glass, and some newer stained glass. It also had the tomb of Sir Richard Pembridge, a three-legged knight. This is due to his effigy having lost a leg when it was moved from Hereford Friary to the cathedral. A replacement was made of wood, but later an alabaster one was made, and the wooden one banished to a shelf in the library. It is now displayed next to his tomb.

Modern stained glass window

I'm Sir Richard Pembroke "The Peg"

...with my extra leg

What Hereford also has is the Mappa Mundi, a medieval map of the world. It doesn’t actually resemble much of a modern-day map, although it is surprisingly accurate at least to the placement of some of the countries on it. This is the main draw, although they twin it with the chained library. This does exactly what it says on the tin, and was a 17^th century solution to the problem of books going missing, not being returned etc. The books are literally chained to the shelves. There is a desk underneath for you to study the book at, but the books never leave the library.

A modern, more legible version of the mappa mundi

 

The chained library

Afterwards we found a little café bar down an alleyway to have some lunch in, then drove on via the Wye Valley. We stopped at Tintern Abbey as we spotted it in time to turn off. The abbey is, of course, a ruin (that Henry VIII again), but the remains are spectacular. Part of the church is not accessible at the moment as they are carrying out restoration work, but there’s enough to see and plenty of explanatory plaques dotted around the place to explain what went where. 

A short drive further on and we arrived at our destination. Best Western hotels is possibly one of the most inaptly named chains…Average Western would be more accurate. But it’s only for one night.

Shrewsbury

Nicola spent the morning get her hair and nails done, so we met up for lunch, and then went looking at Shrewsbury. Put like that, it sounds easy, but it wasn’t. I had high hopes of finding a parking space in the centre of town, but eventually, after a bit of circling, found one at St Chad’s Terrace. This is nowhere near where I’d dropped Nicola, or so I thought, and also I was navigating by Google Maps. This isn’t a great idea in Shrewsbury has, for some reason, it has very poor phone reception. Eventually I found the café where she was waiting, and we managed to find somewhere for a bite to eat.

The heatwave is under way again in the UK, and the temperature was heading towards 30°C already. The town has some picturesque (I need a new word for picturesque) buildings, and also some old churches. The church of St Mary’s contains some 15^th century stained glass windows, originally from a church in Trier, which were bought in 1788 and installed here (the original church in Trier was being demolished). It's also home to a memorial to Admiral Benbow, originally from Shrewsbury.

The Old Market Place

Picturesqueness

St Mary's church

After that we had a look at the castle. This is now an army museum dedicated to the Shropshire regiment, and details all their campaigns back in time to the 18^th century campaigns in Europe, up to the present day. There’s not much actual castle to look at, which was a bit disappointing. In the gardens there’s a sculpture of an egg which is part of the Shrewsbury sculpture trail. We didn’t spot any other items. 

What, you egg?

By this time we were running out of steam, so we headed back to St Chad’s Terrace. Whilst there it seemed churlish not to visit St Chad’s church, which turns out to be a circular church. Quite unusual! It was more modern than other churches, so other than its design, it was unremarkable. 

Circular pews!

Circular ceiling

That about concludes our historic adventures. The next couple of days will revolve around Johnny’s wedding, and then we head back to the far side of the world.