Sunday, July 12, 2009

THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES, NEW ZEALAND


If you want to see the Treaty of Waitangi, you can visit the National archives of New Zealand. Inside the National Archives, turn right for the air-conditioned vault where the Treaty of Waitangi and several dozen other important historical documents are stored. the Treaty itself looks rather torn and battered (it travelled around the country for several months until the 213 signatures necessary for its implementation were collected), but it is the genuine article.

The National Archives is located at 10 Mulgrave Street. Open : weekdays 9am-5pm, Sat 9am-1pm. Free Admission. Or, you can visit their website : Click here.

You may also want to visit Old St. Paul's Church. the place is not far from the National Archives, turn right out of the National Archives and walk straight ahead for 1 or 2 minutes to the church.

Read also :
- Old St. Paul's Church
- Hotels in New Zealand
- Jakarta Indonesia
- Oriental Bay Beach

OLD ST. PAUL'S CHURCH


Old St. Paul’s is one of New Zealand’s most important historic places and magnificent example of timber Gothic Revival architecture. Constructed from the selection of the best New Zealand timbers, the church’s special qualities have been retained and enhanced by a series of seamlessly incorporated additions. As the principal Anglican cathedral church of Wellington from 1866-1964, it is a place of national historic significance.

This lovely church was scheduled for demolition to make way for a new cathedral, but in 1966 it was handed over to the Historic Places Trust. Now it is used for a variety of purposes, music and drama events and special services such as weddings, funerals.

Old St. Paul’s Church open from 10am-5pm. It is located at 34 Mulgrave Street. Turn left out the Old St. Paul’s, then walk straight ahead, you will find National Archives, New Zealand.


Related articles :
- St.Mary's Cathedral
- Wellington Mosque
- Kubah Mas Mosque
- Haka Dance Videos
- Cuba Carnival
- Colossal Squid in Te Papa Museum

Friday, July 10, 2009

NEW ZEALAND HOLIDAYS


Every Countries have their own holidays including New Zealand. Holidays in New Zealand are :

New Year’s Day and next day (January 1 and 2)
Waitangi Day (commemorating the treaty of Waitangi between the Maori chieftains and the British - February 6)
Good Friday
Easter Monday
ANZAC Day (Australian New Zealand Army Corps) and Memorial Day (April 25)
Queen Birthday (first Monday in June)
Labour Day (last Monday in October)
Christmas (December 25)
Boxing Day (December 26)

Note that in Wellington, Anniversary Day on January 21 is a holiday. Anniversary Day is celebrated in Auckland on January 29.

Read too :
- Anzac Day
- Daylight Saving Time
- Interislander Experience

MUSEUM OF WELLINGTON


One of museums in New Zealand is Museum of Wellington City and Sea. This museum is located in restored Bond Store dating from 1892 in the old harbour area of the Wellington city. The museum will lead you through a fascinating journeys of discovery about Wellington’s land, sea and people, their pas, present and future using traditional museum techniques, interactive exhibits, holographs and a huge cinema screen.

Museum of Wellington City and Sea open weekdays at 10am-5pm, weekends until 5.30pm, in summer until 6pm. Admission is Free. It is locate in the Bond Sore, Queens Wharf alongside Jervois Quay.
For further information you may visit Museum Wellington Website.

Looking for interesting places to visit in Wellington? Read too :
- Parliament Buildings, one hour tour
- Oriental Bay Beach
- Wellington Botanic Garden
- Hotels in New Zealand

GETTING AROUND IN NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand has 3 big airports : Auckland, Wellington and Chrischurch. Auckland is the main international gateway for passenger arriving in New Zealand or into Chrischurch if they want to fly to the South Island. Wellington only handles flights to and from Australia.

Air New Zealand which is the national airline, has flight to Australia, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, USA and Europe, directly or via Pacific Islands.

Auckland’s’ international terminal has visitor facilities and information centres, sightseeing and onward travel arrangements. Special elevators and toilet facilities are available for the disabled. Chrischurch and Wellington have similar facilities. All passenger leaving on international flights pay an airport departure tax NZ$25.

Taxis are expensive around NZ$50. Cheaper options are the Airbus, cost NZ$15 one way, or the Super Shuttle, a door to door service that can be booked in advance or at the Information Desk at the airport, cost NZ$24 one way.

Three main airlines you can contact :

Air New Zealand,
Auckland Travel Centre, cnr Customs & Queen sts, Auckland
Tel: (09) 3362424 or toll free 0800737000
Qantas Airways,
Administration and Travel Centre, 191 Queen St. Auckland
Tel: (09) 3578700 or toll free 0800808767
Origin Pacific Airways ,
Trent Drive, Nelson Airport, Nelson
Tel: (03) 5472020 or toll free 0800302302

Read too :
- Hotels in New Zealand
- Backpacker Accommodation
- Karori Sanctuary Wellington
- Oriental Bay Beach

Thursday, July 9, 2009

THE WELLINGTON BOTANIC GARDEN


One of interesting places to visit in New Zealand is Botanic Garden. The Botanic Garden is situated in Wellington and is easily accessed. it features 25 hectares of unique landscape, protected native forest, conifers, specialised plant collections, colourful floral displays, and views over Wellington city.

The Gardens feature a large Victorian-style glasshouse, the Begonia House, the Lady Norwood Rose Garden and the Treehouse Visitor Centre. There is a large children's play area, a duck pond. Large sculptures and carvings are located throughout the garden. Entry is free!


There are many entrances to the Garden including from Tinakori Road, Glenmore Street, Salamanca Road, Upland Road and the Cable Car. Also, There are several ways to get there :

- Cable Car - from Cable Car Lane, off Lambton Quay. Leaves every 10 minutes to the top of the Botanic Garden.
- Bus - catch the bus (No.3 Karori Park bus) at Lambton Quay and get off at the Centennial entrance on Tinakori Road and the Founders Gates on Glenmore Street.
- Walking - the most popular route is from The Terrace through Bolton Street Memorial Park, through the Lady Norwood Rose Garden to the Main Garden. This takes about 20 minutes.
- Car - the only public carpark in the garden is adjacent to the Lady Norwood Rose Garden.

Parking is limited to two hours if you take a car. Access is through Centennial Entrance on Tinakori Road. Parking is also available along Glenmore Street.

Open Hours :

Garden: Daily Dawn to dusk
Treehouse Visitor Centre: Monday - Friday 9.00am - 4.00pm
(Closed weekends and public holidays)

Begonia House Gift Shop:
October - March Daily 9.00am - 5.00pm
April - September Daily 9.00am - 4.00pm
(Closed 1-2 January, Good Friday : until 1.00pm, 25-26 December)

Read too :
- Sunday Market in Wellington
- Haka Dance
- Backpacker Accommodation
- Jakarta Indonesia

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

MEALS

When you are in New Zealand and look for places to eat, you can go to tea shops. Tea shops usually serve lunch, cakes, buns, coffee, and tea. In smaller towns, some serve all three meal. In cities, look for take-away shops or for regular sit-down meals. They offer meat pies, sausages rolls, curry rolls, sandwiches, cakes, coffee and tea.

However, in the countryside, the restaurants are few and far between. In the countryside most serve only fish and chips, a few meat dishes and cakes. Or you can try pubs. They are usually good place to eat, serving both hot and cold food. Pubs are open 11am to 11pm Monday through Saturday. They are closed on Sunday. Note that ‘entrĂ©e” doesn’t mean main course. It means a small serving of a hot dish before the main course.

Most hotel bars are open from 11am to 10pm. Bottles of liquor can be bought only at the bottle department of pubs or at bottle stores. There are also wine shops which sell only wine.
Licensed restaurants can serve drinks only with meals. Some fish and chips shops sell shark, often called “flake” or “lemon fish”.

When you are in New Zealand, try :
Tamarillo (sometimes called tree tomatoes), an egg-shaped red or yellow fruit eaten as a fruit or served as a vegetable.
Kumara, a kind a yam, served roasted as an accompaniment to roast meat
Babaco, a yellow fruit that tastes like a banana and looks like a papaya
Feijoa, a round fruit, somewhat like a guava

For a typical New Zealand dessert , try :
Pavlova, a dessert od meringue and whipped cream with passion fruit or kiwi fruit
Dundee cake which is much like fruitcake

In all eating places of all types, look for meat pies and try them if there is a sign saying homemade. At tea time, eat scones and pikelets, pancakes served cold with butter and jam or whipped cream. Enjoy your meals!

Read too, interesting places to visit :
- Jakarta Indonesia
-
Wellington Botanic Garden
-
Parliament Buildings, one hour tour

Sunday, July 5, 2009

TELEPHONES IN NEW ZEALAND

Telecom and Vodafone are two telecommunication providers in New Zealand. However, Telecom New Zealand still the major provider, offers both national and international services and operates two types of colour coded payphones : phone card booths (green) and credit card booths (yellow). Coin phones are blue.

Public phones are located on streets, in shopping malls, and in post offices. Most public phones now use phone cards. You can purchase telephone cards at gas stations, post offices or any shop displaying the lime-green “phone cards are available” sign. They are available in denomination of NZ $5, $10, $20, $50. You can make direct dial international calls from most phone boxes. Hotels and motels will add charges for international calls.

A local call from a public phone costs 20 cents a minute. International calls have a minimum charger of NZ $3. For all emergencies dial 111 and state whether you need police, an ambulance or the fire brigade. There is no charge.
Local operator : 010
International operator : 0170
International access code : 00
Please note : toll-free numbers beginning with 0800 are free only within New Zealand
International dialling code : New Zealand (00) 64 or +64
Please note : omit the 0 from the area code when calling from overseas, eg. For Auckland, dial +64 9 1234567, not +64 09 1234567

GREETING AND CONVERSATION

To know about New Zealanders greeting and good subjects in conversations, here are some tips that might help :

With a new acquaintances, always shake hands when greeting and leaving. Wait for women to extend their hands. Don’t shake hands with people you see frequently.
Expect New Zealanders to greet you by saying “Hello” or “Hi”. visitors should simply say “Hello”. Start out by addressing people as “Mr”, “Mrs”, “Mr”, etc, but expect New Zealanders to switch to first names very soon. After the first meeting or two, doctors and professors don’t expect you to use their titles. The traditional greeting among Maori tribes people is to rub noses.

Good subject include national and international politics, weather, sports especially rugby, cricket, fishing and hunting. And what you have been doing and plan to do in New Zealand. It's suggested to avoid subjects such as racial issues and personal questions. Note that the term “kiwi” refers to any New Zealander, but it is not usually applied to the Maoris (the original natives of the country).

Related articles :
- Parliament Buildings
- Karori sanctuary
- Jakarta, Indonesia
- Te Papa Museum
- Haka Dance Videos
- Cuba Carnival

Sunday, June 28, 2009

HOTELS IN NEW ZEALAND


Make hotel reservations well in advance if you plan to be in New Zealand during its main holiday season from mid-December through the end of January, make hotel reservations well in advance. If you’re staying in off peak season from May through September, or if you are travelling with children, ask about reductions.

In expensive hotels, expect an electric kettle (called a “jug”) and tea, coffee, sugar and milk either in your room or in a centrally located room. Remember, when you finish using the kettle, be sure to switch it off, so the heating element doesn’t burn out.Inquire at your hotel about laundry facilities where you can do your own laundry.

If you want bed&breakfast accommodations, look for guesthouses or private hotels. In both you’ll have hot and cold water, a shared bath and a large breakfast. Guesthouses sometimes serve dinner, but only to guests, while private hotels serve all meals both to residents and non-residents. Ask if you need to reserve for dinner when you check in.

For another way to meet native New Zealanders, you may stay in motel flats which are usually operated by owners. Usually flats consist of a lounge with sofa beds, one or two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. You may expect to make your own beds and do your own dishes.

Or, are you interested in staying in a backpacker accommodation?? Check out the article here.

Friday, June 26, 2009

WELLINGTON MOSQUE, NEW ZEALAND


If you are a Moslem who live or stay in Wellington, and want to do Friday prayer, you can go to Wellington Mosque. Wellington Mosque is located at 7-11 Queens Drive, Kilbirnie, Wellington. You can take a car or go by bus from Wellington City. It's only take 20 minutes, and you can use Day Tripper ticket.

Every Friday a lot of moslem people from different nationalities such as Arab, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan come to do Friday prayer. After that, they will get back to work again, or go to a supermarket that is not far from there such as PakNsave and Woolworth.

Read too : Oriental Bay Beach, Jakarta-Indonesia, Parliament Buildings, or watch interesting videos : Haka dance Videos.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

HAKA DANCE VIDEOS

Wanna know what the Haka dance is? These videos below represent the different performances of Haka by New Zealand sport team (rugby) to challenge the other team. Take a look. It’s interesting!






HAKA DANCE

If we visit New Zealand, we might see a haka dance. A Haka is the traditional dance form of the Maori of New Zealand. It is a posture dance with shouted accompaniment, performed by a group. War haka were originally performed by warriors before a battle, proclaiming their strength and power in order to intimidate the opposition. Haka are not exclusively performed by men, but can be performed by women, mixed groups or by children. Today haka are performed for various reason, as integral part of formal or official welcome ceremonies for distinguished visitors, or to acknowledge great achievement or occasions. Various actions are employed such as the poking out of the tongue (as challenge), shouting, slapping the hands against the body and stamping of the feet to express courage, annoyance, joy or other feelings relevant to the purpose of the occasion.

What is the Haka Dance like? Let's watch the Haka Dance Videos. It's very interesting!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

TAMAN ISMAIL MARZUKI

Jakarta is overflowing with hip clubs and bars catering to all tastes. But if we want a snapshot of Jakarta's current artistic pulse head to Taman Ismail Marzuki in Cikini, Jakarta Pusat. Taman Ismail Marzuki, also known as TIM, is the Jakarta Art Centre that located on Cikini Raya Street 37, Jakarta Pusat - Indonesia. Those who are looking for traditional and contemporary arts might find this place useful. This complex acquired its name from the great Indonesian musician, Ismail Marzuki, whose statue guards the entrance gate.

TIM hosts the Institut Kesenian Jakarta (Jakarta Institute for the Arts), Jakarta Platenarium, exhibitions halls, an indoor and outdoor theatre, cineplex, an archieves building, two art galleries. The arts institute is the only one of its kind in Indonesia and the first local college entirely dedicated to the training of performing and visual arts.

There are street performers, restaurants and bars offering basic but tasty food and drink from all over Indonesia. A monthly programmed of events, available at hotel counters, includes exhibitions, plays, musical and poetry recitals, dance performances, folk art and drama from the various regions of Indonesia.

Taman Ismail Marzuki is located not far from St.Mary's Kathedral, Istiqlal Mosque and Monumen Nasional in Jakarta-Indonesia. Other interesting place to visit in Jakarta is Beautiful Indonesia in Miniature Park.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS, ONE HOUR TOUR


When you are in Wellington, the Capital City of New Zealand, don't forget to visit the historic Parliament Buildings. Parliament's Visitor Centre is open everyday. It is in the ground floor foyer of the Beehive (also known as the Executive Wing), you come in through Parliament’s main entrance between the Beehive and the steps of Parliament House, and follow the signs.

You can get free tour guided by specially trained staff, depart on the hour from the Visitor Centre (the Beehive). Tour duration is one hour. Tour visitors must check their belongings into secure storage before joining a tour, so please arrive 15 minutes before the hour. Tour route/times subject to change. Groups of 10 or more need to book.

The Parliament Building is located on Molesworth Street, Wellington, and only 5 minutes of walk from the Wellington railway station. In the sunny day, a lot of people spend their afternoon to eat their lunch or sandwich in parliament grounds, or just sitting on the green grass park enjoying the sun and chatting with their friends.

If you get to Wellington someday, don't forget to visit Parliament buildings and do one hour tour. and Admission Free!
For further information, visit the Parliament website here , and more pictures of Parliament Buildings in Wellington. Don't forget to visit other interesting places such as Wellington Cable Car, Karori Sanctuary, Colossal Squid in Te Papa Museum.

KARORI SANCTUARY, WELLINGTON


While you are in Wellington, you have an opportunity to see New Zealand's rarest wildlife in its natural environment by visiting The Karory Sanctuary. It's located just ten minutes from Central Wellington. You can reach the place by car or by bus.

In my opinion, bus is the cheapest choice. with only five dollars New Zealand, we can buy day tripper ticket. Day tripper ticket is designed to give us freedom to go around Wellington by using only one ticket. We are able to catch bus or get off in every bus station just by showing the ticket to the driver. Ticket is available at the bus. Tell the bus driver that you want to buy day tripper ticket then pay five dollars.

Anyway, if you want to see the New Zealand National Mascot, the Kiwi, in their wildlife, the Karory sanctuary is the right place to visit. Tour provide us encounters with birds and reptiles normally just found on offshore islands. Walking track include a cruise accross the lower lake and chance to see the Tuatara, New Zealand's living dinosaur. The best time to do the tour is when darkness has settled. If we are lucky, we can see the Kiwi. I suggest don't make a noise that can make the animals run while you do the tour.

There are different prices between day and night tours. Day tour is only $14 New Zealand, but the night tour is more expensive at NZ$ 60 (guided tour). For further information, you can visit the Karory Sanctuary Experience ZELANDIA website (click here).

Read also interesting articles about : Wellington Cable Car, Parliament Buildings, Oriental Bay Beach.

SEAVIEW MARINA IN EASTBOURNE




KUBAH MAS MOSQUE

One of the largest and the magnificent mosque in Indonesia is Golden Dome Mosque (Masjid Kubah Mas). Owned by a business woman from Serang named Dian Juriah Maimun Al-Rasyid, this mosque is also known as a Masjid Dian Al-Mahri.

The domes, the pillars, the chandeliers, and the ornaments are covered by pure 24 carat gold. The materials used, such as gold, chandeliers, and granite were imported from Italy, Spain, Norway, and Brazil.

The mosque was built on 80 hectare land. It features of fruit trees and flowers planted around the mosque, halls and a huge parking area. Since the mosque was opened for public, lots of people from Jakarta and outside Jakarta come to see it.

Not far from the mosque, in the same area, there is a huge open hall. Many people are having picnics there, they are spreading their mats, sitting on them, and eating their food brought from home. Near the hall, toilet rooms are available.


Besides Kubah Mas Mosque, Indonesia has many beautiful mosques. Read : Istiqlal Mosque and Mosques in Indonesia.

MOSQUES IN INDONESIA


If you want to make a trip in Indonesia especially to see all 'Houses of Allah' (mosques), besides Masjid Istiqlal and Masjid Kubah Mas, here are some of mosques that you might like to visit :

1. Masjid Baiturrahman, Banda Aceh (Click here and here)
2. Masjid At-Tin, Taman Mini, Jakarta (Click here)
3. Masjid Agung, Demak (Click here)
4. Masid Raya Makassar, Makassar (Click here)
5. Masjid Agung, Surabaya (Click here)
6. Masjid Atta'awun in Puncak-Jawa Barat, surrounded by nice tea-plantation area. (Click here)

Friday, June 12, 2009

NEW ZEALAND MAPS IN TE PAPA MUSEUM

When you visit Te Papa Museum, you can see these maps, written in English and Maori languages. Interesting.



Read too :
- The interislander Experience
- Haka Dance Videos
- Oriental Bay Beach
- Indonesia

Thursday, June 11, 2009

DO AND DON'TS

New Zealanders are renowned for their friendliness and hospitality, and have an outgoing, relaxed attitude towards visitor. However, there are etiquettes we must follow.

All Maori tribes, many sub-tribes and community groups, and even universities and schools still have their marae (courtyard/square/plaza). The protocol governing marae is highly formalised an it is very important that you seek permission before entering the whare runanga (meeting house) on any marae, and walk around the marae rather than across it. Footwear must be removed before going inside a whare runanga. It is more than likely, however, that your visit to a marae will be part of an organised tour, in which case you will be told what to do.

The Maori greeting kia ora, which means both ‘good health’ and ‘welcome’ accompanied by pressing noses, is answered with the same words.

About smoking, New Zealand is a health conscious nation and smoking is on the decline (it has the lowest rate of tobacco consumption of any First World country). Smoking is banned on all public transport and, since 2004, in all indoor workplaces, including restaurants, bars, and clubs.

New Zealand has neither mammals nor snakes but it does has small sandflies. If you are bitten by these insects, try to refrain from scratching for 30 minutes, the itching will go away.

It is also worth noting that the weather can be highly variable from one area to the next. One day you might be comfortable in a T-shirt and shorts, the next you might be better off in a rain jacket! the best advice is to come prepared for highly changeable condition.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS IN NEW ZEALAND







ONE DAY IN AUTUMN

One the way to Eastbourne I saw these lovely ducks and seagulls enjoying the fine sunny autumn in the Waiwhetu Stream, at River Drive, Lower Hutt




THE INTERISLANDER EXPERIENCE


Anyone who has ever done a road trip of New Zealand will have indelible memories of their Cook Strait crossing.

Interislander has three ferries, Arahua, Kaitaki and Aratere. They are big and have powerful ship. With over 5000 sailings each year, there will always be a crossing that fits in with your schedule. And, because all three are able to carry vehicles, it easy to take your rental between the two islands. Just drive on and drive off. With your car safely parked you can enjoy the crossing. Be sure to have plenty of film, or memory in your camera. How knows, you may even be lucky enough to be catch sight of a dolphin or three as you cruise along.

If you are feeling hungry, there are cafes and bars in which you can enjoy a meal or a light snack, a soft drink or a glass or two of beers and wines.

As well as offering some fantastic views of the great outdoors, Interislander has plenty to keep you entertained indoors as well. You can catch a new release movie in the onboard cinema, And for the kids, Interislander’s children’s play area are available and will keep them, hopefully, amused for the whole voyage.

ORIENTAL BAY BEACH

Oriental Bay – Wellington’s favourite beach and waterfront walk – is a suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, located close to the Central Business District on Wellington Harbour. It has the closest beach to the centre of the city called Oriental Bay Beach. Just to the left of the bay is the Clyde Quay Marina and Freyberg Pool.

Oriental Bay and the surrounding shoreline has recently been renovated. In December 2002, the Wellington City Council began building a bigger beach at Oriental Bay. The project involved enlarging and enhancing the existing Freyberg and Oriental Bay beaches, and adding a new beach east of the Band Rotunda - an area that used to be covered by stones.

The upgrade involved over 27,000 tonnes of sand. The sand for the new beaches was imported from Takaka, near Golden Bay - Nelson in the South Island of New Zealand. The beach's total sand area is now four times larger than before and the Freyberg grass area is twice as large. This renovation has made the promenade along Oriental Bay an integral part of the seafront walk that extends all along Central Wellington. The shoreline is lined with numerous hotels and car park.

Along with the beach expansion, a pier, new toilet and changing facilities, playground have been built, better lighting put in, extra car parks have been created and new coastal structures built to hold the beach in place – all of which make Oriental Bay the perfect place to catch some sun and enjoy a day at the beach.

Oriental Bay Beach is also one of the best spots in the capital to catch the last of the sun’s rays in the evening. It’s where picnickers head with their sandwiches, fish ‘n chips and glasses of wine and where people from all over the city come to walk, swim, run, cycle or just sit and enjoy an ice cream in the evening sun.

While you are in Wellington, dont forget to visit other interesting places e.g. Wellington Cable Car, Te Papa Museum, Karori Sanctuary, Parliament Buildings.

Friday, June 5, 2009

SATURDAY MARKET IN LOWER HUTT


Need to get groceries on Saturday? In Lower Hutt , there is an outdoor market that operates at the Riverbank car park every Saturday from 10am to 2pm. This market focus on fresh produce (fruits and vegetables), arts, crafts and second-hand items. If you live near Lower Hutt, this is easily the cheapest place to get your fruit and vegetables. There is plenty of car parking available. People from different places, for example from Eastbourne, Petone, Tawa, go to this vegetable market. If you take a car, I suggest you to come early to get the best quality fruit and veg and an easy park. The Saturday market is located at Riverbank car park in Lower Hutt. The main entrance is off Rutherford St, just north of Countdown Supermarket. Remember dont park in the Countdown carpark or you may get your vehicle CLAMPED.
If you live in Wellington, you don't have to go to Saturday Market. Wellington has Sunday Market. Visit related article here. read too : Oriental Bay Beach
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