A Final Stroll Through Queen's Park

Kia Ora!

One half block from our Bourke Street flat in Invercargill is the 80 hectare Queen’s Park, part of an extensive green belt that extends through the middle of central the city incorporating Otepuni Park, Thompson’s Bush, and more. This has been a place for exploration, education, and exercise. My final stroll before we say good-bye to Invercargill for this year is extensive as I review scenes from many walks in the park.

Activities abound. One can visit the a-bit-of-everything museum (art gallery, gift shop, travel agency, history, live tuataras), cycle, read, have a bit to eat at the teahouse, or just laze about. The kids love the playgrounds which include a 2-story play castle and a water garden. While strolling the many paths I have come across secret and hidden places, a busy gardener, a tree hugger, and a young man in meditation sitting on a tree stump. (I didn’t want to interrupt to ask for a photo.) The park houses a cricket crease, tennis courts, and an 18-hole golf course.

Captive and free ranging critters abound. The zoo animals are minimal but distinctive. The pigs are a genetically pure breed that evolved in isolation on sub-Antarctic islands and are used for research in pancreatic transplantation. The magnificent elk is typical of those hunted in the bush. I found it hard to photograph the birds but the large wood pigeon high in the tree seemed to pose for me.

 Many of the gardens are formal with some labeled like arboretum specimens, but informal spaces are there to be discovered. One might turn a corner into a shady copse and discover a statue or small pool.  I became quite fascinated by the many different kinds of trees and shrubs in the park and got carried away with many photos of the huge rimu trees. They made me think of the trees from The Lord of the Rings.

 Though I will write more about our time on South Island from time to time, we say good-by to our pleasant time here and our good friends. The Kiwi Consort's colleagues at Southland Hospice gave us a fitting gift and reminder of our time here. Amusingly in honor of all the whining I am sure they listened to nearly every day, we received a 2010 calendar of beautiful photos of New Zealand ... weather! As we left the weather was sunny and warm. Who can remember anything else?

Cheers, Kiwi Traveler