Month: April 2016

April 25 – June 4, 2016

Parks and gardens lend an undertone to the feeling of a city, even if you never get around to visiting them. I’ve definitely noticed the nicest cities always have beautiful parks, and places that lack them (like my home town of Los Angeles) can feel a bit barren. Nelson, not surprisingly, has some lovely parks.

(Click to enlarge/scroll through any of the photo galleries below.)

The town of Nelson sits sprawled out under a hill called Church Hill. There are steps that lead up to the beautiful Christ Church Cathedral, which sits at the top and is the only structure on the hill. The rest is parkland which is, arguably, the most beautiful in Nelson.

The most famous parkland is Queens Gardens, a smallish but very pretty botanical garden. This is the park which seems to draw in the most people.

Then there’s the small but significant Anzac Park, more of a square really, with a war memorial and lovely gardens.

The surprise park, for us, was one we stumbled across while walking around town: Albion Square, a historical reserve. It has some small historical structures, but what made it so special to us was its collection of exotic and fascinating pine trees. The square isn’t all that big, but the magnificent trees and peaceful surroundings make it will worth a visit!

Overall, a key to Nelson’s charm is it’s devotion to plants of all kinds. Trees are everywhere, flowering plants spill over from hanging baskets on the lampposts, and gardens are nurtured. It really makes it stand out as a particularly beautiful place. –Cyndi

April 25 – June 4, 2016

It’s always nice when a town has great markets. Here in Nelson, we had two big Countdown Supermarkets. (In New Zealand, many independent supermarkets are becoming Countdowns so they often end up just down the road from each other.)

Aside from Countdown was a fantastic Mediterranean market called Prego where we stocked up on our favorite brand of fresh pasta, cheeses, breads, olives, and other assorted goodies. There was also a small Greek market in town (Greek Foods Ltd), and a place called the Bin Inn, which specializes in Wholefoods (grains, nuts, healthy stuff). There was also a bakery or three. (Below, photos of Prego and Greek Foods Ltd.)

Then there were the weekly markets. Most people recommended the big market on Saturday, but we went once and it was so big and crowded that we didn’t feel like going back (we’re easily overwhelmed). Wednesday’s market, on the other hand, was quite small and not crowded, had some nice booths, including one that sold great Cuban sandwiches, and another that sold delicious South African sausage sandwiches called boerewors. We became big fans of that low-key Nelson Farmers Market and much enjoyed our lunches there! (Below photos from the Wednesday and Saturday markets in Nelson).

Since we didn’t have a car, we got provisioned up by shopping frequently. Countdown supermarket was the final place we’d pass on our daily trip home from town, and we’d just duck in and buy a few things, including ingredients for that night’s dinner (which I found a really enjoyable way to shop!). –Cyndi

April 25 – June 4, 2016

There are basically two essential components for us to love a chosen “home base,” (a place we stay put for a few weeks). The first I’ve covered: feeling comfortable and happy at the marina (or moorage, anchorage, etc.). The other is having a pleasant town or city nearby.

Of course much of this depends on being able to get to that town or city. In the north island, we had a car so we could go anywhere, but in the south island we were car-less. We worried that it would be a long walk to town, but come to find out there’s an easy walk to a riverside promenade that goes right to the heart of town. The total time is about 15 minutes, but it’s a beautiful, pleasant walk so it seems short. We made this walk at least once a day and always enjoyed it. (Below, a few photos of why we liked this walk so much–click to enlarge and scroll.)

Of course, being able to get to town is one thing; liking the town is another. This was no problem with Nelson–it’s a very pretty place with lots of hanging flower baskets, stores and shops, eateries, markets, and access to whatever we needed. (Do you need electronic parts? fresh bread? Starbuck’s frappuccinos? wedding ring repair? great eateries? inexpensive car rentals for road excursions? supermarkets? boat parts? finally getting that pesky cyst removed from your back by a great dermatologist? It’s all here!)

While I’ve already posted my best photos of Nelson, I have a few more below to give you a feeling for the place. It was getting well into fall by the time we settled there, but the flower baskets still bloomed, the sun still shone, and the temperatures were pleasant. Nelson was a great place to spend this time. –Cyndi

April 25 – June 4, 2016

We weren’t completely sold on Nelson before going there to stay but as soon as we settled in, our ambivalence began to vanish. We actually bonded with this place very quickly as it ticked nearly all our boxes for a great home base. Here are some of the reasons (over several coming blog posts) that we ended up loving it.

Reason One: The Nelson Marina. While marinas may look very much alike, they can have a very different vibe depending on the staff, the tenants, the types of boats in the marina, the surrounding city or town, and the scenery. We’d already learned the management here was very nice from the way they’d kindly dealt with our mail before even meeting us! When we did get to meet the staff, we found them to be both very professional and very nice folks, a good combination which leads to a marina that is well-run yet relaxed.

We thought we’d be a bit isolated down here and were surprised to find a pretty strong cruising community which made the place feel friendly. The boats here were nice, the marina was clean, and there was no feeling of having to lock our boat up. In fact, everyone looked out for every one else here. Yep, we’d found a nice neighborhood. As far as the scenery, it’s quite beautiful with large hills around the city of Nelson and mountains in the distance. (You can click to enlarge/scroll though galleries below.)

Nelson Marina by day:

and Nelson Marina area in the evening:

There’s only one thing lacking at the Nelson Marina: there’s no restaurant, no bar, no cafe, not even a coffee cart. Of course a restaurant with a bar is the gold standard, but a good cafe can be a great gathering place and a nice break during a day of boat work. Barring that, an espresso cart in the morning for takeout coffee can be very nice, too. If all else fails, a Cruising Club that will let you visit can also be nice (if annoying) at times.

Nelson actually does have a cruising club, but we quickly found out that it’s not a private bar and restaurant like other New Zealand cruising clubs. Instead, it’s a real club, like a yacht club, that caters their own special events and dinners. You can’t just get a pass, go for a drink and maybe casually meet people. Instead, you get an invitation and then sit with other members after you arrive.

We found this out when we showed up for our “dinner reservations.” Everyone was very nice, but we fit in about as well as a newly-acquired moose head (as in coming into a place you know, spotting the recent addition of a moose head propped up against the wall, and vaguely wondering what it’s doing there until you get distracted by buying your drink). We ended up staying for drinks but didn’t feel up to sticking around for the dinner which wasn’t due to start for some time.

Anyway, my wish for the Nelson Marina would be for some person to put in a restaurant there. Everyone loves to come and eat by the water and look at boats, and the tenants love to have a place to meet for a drink or a meal. Everyone wins. And no one cares whether or not someone puts up a moose head. –Cyndi

April 25, 2016

We finally made it to Nelson!

A brief history of our journey to Nelson…

We originally thought we’d head here from Fiji in November, 2014, but no, the weather didn’t cooperate, so we went to New Caledonia to wait for better weather.

It never came, the better weather that is, so we went to Australia.

Then in November, we sat in Fiji again, waiting for weather to get to Nelson. It never came, so we went to Bay of Islands thinking we’d go up around the north cape and down the west side of New Zealand when the weather was right.

It was never right, and didn’t look like it ever would be, so we poked our way down the NZ east coast, making a lot of stops and having a lot of fun.

Finally, we left Napier for the South Island. But that was not to be. The weather changed and we ended up in Wellington.

After a short while there, we got the weather to get to the South Island but now there was no point in going straight to Nelson, when we could cruise the Marlborough Sounds and the Abel Tasman National Park on the way.

That’s what we’ve been doing for the past almost two months. We’d intended to stay one more night in the Abel Tasman, but there was no room at the inn. The bay at Kaiteriteri was completely full of moorings, and a giant water ski area and there was no room for poor little Legacy. Off we went. And now, after four grueling hours of bashing into 20 knots, we’re here – finally!

Time to get ready to leave for the tropics!

-Rich