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| Wellington Civic Center |
Shopping in Wellington was the draw this past week end.
After ten weeks, it was time to do some fun shopping and also get a few things
that aren’t available in Palmerston North.The weather was
fine requiring one clothing layer. Jim and I split up and spent several hours
going to different shopping areas in the city and had a great time. We both
seemed to need that urban fix.
The biggest surprise was the 5.7 earthquake that occurred
while we were eating dinner. We felt the ground and building shake and being
unprepared, just sat wide-eyed until the shaking stopped. Estimates are that it
lasted for 10 to 20 seconds. We always talk about earthquakes, but now the talk
is more serious, perhaps how to react faster. Most people acted as we did, looking surprised and not moving, but one person immediately stood up and was on his way out the door. We
will take lessons from him if there is a next time, although I surely hope this
is a once in a lifetime experience. Jim, however, says "Bring 'em on!" We have since found out that it was the
largest earthquake in Wellington in twenty years and affected a very large
area, the center being about forty kilometers away. There was very little
damage from the quake other than my nerves!
A hike in Makara Beach was planned for Sunday and despite some
uncertain weather, we did climb the cliff to some gun emplacements from WWII. The one hundred men and the two six inch guns that were to guard Cook Strait probably wouldn’t have
made much of a difference, but we enjoyed the steep hike and the fabulous views
of Cook Strait, a bit of the South Island, the rocky cliffs, windmills, and the ever present lush green hills and sheep. The overcast day kept it from being one of
the best views we have had, but still very high on my scale.
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