We had a good night's sleep. We are getting used to the sounds in our stateroom. The gentle motion of the ship helps, too. We ate breakfast in the dining room again. This time we had our own table. We ate while the ship arrived in Wellington. ​

After breakfast, we met Ellen for our shore excursion, HAL's Wellington Heritage Walk. Ann and I were here two years ago and walked along the waterfront as well as the prime restaurant area. We also visited the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum. This time we wanted to see more of the city. We caught a shuttle which dropped us off at Old St Paul's Church. Our guide took us into this gorgeous wooden cathedral built by the Anglican Church in 1866. The walking tour began here as we made our way to Tinakori Road with its wooden Victorian gingerbread houses. Walking up and down a few more streets, we found our way into the Wellington Botanic Garden. Going through the Rose Garden, which was not at its peak, we took a short break in the greenhouse/shop. We passed through Bolton Street Memorial Park which includes Wellington's oldest cemetery. It was interesting to discover that the cemetery was bisected a few years ago by a freeway. The bodies that were dug up were reburied in a common area. We walked on a bridge over the freeway and soon found ourselves downtown near the parliament buildings. "There are four buildings in Wellington that house New Zealand's Parliament. They are Parliament House, the Parliamentary Library, the Beehive (also known as the Executive Wing), and Bowen House". Click on the link and you will see their photos. ​

Our guide led us over to the shuttle pickup spot where our tour ended. Ann, Ellen and I were very hungry. We decided to go over to the waterfront and look for a decent place to eat. We had snacks at the Crab Shack around 2:00. I had some clam chowder and an IPA. The women had cider. We split a dipping plate with guacamole, pumpkin and crab dips. Afterwards we caught the shuttle back to the ship arriving at 3:30.

Old St Paul's Church

Botanic Gardens Greenhouse

Bolton Street Memorial Park Cemetery

The Beehive

Gingerbread Houses

We joined the Bensons and Matutes in the Deck 9 Crow's Nest for Happy Hour. The Crow's Nest is in the bow and has large floor-to-ceiling windows that let you have good views. It is very popular and difficult to get a good seat where you can look out the windows. We were lucky tonight. ​

After we finished our drinks, we meandered to the dining room for our 5:30 dinner. Dress was casual tonight. ​

Entertainment was at 8:00 in the Vista Lounge. Chantelle Delaney is a singer and guitarist. She did not play her guitar very much. Her singing was mostly accompanied by the ship's very capable band.