Day 22 – A farmers market and back to Wellington

 

All good things must come to an end.  And so it was with our holiday.  It was time to return home. 

 

But there were still things to enjoy such as going to the Marlborough Farmers Market.  It is one of the best I have been to (I am biased as I used to regularly go there when my mother was alive and lived in Picton).  Not as large as that in Hawkes Bay but it has a wonderful range of seasonal goodies. 

Our little place amongst the vines

 

After packing up we headed to the market.  It was really busy and well set up for Covid times.  Mask wearing was mandatory and everyone complied.  Usually one sat in the area where the stalls were  to have coffee and something eat but this time it was set in a separate area.

 

We were able to get lots of goodies, in fact most of the vegetables I would need for the coming week.  What was surprising was how cheap the vegetables were compared to what I would pay in Wellington.  For instance I was able to buy a kilogramme of tomatoes for $3.  I now wish I had bought more. 

A well spaced market but note no eating amongst the stalls

 

We spent more time there than intended and suddenly we needed to go as we were meeting our friend Morwen in Picton.  She was on her way south to pick up her husband who was about to complete the Tour Aotearoa. 

 

We spent a pleasant hour with Morwen catching up on Andrew’s ride and sharing our holiday experiences.  Then all too soon we had to line up for loading onto the ferry. 

Dining al fresco along London Quay

 

It was a lovely afternoon to travel to Wellington.  There was virtually no wind and Cook Strait was like a millpond.  The only negative was that we were on the Kaitaki where getting somewhere nice to sit is always a struggle. The seats aren’t that comfortable either.  I much prefer travelling on the Aratere and the Kaitaki (when it is in service).  The latter ship is tied up at Picton.  I guess that is cheaper than being in Wellington. 

 

The ship was early into Wellington but the unloading process is very lengthy so it was about 25 minutes after we arrived that we finally disembarked.  It was a very different city that we arrived back to.  Gone was the occupation.  The other thing I noticed was the density and height of buildings.  The city felt larger than Christchurch which is very flat and feels like an endless suburb.  Dunedin, once the largest and wealthiest city in the country, feels very provincial but with lots of old buildings none of which are very high and again the city is not as dense. 

 

It was nice to be home but honestly I could have kept travelling although being in one place for more than a couple of days would have been very nice.