We went out quite early (windy Wellington lept us awake again) and bought a phonecard from a Japanese lady who didn't speak much English.

Luckily, the instructions came in Chinese, Japanese and English, so we managed to figure it out and called the homefront. It is very strange to know there is half a world and 12 hours difference when you are chatting away to mum and dad as if they were in the next room...

Afterwards, we walked to Te Papa, a huge and modern museum that has everything in it from Maori history and mythology to volcano formation to... you name it. The museum was swarming with kids in school uniforms and teachers trying and failing to control them.

We had a look around but our hearts weren't really in it, I think we were both thinking of home. We had a muffin and tea azt Starbucks to cheer us up and had lunch (kumara -sweetpotato- and pork, in case you were wondering). In the afternoon we took in some more cafe culture then went to pack, as we would have to say goodbye to our waka Judy, our trusted red Toyota Corolla. She is staying behind and we get a new waka in the South island once we have crossed the Cook Strait on the ferry. She has done about 1800 km since we first got her so she's done well.

In the evening we watched a programme on air crashes in the hostel, the wind howling over Wellington and rattling the windows. Perhaps not really the ideal programme to watch... In the tent, we could feel it bending sideways completely wit the wind, this was the worst it's been and it was a bit scary as you could feel the wind tugging at the sides and I didn't want to lift off.

In the middle of the night a Dutch couple set up their tent, talking loudly, and they got told by someone in no incertain terms to 'shut the fuck up'. To add to the mix, a little later it started pouring with rain... I can tell you I didn't sleep all that well...