Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Nestled in the heart of the commercial center of Wellington, not far from New Zealand’s parliament buildings, is an old church with a lot of history.

Old St Paul’s is plain from the outside, a white building and dark spire, set in a large section and surrounded by giant pohutukawa trees. I wasn’t expecting much but the interior stole my breath. During my first visit, I stood inside the entrance, breathed in the rich, fragrant scent of the old wood from which the church is constructed, and fell in love with the place. It’s both peaceful and beautiful with the glowing colors of the aged timber. The ceiling curves above, looking like a timber rib cage and the light coming through the stained glass windows throws jewel-like patterns on the interior. Everyone speaks in hushed tones and the place feels plain special.

Frederick Thatcher designed the church. He was also the first vicar and remained from 1861 – 1864. The style is gothic, and according to experts, it’s one of the finest examples of timber Gothic architecture in the world. The timbers used in the construction include rimu, totara, matai and kauri, some of New Zealand’s finest. The pews are also made from timber and perfect to take a seat and soak in the atmosphere.

Wander around on your own or listen to one of the guides who will point out all the highlights. The stained glass windows are famous and were added as memorials to several prominent members of the Wellington community. Originally most of the windows were plain frosted glass. The current bells and organ are also new additions, but the baptismal font is an original, made in England from white stone with a carved oak canopy.

Funerals of former Prime Ministers were held here. The Maori land wars, which took place during the 1860s are remembered in memorials, as is the First World war. The relationship between American marines and the locals during the Second World war is also recognized.

A new church, also named St. Pauls, was built in 1964 to cater to larger numbers. Thankfully, locals fought to keep the old church, because it truly is beautiful and unique now that public buildings are no longer made from timber.

Old St Paul’s may not be a parish church now, but it’s still consecrated and a venue for weddings, funerals, christenings and other cultural events such as concerts. The building is maintained by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

The Facts

Opening hours:
Daily 9.30 a.m. – 5.00 p.m.
Closed Christmas Day, Good Friday, and for short periods during private functions.

Admission fee:
Entry is free. Hourly guided tours of Old St Paul’s: $5 per person.
Private group bookings (8 or more) $3 per person.
School groups: tours $3 per student.
Experience Old St Paul’s education programme: $8 per student.

Location:
34 Mulgrave Street
Wellington 6011
tel: + 64 4 473 6722
email: oldstpauls@historic.org.nz

It’s Rugby World Cup year, and the tournament is taking place in New Zealand. Get in the mood!

I’m visiting JA Saare’s blog, Random Musings today and talking about my love of rugby. I’m also giving away a download of one of my rugby-set stories, Best Man or Issy’s Infatuation.

Come and say hello!

My story about rugby and sexy rugby players is out later today at Ellora’s Cave!

Here’s the blurb:

Tyson Hamlin lives and breathes rugby. With loads of natural talent, he’s destined for the big time. But Tyson has a secret—his perfect life, complete with doting girlfriend—is a lie. While he loves the game, he’s not quite as driven as he used to be, and his girlfriend is a beard he hides behind because the truth is—he prefers men.

Darcy Nichols transfers from Dunedin to pursue his dream to make the national team. He’s giving his all this one last season and intends to focus on his goal. Openly gay, he arrives in Auckland to suspicion and hostility.

One look and Ty is smitten. He wants the sexy Darcy to do all sorts of bad things with him. Game on. The sparks fly in private as they burn up the sheets, but they can’t live in seclusion forever. They’re under public scrutiny, and one wrong step could derail their rugby careers and end their dreams forever.

Contains sexy rugby players with their eye on the ball.

Purchase Wanna Do Bad Things With You

I’m busy with edits. Here’s a pretty photo of Mt Maunganui, New Zealand (The Mount for short) for you to study meanwhile. The Mount is another dormant volcano. Hubby and I climbed to the top in December and took this photo of the surf beach. The views are stunning from the top and include the Pacific Ocean, the city of Tauranga and the surrounds. The built-up area below is Mt Maunganui township. The area is very busy during Christmas/New Year summer holidays.

On Tuesday at 12:51 pm an earthquake struck Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand. It’s been an emotional week for us down here in NZ. Today the death toll stands at 147 with around 200 people still missing. Watching the news is heartbreaking. Hundreds of people have walked away from their lives in Christchurch, saying the stress is too much to take. Even worse are the people who are stealing and looting. Police have caught several and they’re receiving stiff sentences. A curfew is in place each night.

People throughout New Zealand are donating time, money and are fundraising for the Christchurch people. In the coming week our Prime Minister will announce a worldwide fundraising drive to help the victims of the earthquake. In New Zealand, the Red Cross is collecting donations and I, like most people I know, are giving what I can.

One thing about the earthquake is that it’s reminded my husband and I how precious life is and that we should enjoy it to the max. Those things on the bucket list – we’re doing them as time and money allow. Life is short and can disappear in the blink of an eye.

White Island is one of New Zealand’s volcanoes—the most active one. The island is privately owned and was once mined for sulfur. I’d never seen White Island before and was looking forward to our visit. We had perfect weather and the volcano puffed out a little steam for us. Part of the crater has collapsed, allowing views of the inside. The cruise ship sailed around the island several times allowing 360 views.

This photo shows Milford Sound, Fiordland, New Zealand. I’d never visited this part of New Zealand before. The area is known for its high rainfall, but we had fine weather and spectacular views of the pristine water, mountains and bush. The scenery was stunning.

I’d like to wish everyone a happy, safe and prosperous New Year. All the best for 2011!

I mentioned pohutukawa trees over at Berengaria Brown’s blog the other day and promised I’d post a photo.

Pohutukawa trees are known as New Zealand’s native Christmas trees since they come into flower during late November/December. They have scarlet flowers and tend to like growing near the sea on clifftops. Our street sidewalk is lined with pohutukawa trees and it looks very pretty at this time of the year. This photo is the tree outside our house.

My husband pulled off a wonderful surprise for my recent birthday. I knew we were going away but I thought hubby had organized a quick trip to the South Island of New Zealand. On the day we were meant to leave, he woke me up at a very early hour with a cup of tea. When I went to check my email there was a note attached to the computer along with a flashdrive.

The note said, “Good morning, Shelley. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to insert this flashdrive. It will not self destruct in five seconds, but you may!!”

Curious, I inserted the flashdrive and a movie started. Hubby had booked us a cruise on the Volendam and the movie showed all the ports of call. Honestly, I had no idea. He really pulled a swifty on me
Luckily I had a few hours to pack and organize/reschedule the few things I needed to sort out before we traveled up to Auckland to board the cruise ship.

The cruise started in Auckland and stopped in Mt Maunganui, Napier, Wellington, Picton, Akaroa, Dunedin (Port Chalmers), cruised the Milford Sound before crossing the Tasman Sea to Hobart in Tasmainia, Eden on mainland Australia and ending in Sydney. The surprises kept coming with some fun tours booked and a new bracelet for my birthday. We went dolphin watching to see the rare Hector dolphins, wine tasting, hiking, swimming and sightseeing. We even visited the real Middlemarch where I took loads of photos. I half expected one of the Mitchells to round the corner and say hello. In fact, the Mitchells are so real to me, I was a bit disappointed when they didn’t!

We both had a fun time and arrived home rested and ready for Christmas. It was the best birthday ever.

This photo was taken from the air during a flight to see the sperm whales at Kaikoura in the South Island of New Zealand. The sperm whale is the largest of all the toothed whales and can be seen year-round at Kaikoura.

To view more animal photos go to Camera Critters.