One Tree Hill is a 597-foot-tall volcanic peak in Auckland, which provides stunning views of the area around the city. The area is an important landmark for the native Māori. Sir John Logan Campbell, a native of Scotland known as “the father of Auckland,” is buried on the summit of One Tree Hill. Presuming the Māori would die out, Campbell gave money for a memorial to the Māori atop One Tree Hill. The Māori name of One Tree Hill is Maungakiekie, which means “mountain of the kiekie vine.”
Oratia Combined Church dates to 1872 and opened initially on land Queen Victoria granted to Waikumete Parish settlers. The current church opened in 1968.
In Wellington, New Zealand, Queens Wharf is home to a monument to a dog who took on a larger-than-life personality. During his life, Paddy the Wanderer, an Airedale Terrier, befriended cabbies, workers and seamen. The Wellington Harbour Board adopted Paddy and bestowed him the title of the assistant night watchman. Paddy was tasked with keeping guard against “pirates, smugglers and rodents.” After he died on July 17, 1939, at Harbour Shed no. 1, the locals honored Paddy with a parade. In 1945, Paddy’s friends built a memorial to the pooch with stones from London’s Waterloo Bridge, bombed during World War II. It includes a bronze likeness, a drinking fountain and drinking bowls below for dogs.
The small, but packed Picton Heritage & Whaling Museum is home to more than 2,000 artifacts that help tell the area’s history, including its strong roots in the whaling industry. While the museum has been around for 60 years, its current home on London Quay was built in 1990 on the site of Waitohi Pa.
World War I helped define New Zealand as a country. As a result, many towns across New Zealand feature monuments to the Great War, and Picton is no different. The monument in Picton was dedicated in 1925 and includes the names of 31 soldiers from the town who died during the War to End All Wars. Additions were added to the memorial to honor additional 20th century conflicts, including World War II and the Vietnam War.
Pukeahu National War Memorial Park honors New Zealanders who served overseas and commemorates the more than 30,000 New Zealanders who died during a conflict. It was created in 2015 to enhance the National War Memorial. “Pukeahu is a special place for New Zealanders and visitors to reflect on this country’s experience of conflict and our role in peacekeeping and how this has helped shape our national identity,” Deputy Chief Executive Delivery, Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage Tamsin Evans said in a December 2018 news release.
The Avon River runs through the heart of Christchurch, and punting along the river in a handcrafted flat-bottomed boat is a peaceful way to take in the city. Boats depart from the historic Antigua Boat Sheds, then pass through Christchurch Botanic Gardens.
Quake City tackles the devastating earthquakes that struck Christchurch, their impact on the city and how the city has worked to rebuild and reinvent itself. The museum first opened as part of the Re:START container mall in February 2013 and moved to its current location in June 2017. Quake City offers a compelling and in-depth look at the earthquakes, both from a scientific standpoint and a cultural one.
Queens Gardens is a roughly triangular garden in central Dunedin, New Zealand, situated on reclaimed land near the original landing site for Māori waka. The area where Queens Gardens is now located was reclaimed in the late 19th century. Originally known as The Triangle, it was officially named Victoria Gardens in 1904, but it soon became known as “The Queen’s Gardens,” from which its current name developed.
Queenstown Gardens contains a mixture of exotic and native trees and plants, which visitors can enjoy from the garden’s variety of trails. In addition to its flora, the gardens offer beautiful views of Lake Wakatipu, the Frankton Arm and Queenstown. The first mayor of Queenstown, James W. Robertson, and the nurseryman at the time, Mr. McConnochie, planted the first two trees, English oaks, in the gardens in 1866 to celebrate the incorporation of the borough. However, the gardens did not officially open until 1867, and significant planting started at that time.