Te Papa - Wellington

Te Papa, Wellington

Te Papa is the museum of New Zealand located on Cable Street and on Wellington Harbour. According to Te Papa's Web site, "Te Papa's key tasks are to preserve and present the taonga (treasures) of New Zealand's peoples and to interpret the country's heritage for national and international audiences."

Lynn and I visited Te Papa on Saturday, March 5, 2005. We were impressed that admission was free and we enjoyed the experience.

Te Papa's architecture was modern yet still welcoming. Outside, the new Aquada was on display. The Aquada is a sports car, an off-roader, and a speedboat all in one. It was designed by New Zealander Mr. Alan Gibbs and is the world’s first high-speed amphibious vehicle. Photos of the cars on display are below.

Inside, there was a wide variety of exhibits. I enjoyed the displays of New Zealand animals and insects. I also enjoyed the Lord of the Rings Exhibition Store (although the actual exhibition had ended). A part of me wanted to buy one of the expensive Lord of the Rings rings, except for one thing . . . they were expensive.

Another attraction of Te Papa while we visited was Out on the Street: New Zealand in the 1970s Tutū te pūehu. It was fun to see so many items we remember from the 70's including dolls, apparel, electronics, furniture and more. I was disappointed not to see items such as Atari's Pong. The early home video games were a big part of American culture in the 70's.

Lynn and I found this (right) stained glass window compelling. On the museum's roof there are a couple of large artistic pieces such as the one below of an orb made of colored bottles.