New Zealand 2023 Day 3: Off to Palmerston North

By the numbers

6,348 steps

4.89kms

1 bus

 

The weather report had said it was going to be nice weather today since I was leaving Wellington. I just happened to look outside and there wasn’t blue sky at all, and it was raining. I walked outside and it was still raining, though I had to get some breakfast while watching all the commuters pile into the city from the train station. Somehow my pocket made a 3 minute pocket video with my phone and I still don’t know how it did that. There was just an ever growing parade of people that did not seem to end. Today the plan was to get the bus to Palmerston North where I would be spending a few days before leaving on the Friday. I knew where I had to catch the bus at the train station and I was still there within half hour of it leaving even though I had thought it might have arrived early. The driver didn’t even need to leave the bus to grab the bags as it was like a food van, but you were handing over your bag with a destination instead. Then we had to give out names once he arrived at the door.

 

It was only a 2 hour bus ride to Palmerston North and I was also in the firing line to order some tickets to an event in March that came online at 1pm local time. To say I had plans was an understatement. My phone wouldn’t be able to use the bus wifi for that purpose due to the fact it restricted many websites by calling them unsafe including local websites that involved tourist traps like museums. Even if I tried, I would likely be restricted from buying tickets. I was happy just to be looking at the country side and not reading a book. I usually read a book. The weather did change as it went from wet to just cloudy, and then again its supposed to be raining tomorrow. We shall see what happens.

 

Once I got off the bus, I had to orientate myself as to where I should be walking as my phone map nearly had me lost as I gathered my bearings. Soon I was wandering the streets heading in the right direction for the place I was staying. I had no problems until my card decided that it would be declined even when tapped. I had to resort to my other card that worked exactly the same way with a pin too. The strange thing is that the card works everywhere else, and even worked 5 mins later when I bought a music festival ticket. The room I will be in for the next couple of days is really good and I will be comfortable. Good staying in a motel and it seems to be quiet and we shall see if that is actually true or not. My next location was the archives.

 

Having to grab lunch and a coffee on the way, I headed to Palmerston North Library, where I planned to spend the afternoon, although due to the bus wifi telling me the website was unsafe, I wasn’t sure when it would close. I walked in and had to ask the guy at the information desk as last time I went down stairs to the archives, but now the reading room was on level 2. I went up and they were expecting me and we had a chat. The archive room had been taken over by all the archive records. They were running out of room too. I was showing a contoured map of where a property was and I was happy to see an old map for a couple of minutes. Though looking through the council minute books for certain dates that I came across in newspapers did eventually bear fruit and I was happy even though I started looking in the minute books for 1901, when the announcement for closing at 6pm came over. The archivist was really helpful as he looked at the council rate books to see what was there as I was looking for several people and they didn’t appear apart from another family member care of the Palmerston North Fire brigade, but that was the brother of the person I was looking at. Turns out the archivist has a day off tomorrow, so I was lucky to come in when I did. I had even thought about a soft cushion for a fragile book that they had not even thought about. The last thing I wanted to do was to damage a fragile book from threw 1900s. Still I have most of the day tomorrow to head back and keep looking at several other dates in the council minute book. Did I mention how much I love trying to read cursive that progressively gets bad closer to the end of the book?

 

I got lost trying to find the exit to the library and realised I had to go down to the next floor instead of wandering around looking like I was lost or trapped. I decided that after the afternoon of reading, I would head back to my room for a shower and an easy night as there happened to be some better food joints than Wellington here. I got myself a pork roast as that comes with veggies.