January is supposed to be the middle of summer in New Zealand. However, there have been more rainy and gloomy days than sunny ones the past couple of weeks, I’m still waiting for summer to arrive. On those days where the sun manages to come out, the thing to do is to take advantage of the good weather. This past weekend, we drove to Carterton to pick lavender and see the town.
Carterton is a small town about a two-hour drive from Wellington. Along the way, you’ll pass by the beautiful Remutaka Pass. Pity, I wasn’t able to take pictures of the mountain range. But take my word for it, the view is beautiful.
Lavender Picking
We arrived at the lavender field about 11AM. Each adult paid a dollar for entrance and were given several rubber bands and a pair of scissors to cut the lavender. This huge lavender field is one of the most fragrant gardens I’ve probably been in!
Katie had just woken up from her nap, and she wasn’t interested with the flowers at all.
She also didn’t want to walk on the grass. For almost the entire time we were there, she just sat on the ground. Or she would ask us to carry her around. Tiring!
If you’re allergic to pollen, and scared of bees, better stay away from here–there were lots of bees flying around near the flowers.
We ended up with two bunches of lavender (costing NZD5 each), and quickly left the field, as Katie was hungry and started having a tantrum. We had a quick lunch at the town center, and in the afternoon, drove over to our next stop.
Stonehenge Aotearoa
This is an adaptation of the original Stonehenge that is found in England. It’s not an exact replica, but really a modern interpretation of the structure. This was completed and opened in 2005, so it’s a relatively new attraction, if you’re visiting New Zealand.
It’s a nice place to visit, if you’re interested in ancient navigation and methods of telling time and date. You can read more about the structures on the Stonehenge Aotearoa website. As for the three of us, we had a nice walk and took a couple of pictures of the place.
We had a few more minutes to walk around before it started to get cloudy–a sure sign of rain. And true enough, it came down just as we were driving back to Welly. Overall, it was a good trip. We plan to come back some other time to see what else is in Carterton, and the other surrounding towns. I’m pretty sure we will find something interesting to see and do. Hopefully, we’ll get better weather soon.
