A Year In New Zealand & How It's Changed Me

       

I had a skype call with my Uncle, Auntie and one of my many cousins this morning and it dawned on me that the last time we spoke was Christmas Day 2013. Then it dawned on me how much your whole life can change in just one year. As my Auntie teased me about my funny new accent and told me how proud she was of me (which nearly brought a tear to my eye) and the questions my Uncle was asking about how different certain things are between NZ and England, and then me trying to convince my cousin to save up and travel Australia with me and Tom - I started to realise just how much has changed from the day I left England to this very moment right now. 

When I left England I was in a very dark place mentally. I was so depressed with work, lack of friends and free time and the seemingly infinite responsibilities and pressures work, life and even I put on myself. I was 20 years old and felt 90. I didn't want to leave my bed, I didn't want to make the effort to rekindle lost friendships. I just wanted to wallow in my pit and be left in peace. What a life! 

So I guess you could say getting on that plane was the start of a new life and a new me. It was just as much of an escape as it was a refuge. I did zero research about NZ, I didn't really have that much of a desire to travel around it. I just wanted to get my ass out of England and to somewhere with greener pastures. And I did exactly that! I managed to find some amazing new friends, my incredible boyfriend, some gorgeous scenery and my mojo. 

My Uncle told me he was surprised at how long I have managed to stay away from home. I'm not sure if the rest of my family agree - I've never been one to have homesickness - but I see his point. The furthest I had even been from home was Jersey Island and that was a short holiday to meet and visit family. It was a fresh insight into my background and where I come from, in a blood-line related way, that it has helped me shape my plans for the future. But to spend a whole year in a country - the furthest possible point I could reach away from home - that's an achievement! 

I think a lot of things have contributed to me being able to stay in New Zealand for so long without missing my family enough for me to want to go home so badly. I wouldn't say it's a desperate desire to travel the world - that's something I really do want to do, but it's not why I don't want to go home yet. 

In New Zealand I found positive people with ambitions, dreams and a laid back attitude to life. Ive met people who travel just because they didn't know what else to do - kind of like me. Then again Ive met people who travel because every Tom Dick and Harry back home told them it was an absolute must do before they went uni. Ive met people who really are die-hard travellers and are in it for the long haul. And then Ive met people who have worked in tourism and have seen the world, but now have a partner who is reaching the age limit for working holiday visas so they're cramming as much travel time in now before it's too late. All reasons of which I find fascinating and interesting. Everyone I have met is so unlike the people I used to call "friends" back home. All of these people have actually showed me what real friends are. There are people who I haven't seen for six plus months, people I'll probably never see again - but I know if we were to meet up it would be like we saw each other yesterday. These are friends, to me. 

In New Zealand I found appreciation. I appreciate England now more than I ever have and I appreciate the family I grew up in (even with all of its dramas) and I appreciate the area I grew up in and all the opportunities it offered me even if they felt more like a chore or a prison sentence at the time. I appreciate my family who are all keen to help me should I need it and they send me care packages so that I don't miss the home luxuries too much.

In New Zealand I found a way of living simply and minimally. Momma and Grandma do send me care packages with lip balm, face masks, exfoliating gloves and chocolate etc but if they didn't I wouldn't miss them too much. I enjoy the luxuries I have while they last, and when they're gone I'm grateful that I could enjoy them and then I go back to using Pams brand soap. I like being able to say to people "I fit my whole life into an Osprey Farpoint 40." A 40L backpack seems to baffle all other travellers. I have everything that I need. 

In New Zealand I found a way of living cheaply without the feeling of deprivation. Tom and I laughed when we told my Auntie and Uncle how we make a single chicken breast stretch to three meals. We felt proud when we told them we experiment with tins of chopped tomatoes to see what delicious meals we can come up with. Last night we made "chilli" with a tin of chopped tomatoes, baked beans and some curry powder. Credits to Jem & Neal - Tom and I do not own the rights to and did not create this recipe! But it was delicious all the same! I told them that Tom and I no longer crave alcohol (that makes us sound like alcoholics - we're not!) we enjoy and appreciate a beer on a hot day, as anyone does, but we don't splurge on beer and we have no real desire to drink it these days. It's just too expensive and doesn't have any nutritional value, therefore it's a waste of budget. Pass the chocolate!

In New Zealand I found my mojo. I found what makes me tick and that's planning, dreaming and drinking cups of tea Tom makes me. My Uncle and Auntie asked me what my travel plans are from now and when will I come home, if ever?! I couldn't give them a set date, I couldn't even give them an estimated year or time frame. I simply said "whenever the money runs out." Im working to travel at the moment. These days I'm working hard to save money for Australia. In our last leg of Australia we will be working to save for I dunno, Asia, maybe? I told them right now I'm counting down the days until we book our flights for our next adventure and to keep me occupied in the mean time I'm planning like a mad woman. I'm looking for travel spots and experiences that not every backpacker ventures to. I want to see what the magazines don't show you. Because I think they are the best bits. 

So as a final note to my Auntie and Uncle - sorry guys, but I might be done with New Zealand now, but New Zealand and travel aren't done with me. There is still plenty more soul searching, self improvement and once in a lifetime experiences out there left for me! Love to all my family and friends! 

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A Year In Photos

It's been a year today since I left England and arrived in New Zealand. Where has that year gone? Words can't describe how amazing this year has been. I've met so many amazing people and made some incredible new friends. Here's my first year away from home in photos!

Here's to the next year! Bring it on!

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Back on the road - North Island trip

So Tom and I got back on the road again yesterday for our 3 weeks travelling the North Island.
Today we took the incredibly long drive up to Cape Reinga; which I believe is the furthest point you can get to on the North Island. The drive is lengthy, yes, but on a beautiful sunny day like ours was you will be wowed with some pretty nice views. The walk is short and relatively easy. There is a cute little lighthouse at the bottom, but for me the most spectacular part of the visit was being able to watch the joining of two oceans - the Pacific and the Tasman. The views are gorgeous and it's no wonder why the Maori believe it's the place where all the spirits come to when their people die.







90 mile beach was our next stop and for me it was something I was very excited about! We don't drive a 4x4 and we certainly don't drive a car you would happily take for a spin on just any beach - but 90 mile is a beach pretty much any car can be driven on (except for rental cars, strictly speaking they don't allow it.) There's something about driving on the beach that gave us a real adrenaline rush. Perhaps it was speeding across the sand at 90km/h all the while the tide was looming in closer and closer. We eventually reached the end of the beach and perhaps a 4x4 would have been a better choice of car after all. We found the beach to be littered with some pretty large, pointy rocks and not the kind you could comfortably drive over and come out with pristine tyres. The next nearest exit was back in the direction we had come and was quite a drive away, by this point we were almost out of fuel. And with the tide almost upon us, there was no choice but to drive through some shallow pools. Cue steam, lots of steam, and a yucky whizzing noise. Oops.

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South Island Highlights, NZ

The South Island has some of the most beautiful views in the whole of New Zealand and you won't be disappointed wherever you go - everywhere you look there's either mountains or lakes or scenic woodlands - or all three in one go! Below is just a handful of our South Island travel highlights.

Marlborough Sounds, Cook Straight

If you are travelling by car or have the money to travel on the ferry from Wellington to Picton make sure you have your camera ready - as well as a warm hat! The views, especially on a nice day, are glorious as you make you make your way through the Marlborough Sounds as you sail into Picton. The water is a beautiful emerald shade and the cute little houses nestled in the hills make you consider a change of lifestyle for a moment. 

Nelson Lakes

Worth the drive out, and technically it's the long scenic route to Nelson from Picton. Make sure to take a picnic for yourself and some bread for the ducks. But watch those ducks - they aren't afraid to get up close and personal, and I just made it out with my life... Step out onto the jetti and see if you can spot the eels and fish. But those mountains are a beautiful view and will give you a real taste for what you're in for on your trip around the South! 

Punakaiki Rocks

High tide and a windy-ish day are the perfect conditions to see these natural beauties! If you have the patience you could come away with some awesome photos as the water splashes up through the blow holes - and if not, you could take a video which would be just as awesome! 

Franz Josef Glacier

Winter is the perfect time of year to visit Franz Josef Glacier and it really is pot luck as to how many caves and crevices you will come by as you climb. We took a glacier guides tour with a helicopter trip which took us up to and off of the glacier. Remember to pack a bottle of water and some cereal bars to keep your energy up, but it's not a strenuous climb. An experience of a lifetime! 

Queenstown

Queenstown is gorgeous, it really is. I mean what could be more perfect than sitting by the lake with your lunchbox admiring the snow topped mountains against the bright blue skies, the lake still and clear and every so often a man on a jet boat whizzes past or a tour boat or someone parasailing? It's magical! Really. Sadly Queenstown was much too expensive for us to enjoy many activities - but our main reason for visiting was to catch up with our friends whom we haven't seen for 6 months! If you're a bit tight on cash like we was, try skipping stones on the lake - we passed many hours doing this and you won't feel like you've wasted your day! 

Doubtful Sound

We debated for many hours trying to decided on whether to do the Milford Sound or the Doubtful. We couldn't do both due to lack of funds, so in the end we decided on the Doubtful Sound. Our main reasons for this is because I had read online that there is a real sense of being "at the end of the world" here and you're more likely to see dolphins, apparently. Sadly we didn't see any dolphins, we did get to see seals though. The tour was great, my favourite part being the Sound of Silence where the boat is stopped at the bottom of one of the "arms". The boat is switched off and everyone and everything is still, silent. We stood out on the front deck to enjoy this moment, it was raining and it was magical. 

Christchurch

Christchurch is still a very sad place, but despite its scars, despite the building sites and the crazy amount of traffic cones it's a beautiful place. I really wanted to check out the re:Start Mall and I was not at all disappointed! The shops and eateries are high end. It's clean, modern, bright and exciting! I really loved it, even more so that the shops are housed in multi coloured storage crates! Fantastic! We also stopped by the Antartica Centre which is a lot of fun and worth a visit if you have the spare money. 

Ohau Stream Walk

By far my favourite experience on the South Island! On your way up from Christchurch back to Picton, via Kaikoura make sure you stop to enjoy this short walk. It is incredible and not to be missed! Just a 10 minute walk from the roadside car park you will follow a stream of water leading up to a waterfall where you will find an abundance of playful, inquisitive and simply adorable baby seals! Oh wow, they were so much fun to watch - diving, flipping and swimming in the pool. There were pups everywhere! Up on the hill snoozing in the trees and sitting on the rocks just an arms length away from us. Two pups whom were on the hill behind us even pushed their way through the crowd to join their siblings in the pool. One of was particularly drawn to my camera and got so close it was almost intimidating - remember they are wild animals after all, and should not be petted - albeit very hard to resist believe me! 

These are just some of our South Island trip highlights - there was far too many of them to list them all right now, but I will be back soon with a list of Free Things to do in the South Island and Our Favourite South Island Hostels

For more photos and videos follow me on Instagram: ShellbyFay 

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Back on the road again... Or should I say sea?

We left the Coromandel for our next trip - this time we are visiting the South Island!

Last night we stayed in Wellington - in a not so nice hostel! So we weren't disappointed to be getting out of bed at 7am this morning to make our way to the Interislander ferry. 

If you have the choice between flying and ferry - I can honestly say the ferry is a wonderful way to take the trip between the islands! We didn't have a choice since we were taking our car, but it was money well spent and the views as we passed through the Marlborough Sound were stunning! 

Getting off the ferry is a piece of cake! It's a simple drive off system which takes you straight onto a roundabout giving you the option to drive out of Picton and on to Nelson, or you can bear right and head into Picton. We have previously planned to skip Picton at this point and headed for Nelson. 

The plus side, and possibly the only plus side of our yucky hostel last night was a nice member of staff who suggested we should visit Nelson Lakes...

And it is my tip to you!

It's quite a trek and quite out of the way, but SO worth it for the views. I recommend you take a spare couple of slices of bread for the resident ducks and don't forget a picnic for yourself, you'll definitely want to spend an hour or two here just to relax and take in the views. 

Don't forget to take a walk onto the jetty, you might spot some fish and some eels in the crystal clear water! 

From Nelson Lakes we headed into Nelson City centre. Tonight we are staying at Shortbread Backpackers - and I have to say, it's a million times nicer than the hostel in Wellington - it's a little home away from home and it has free wifi too!!

Tonight we are choosing our activity to enjoy at the Abel Tasman! 

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Accidentally Beautiful

I don't know about you, but I really enjoy driving. Long distance driving is the best for me. I love driving from one suburb to the next, through quaint little villages and past rolling hills. There's something romantic and intimate about being at one with the road and just gazing out of the windows, music on loud and your sun glasses on. The mountains looming up ahead of you and lakes catching the colours of the sunset. Wow. It just blows me away.

Here are some of the best photos I've taken of various scenic encounters on my travels around the North Island, New Zealand. All of them were found completely by accident and all concerns for my own safety went out of the window while I scrambled for my camera. 

Mt Ruapehu, Ohakune

Driving through Paeroa

No idea where I was when I got this photo, I just fell in love with the rainbow

Same place as the photo above. I'm in love with the silhouette of the trees, the lake and the mountains in the background and the bright hint of blue between the clouds.

Mt Victoria, Wellington

Mt Doom with as now cap.

All lake photos above, Lake Taupo gorgeous sunset we had to stop and admire for a while.

The moon was huge that night. 

Mt Ruapehu as it is now, Ohakune

Auckland, Sky City from the bridge. Beautiful clear day, stunning clear water.

Shellby

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Wellington Lord of the Rings Tour (Part 1 of 2)

Whilst Tom and I were in Wellington we decided to do another Lord of the Rings tour. Neither of us are die hard fans of the LOTR films and we haven't read the books, but after doing the Hobbiton tour we are suddenly converted! I'm just a click away from buying the books and we are both eager for a LOTR movie marathon!

Our tour guide, Alice, was lovely and knowledgeable. She showed us video clips and photos of the various scenes we visited which was really great! By way of identifying some of the sets, it's really just all in the trees! 

Recognise this hill? No, you probably won't. It's Dry Creek Quarry, where Helms Deep was built and filmed. Peter Jackson decided to built the set here because his studio is located in the middle of a small suburb within Wellington. The scenes were filmed at night and most of them are loud, fighting scenes, so he didn't want to upset his neighbours! They also built here because of the freedom they could have when building. Helms Deep was a huge set, and saying that it's quite funny that no one thought anything of it as it was being built. The quarry is located on the side of a busy motorway, so hundreds of people were passing the set everyday and never gave it a second thought. The build was not advertised and so no one realised what it was until after the film had been released, and after the set had been torn down. 

Luckily though, one curious journalist managed to climb the hillside by the set and snapped this photo!

The set took several months to build and was made from polystyrene. The detail in the set was intricate and painstakingly painted and finished. If you look carefully on the top left of the photo below you can see a staircase - a single man was employed to build this staircase and it was made from polystyrene. He used a saw to cut out and detail all 300+ steps. Each one was painted and finished. The steps were featured in the film for all of 2 seconds. 

The set was sadly demolished, but from its ashes the builders and artists created Mina's Tirrith. Mina's Tirrith was gigantic and triple the size of the Helms Deep set. Some of the artists whom had worked on Helms Deep returned during the new build and were blown away by its sheer size. Some of the structure from Helms Deep was used in the new build as the internal archways and passages. Not a single detail was missed. In fact, the door that is featured in the film during a battle scene was built twice - one whole with the fully working lock mechanism which is featured in the movie, and another broken from when a log is pushed through it. 

Sadly, no photos that our guide knew of had been taken of the Mina's Tirrith set, but I do have this youtube clip which she showed us. Compare this building to the size of the Helms Deep set to give yourself an idea of its size. 

At the start of the clip Gandalf is actually riding his horse in the South Island. When Mirriths Tirrith appears on the screen as he approaches the top of the hill, this is actually a 24th scale model of the set digitally added into the film - as is the zoomed out views of Gandalf riding through the building. As Gandalf rides through the courtyard keep your eye on Pippin. In some places he looks ridged and stiff - this is because it is actually a doll - this was to give Pippin a true Hobbit size in comparison to Gandalf and the horse. 

http://youtu.be/Om1OlQEMjz8

Our next stop was Harcourt Park, Hutt Valley were the scenes of Isengard were shot. Honestly, you wouldn't know it if someone didn't tell you that these scenes were shot here. This couldn't be a more normal, plain old park! There's a few trees and a patch of grass. But that's all Peter Jackson needed! 

This photo shows you a man working on a scale model of a bridge which is used in the filming. On his ride to Isengard, Gandalf rides under a bridge. This is the actual bridge. As with everything else it is made from polystyrene and then painted. The bridge was held up on those stands and cleverly placed in front of the camera. A pathway was made through the centre of the park, and it's not a very long one. Gandalf was made to ride along the path in one direction, and was then turned around to ride in the other. 

This blue screen was set up at one end and digitally added was the tower and Saruman coming down the steps. 

Sadly,the above photo is not so great and I'll see if Tom has a better one to replace it with, but if you click to enlarge the photo of Alice holding the pictures up you will see two trees to the right of the tower. Unfortunately, the darker more obvious tree actually blew down and was removed from the park a couple of years ago. But the one beside still stands today and here it is, next to the baby replacement of the previous tree. This tree is the last part of the set that still remains. The pathway was removed, and Alice told us you can tell the difference in the grass - but I couldn't. 

Just a few meters to the right of this scene we found ourselves in the spot where we see Gandalf and Saruman taking a walk. I'll let you play spot the difference with this scene. But other than the lack of leaves on the trees in our photo (it's Autumn here, spring/summer during the time of filming) you will notice an extra bush. Can you see where it is? (And of course the background mountains were digitally added, sadly they are not there in real life)

Still standing in the same spot, Alice turned us around to look at a bunch of trees and a patch of grass. 

She told us to take this photo and then she sent us back to the bus to watch another movie clip.

This is the scene were the orcs rip down the trees. But watch the scene very carefully. Weta, the animation/graphic design studio that works alongside Peter Jackson made a fake tree, which they modelled on many fallen trees which they found. This fake tree was made from steel and it had hinges attached to the roots to the ground. In the scene it is the same tree which is being pulled down, you just see it from different angles. 

During the time of filming, there had been a lot of rain. The crew and actors were muddying the ground which Peter Jackson loved, it added to the misery of the scene. In addition, during filming it was raining - so that is real Wellington rain in that scenes folks! 

http://youtu.be/9qK7cweKy64

Fun little bit of scene info for you - the chanting from the orcs when Saruman is looking down on the army was actually the voices from people in a cricket match. Peter went out onto the pitch and asked the crowd to chant various words he prompted them with. Only a short slice of the chant was useable as some drunken hooligans got a bit carried away and starting shouting other words  and phrases. So this clip was played on a loop. Pretty cool huh?

Anyone recognise this river and wall?

This is Hutt River, although it is a little bit high (we had a lot of rain prior to the tour!) and there is usually a sandy/mud bank by that back wall there. This is the scene where Aragon was washed ashore. This scene is not actually in the book, it was a little extra drama Peter Jackson wanted to add, but they had problems trying to train the horse! For me being a horse owner, I find this quite amusing, but they tried to train the horse with a bundle of straw. They laid the straw down on the floor and then tried to get the horse to lay down beside it, but naturally to the horse it laid on top of it! Anyone else find that amusing? So, deciding it was too risky to try it with Aragon (Viggo Mortenson) himself (in case the horse crushed him) they decided to scrap the scene. But Viggo was adamant! He felt the scene added to the film (nothing to do with kissing Liv Tyler at all!) and so he trained the horse himself - and FYI did anyone know Viggo kept this horse? He got so attached to him, he bought the horse and several others used in the film. Aww.

Here's a clip of the scene, and I suggest to pay attention to the water. At the beginning of the scene the river filmed is actually in the South Island. Notice the direction it's flowing and how blue and clear it looks. Then, on the close up notice the direction in which this water flows and it's colour. Oops Mr Jackson!

http://youtu.be/suSotC3Jatk

I'll leave it there for today. Tomorrow I will tell you about our visit to Rivendell, the Get Off The Road scene and the Weta Studios!

Shellby

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Wellington Lord of the Rings Tour (Part 2 of 2)

So yesterday I showed you the sights used to film Helms Deep, Mina's Tirrith, Isengard and the scene where Aragorn washes up on the shore.

Today I'm going to show you photos from the sights used to film Rivendell, the Get Off the road scene and the Weta Studio. 

After a bit of lunch Alice drove us to Kaitoke Regional Park, this is where Rivendell was built and filmed. The park is primarily a very scenic place, showing off some of New Zealand's trees and shrubs. For us, the trees were very important and helped us to identify the set location exactly. The area Peter Jackson wanted the set to be built is actually where all the trees and shrubs are growing. So prior to the build, Department of Conservation workers had to photograph and label and number hundreds of shrubs and trees before they could clear them for the set build. This is so that all of the plants could be put back in their original places, so no one would ever know Peter Jackson and his crew were even here!

And honestly, you don't. Save for a few sign posts and a couple of trees - which you aren't aware of until they are pointed out to you. Like this one-

The tree I'm pointing to in this photo is the tree you can see right there on the right in the photo below. 

Just around the corner Alice showed us another tree which is very important - especially to Legolas fans! Do you recognise it?

No? How about now?

Hmm as gorgeous at Tom looks in this photo (by the way Tom, those ears really bring out your bone structure! Hehe) I'm sure Legolas fans will prefer this image.

Alice got us all dressed up in blonde wigs and elf ears. We also had a little bow and arrow. She told us to pull our best serious face, but dressed up like that with everyone laughing at you - its a heck of a challenge!

Next she got us looking a bit closer at the trees around us. It's a little tricky with the bushes now back in their place, so she helped us out. The tree behind Elrond (guy in the brown in the middle) is the prominent tree on the left you can see in the bottom image. Now in your mind try to picture the set sitting where those bushes are. To see it in person, it wasn't very big at all. 

Did you read that bit up there? ^ If you read my Hobbiton post, you will know that Peter Jackson is huge on the little details. So much so, that the set builders and artists always build extra set. Take this image below for example. Notice anything a little funny with it?

There are Autumn leaves on the ground, but the trees are green. The leaves only go halfway up the staircase. This is because it was summer during the time of filming, and only half of the staircase was in shot. Extra set is built but as improvements and retakes are made there is no predicting what might end up in the shot, so to protect themselves from critics and from making multiple retakes because of a nun slightly gap the set builders make more! 

Now you can enjoy this clip of the Fellowship leaving Rivendell. See if you can spot the trees!

http://youtu.be/brcI4oF1Kto

After Rivendell we dropped off some our group and gained a couple extra for the second part of our full day tour. This time Alice drove us up Mount Victoria. There were several scenes shot here and we had a lot of fun recreating them ourselves! 

The first part was the scene in the Fellowship of the Ring where Sam and Frodo are sitting in a tree. Frodo is smoking a pipe while Sam is cooking their meal!

Look at this photo super, super carefully. This whole photo was in shot during filming and these trees are all in on the scene. See if you can spot them in the clip below.

http://youtu.be/DcziMI0tol4

Pause the video at 00.51 to get the exact image from above, only with our Hobbits in place. Notice the little sticky out twig on the side of the tree on the left edge of my photo. Then the tree just right of it where all the branches seem to stick out to the left. Then the curvy tree next to that one. And then there are the Hobbits sitting in that tree at the bottom. 

We got to play Sam and Frodo!

Next stop was the short cut to the mushrooms scene!

Recognise it?

our Hobbits did not actually roll down that hill. Their stunt doubles did, because an injured Hobbit is no good. And it's just as well, because one of the stunt doubles actually dislocated their shoulder while doing this scene. It's quite a steep bank as well! Take another good look at those trees for when you see the clip! There's that funny little stumpy tree, he gets his shot of fame! As do all those trees in the background. 

Notice any thing else familiar about this area? Just a couple of strides behind us is the where the Get off the road! scene was filmed. You see that big branchy tree there on the right? Look out for that one in the clip I'm about to show you! 

And here we are hiding from the black rider! Where's the tree? you ask. Ah, sorry, the one the Hobbits are hiding under is another fake tree made by Weta. But that is the hole. Honest. Just compare the trees!!

http://youtu.be/7QLWDLZLeek

A couple of little fun facts for you on this scene!

The horse the black rider was riding was called Bob. 

Those creepy crawling on the hobbits were real!

The scene that follows the link above, where Bob and his rider chase the Hobbits onto the raft, well, the first take Bob went straight into the water! His costume was weighing him down, so the crew had to work fast to remove his costume while holding his head up out of the water. Thankfully, all ended well and Bob never tried to go swimming again. 

The final part of scene searching was this scene in the clip below.

http://youtu.be/noVXB6t1myM

This scene is very difficult to show you in photos because the scene was filmed at night. We had to use our imagination and a little bit of acting ourselves to recreate the scene so that we could identify the trees. I haven't included the photos of the trees where the Hobbits ran down the hill and hid by each one, because the photo just looks like a clump of trees, but you can see a couple of them on the edge of the path on the right of the photo below, perhaps you will recognise it from the clip above? At the top of the hill this is where the black rider rears his horse. 

Before the black rider appears the hobbits run down this hill and into the trees you see them hide behind. This scene was filmed so many times, and that hill is pretty steep! I was out of breath after climbing it just once. Not to mention on the day of filming it was raining and as our hobbits we're running back up and down this hill for retakes they became very tired and their feets were hurting. So, Peter Jackson hired men to carry the hobbits up and down the hill. This was a long day for everyone involved. They filmed right through to 4am the following morning. Wow. 

Finally our scene tour came to an end. Alice drove us past the harbour and into a little suburb. This is where we got to see Peter Jackson's filming studio on Stone Street. It's a massive studio and this is all I could fit into one photo. You'd an see the green screen there, which is huge. The studio was once a paint factory.

Just up the road is Weta studios, the design and animation studio. Here we got to look around the shop which was mostly filled with Lord of the Rings memorabilia. Weta is one of the top 2 animation studios in the world! So it's not surprising Peter Jackson works with them. They have worked closely together through all of the LOTR movies. Weta have also worked on films such as Narnia, which  was also partly filmed in New Zealand, and District 9, Elysuim, King Kong and Tin Tin just to name a few. 

We paid a little bit extra when we booked our tour and we were able to get a special tour of one of Weta's studios. Sadly I wasn't able to take photos, it was strictly forbidden, but there is some incredible work in there. Movie props from films such as a gun from District 9, a scale miniature model of the Prince Caspian castle, a scary looking giant bunny from an old children's tv program, and there is Peter Lyon's workspace; a sword-smith who creates real life swords and armour. His skill and designs is  breathtaking and he even earned himself a Queens Honour - the knights companion of the New Zealand order of merit.

So that brings us to the end of my Lord of the Rings Wellingon tour. Hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions feel free to leave me a comment and I'll do my best to answer! 

Anyone game for a LOTR movie marathon? 

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