Museums and Castles

---

Today was museum day. The plan had been to do a 2 hour city walk, but following a fatigue driven mutiny, we by-passed the walk and went straight to the museum - stopping briefly for a pair of flat whites at Starbucks. I digress here to say that I am increasingly unimpressed by Starbucks. The coffee seems bland in comparison to the espreesso I have had at other New Zealand venues. For example, the museum made an excellent flat white. Having invested myself in the Starbucks ritual, I will certainly finish visiting all the New Zealand South Island stores (only two more to go I think), but I can’t say that my quest will be as fulfilling. Can it be that the Starbucks buzz is wearing off? What will I do with all the mugs?

We spent most of the day at the Otago Museum. It is certainly one of the best in New Zealand - ranking up there with the Te Papa museum in Wellington. We could easily have spent more than a day here - we will certainly come back. There was yet another Antarctic exhibit which covered the years of heroic exploration (Scott, Amudsen, Shakelton) up to present day. Even though Antarctica exhibits are almost as plentiful as sheep here, I never tire of reading about it.

After the museum we took a run out to Baldwin Street - allegedly the steepest street in the world. The steepest gradient is 1 in 2.86. After a moment or two of hesitation (there was a sign warning against taking trucks up), we decided to take the Land Cruiser to the top. The V8 engine was straining almost immediately but like the little engine that could, it reached the summit. I did have a moment or two of not quite panic but elevated anxiety, and was greatly relieved to get to the top. It was at this point, however, that I realized that there was no exit from the summit - other than back down the very steeply pitched road. After a seat belt check, I shifted into 4 wheel low, and we crawled down the hill. A couple of local kids decided that this would be a good opportunity to see what would happen if an 5,400 lb truck drove over a matchbox car. I was more than a little alarmed to find them standing in the middle of the street - where they remained right up until the last minute. The matchbox car was predictably squashed to the great delight of its owner.

We finished off the day at Lanarch Castle, New Zealand's only castle. It was built over a period of 12 years (around 1870) by the banker William Larnach for his first wife. William ultimately commited suicide and the castle fell into disrepair. It was bought by a couple in the late 1960s who have since restored and refuribshed the place. We had dinner in the castle dining room with a dozen other guests. It was a charming expereince. We were put up in the castle stables - fortunately the animals were sleeping elsewhere.

---

Photos

Larnach Castle
Dinner and Lodging at the Castle