You can't beat Wellington on a good day...

So the saying goes around here, but even on a 'bad' day, there's worse places to be...
It's been 18 months living in Wellington, and I still am loving experiencing this great city. I've often thought about moving back to Aus, but when I weigh up the pros and cons, the Windy City wins every time. There are certainly things I miss about Aus, my family, my cats, my friends, but the actual lifestyle here has gotten under my skin. I'm not a real 'city person', but the compactness of the city, the ease of getting around, the fact that the CBD has people in it and is not like a ghost town (sorry, Newcastle, but that's how it's heading) and the plethora of entertainment has me hooked. Here's why...

The trails; It's why I came here, and I'm still discovering new gems all the time. Riding with different people always opens up new possibilities. Alistair from Fox is based in Wanaka (South Island), with real mountains, and still reckons Welly has the best trails in the country. Vegas is cool, but I agree with Caleb in his assessment that it can get boring after a few days spent riding there. But we still love to get up there whenever possible, just wouldn't want to live there.

The wind; I used to hate the wind. I'm still not a huge fan of it when it tries to pick me up off my mountain bike and throw me off the side of Makara Peak, or when I'm on the flat road at Lyall bay, in the small ring, standing up pedalling and going about 10kph. But those are extreme cases, and when it's behind your back, you can really get moving. And I think if it hasn't killed me yet, then I might just be a bit stronger?

The cityscape; Looking back at the CBD from Carlton Gore Road is one of the best views I've ever seen. From Fraser's new place in Brooklyn isn't bad either, a different perspective but still a great panorama. Especially at night. Looking from Natasha's place, also in Brooklyn, you get the bays and the Orongorongo mountains thrown in too. And when I lived in Khandallah the view over the docks, stadium and city were also pretty sweet. Speaking of the stadium...

The Phoenix; They might not be very good at playing football, but going to the CakeTin and watching the A-League is a great arvo or night out. The fans (affectionately known as the 'Yellow Fever', even though the team wears black) are awesome, singing, yelling abuse, getting rowdy but all in a pretty good spirit. The food sucks and drinking Tui out of plastic bottles is heinous, but I can't wait for the season to start again. And I love looking up at Tinakori Hill as the sun sets, or the rain mists in, with the crowd singing "Oh Wellington, is wonderful..we've got the wind, the rain and the Phoenix..."

The bike community; As with anywhere, there are weirdos and dickheads who ride bikes. There are fixie riders who get way too far into the whole image and ideals of the 'scene'. There are the roadie snobs and twats who won't even look at you as you cross paths. And there are mountain bikers who think they need a 7-inch-travel bike to ride down a walking trail. But the cool people who ride more than make up for them. And I've never seen so many hot roady girls in my life... I wish they weren't so fast and keep getting away from me!

The coffee; Mmmm the coffee. Some great beans around, still lean towards Havana mainly, but People's is up there too, and when Aidan at Emporio is getting his groove on it's a good brew. But coffee without cafes is just takeaway coffee, and there are some great cafes around. Fidels and Midnight Espresso are cool, but with more cafes per capita than New York, it's gonna take a while to sample them all.


The summer; Last summer was one of the best I've experienced for riding for quite a while. Just the right temperatures, didn't have to freeze my bidons to prevent them being able to make coffee in after an hour, and the nights actually cool down enough to be able to sleep without running an AC all night.

The winter; Sometimes I think "gee, it'd be nice to be in a warmer place right now." But, as Tryphan said to me once, "weather is weather". Or as Tracy Moseley put it to me, "once you're out the door, it doesn't matter... and warming up with a whiskey in front of the fire afterwards is cool too." While I don't have a fire, drink whiskey or live in England, I'm finding it easier to get out in the cold than to get out in the Aussie heat. And an electric heater and a beer still does the trick.

The women; Walk downtown on any day of the week, and your head will be spinning. Sexy, earthy, classy women who dress with some style. They know how to stay warm and still look good. And when summer comes, well....