The Big NZ Road Trip Photos - Pt 2 - South to Wellington - Army Museum and Te Papa

After Taupo we drove south to Wellington with an impromtu stop at the New Zealand Army Museum.

Goodbye Lake Taupo

Volcanoes

and some flat stretches

An impromptu stop at the NZ Army Museum.  It was an impressive museum and we could have spent much of a day there.

The highlight of our time in Wellington was the Te Papa museum.  As Liz writes about, we thought we could do it justice in part of a day ... Two almost full days later and we still have not seen it all.

Te Papa's Colossal Squid (the link takes you to the Te Papa's squid page) - The largest ever squid that has been recovered.

Not only are whales majestic, they have big hearts.  Benjamin inside a full size model of a blue whale heart,

One of the original cannons of Capt Cook's HMS ENDEAVOUR.

One of the unexpected highlights of the Te Papa was the Gallipoli exhibit.  After 23 years in the military and with an interest in history I have been to a fair number of military museums.  None have done as good of a job connecting the attendee to the people involved in the conflict.

Throughout the Gallipoli Exhibit there were 2.4 times life size models of some of the participants.

Throughout the Gallipoli Exhibit there were 2.4 times life size models of some of the participants.

Throughout the Gallipoli Exhibit there were 2.4 times life size models of some of the participants.