Aug
1st - Air NZ Cup Rugby: Wellington v Hawkes Bay
15th - Air NZ Cup Rugby: Wellington v Counties Manukau
30th - Air NZ Cup Rugby: Wellington v Bay of Plenty

Te Papa - The Capital City of New Zealands fantastic Museum

Te Papa Facts
History
The Museum of New Zealand has existed for many years but the current Te Papa was opened in 1998 after a long and intensive 5 years of development.

Design
A designer for Te Papa was found through a national architectural competition. Te Papa was one of the biggest museum projects in the world. Built on a site the size of three rugby fields, with a total floor area of 36,000 square metres, Te Papa was a massive undertaking.

Te Papa's Mission, developed in 1992, states that:
The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (Te Papa) is a forum for the nation to present, explore, and preserve the heritage of its cultures and knowledge of the natural environment in order to better understand and treasure the past, enrich the present, and meet the challenges of the future.

My experience of Te Papa
The first time I visited Wellington, New Zealand I spent a day at Te Papa museum and still didn't manage to see it all.

One of my favourite things about this museum is how interactive it is. There are so many places where you can quiz yourself or experience what it must be like to be in a house when an earthquake hits that it's easy to lose yourself on one floor of the museum and forget about the rest of it.

I spent about an hour at this one exhibit which showcased the difficult decisions immigrants made years ago on their long journeys to New Zealand by boat. I'll admit that my decisions weren't very good because I kept dying long before I ever got near to New Zealand!

Make sure you give yourself at least a day at Te Papa so that you can see as much of it as possible as it's the best museum I've been to (and I've been to alot because I always visit the museum at every new town I go to!)

To find out more visit The official Te Papa website

Here are just a few of the exhibitions coming soon to Te Papa, Wellington.

Exhibitions
The Scots in New Zealand
An exhibition celebrating one of the most energetic migrant groups in the country's history.

Toi Te Papa Art of the Nation
Toi Te Papa Art of the Nation showcases more than 300 impressive artworks - both historical and contemporary - from Te Papa's collections. Experience the richness and diversity of New Zealand's artistic heritage.

Moving Towards a Balanced Earth: Kick the Carbon Habit
Experience this international contemporary art exhibition exploring the future of the environment.

Awesome Forces
The story of New Zealand's dramatic landscape and the part that earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and the weather play in its shaping.

Mountains to Sea
Explore New Zealand's diverse range of plants and animals and their living places - mountains, fresh waters, forests, coasts, and the surrounding seas.

Signs of a Nation
An exploration of the Treaty signed in 1840 between the British Crown and Maori - its history and place in New Zealand today.

For full details of exhibitions and coming events check out The Museum of New Zealand website

The Breeders
9th August

Miles Ahead
Wellington Town Hall, Wellington CBD, Tue 22 Jul
A Musical Tribute to Jazz Icon, Composer/Arranger - Gil Evans. Featuring The New Zealand School of Music Jazz Orchestra musical director Rodger Fox. From the USA International Acclaimed Jazz Trumpeter - Clay ...
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Young Sid and Ethical: Unkut Tour 08
Bar Bodega, Wellington CBD, Fri 25 Jul
MTV in association with Unkut Corp proudly present . . . Young Sid and Ethical . . . The Unkut Tour 08 4 July - Tauranga - Colisuem (w/ Neesh) 11 July - Auckland - 4:20 (w/ Red Eye Society) 18 July - ...
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Shihad
Wellington Town Hall, Wellington CBD, Fri 25 Jul
Hot on the vapour trail of their chart-topping album 'Beautiful Machine', the finely-tuned rhythm-and-power unit Shihad are thrilled to announce a return home for a national tour in July. The 'Beautiful Machine' Tour ...
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Ghost Echoes EP Release Tour
Valve Bar, Wellington CBD, Sat 26 Jul
Ghost Echoes EP Release NZ Tour 2008 . . . with Not Quite Right, Okasite and None The Less. R18. Merchandise available at the door.
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Aural Trash Winter Tour 08
Sandwiches, Wellington CBD, Sat 26 Jul
DJ's Greg Churchill and Angela Fisken bring you a night of dirty breaks, tech and electro house madness! Jagermeister drink specials all night. The first 100 people through the door receive the latest Aural Trash ...
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Mark Kozelek (Sun Kil Moon, Red House Painters)
San Francisco Bath House, Wellington CBD, Thu 31 Jul
Over the course of 13 albums and a dizzying tally of shorter releases in his own name, under the banner of Sun Kil Moon, and of course with his near-legendary outfit Red House Painters - Mark Kozelek has been thrilling ...
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Anika Moa with Anna Coddington
Bar Bodega, Wellington CBD, Fri 1 Aug
Anika Moa - one of New Zealand's most accomplished and best-selling artists of the decade - is set to play dates all across the country during July and August. The announcement of these dates should inspire a ...
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If you've never stayed in a backpackers hostel before you may be a bit wary and think it's full of 18-24 year olds all getting drunk and being annoying!

If that's the case then you should try out Nomads Capital Flashpacking Hostel in central Wellington. It's one of the new style of hostels which basically means you're staying in hotel style accommodation for a fraction of the price but it's also easy to meet travellers because of the communal areas!