Some of our wonderful speakers have been wondering what to do while in New Zealand when not Webstocking. Here’s what some lovely folks recommended for both one’s stay in Wellington, and further afield…
Why not share your recommendations too.
Andrew’s list of awesome:
Visiting the Waipoua Kauri Forest (north of Dargaville) followed by Sandboarding at Opononi
Sue’s list of awesome This list was complied by sue who grew up visiting every single spot of NZ every summer holidays
so she knows what she’s talking about, although she’s never been stupid enough to bungy jump
there is a whole pile more things you can do but that’s just a taster
Sue is also available to take you on a tiki tour because nothing makes her more happy than gushing about how much she loves wellington
Rotorua & Lake Taupo
it might smell a bit but the geothermal activity around rotorua is pretty special
don’t miss out on Waimangu Volcanic Valley for a mix of geothermal and nature
and if you are wanting to experience a bit of Maori culture Whakarewarewa the Living Thermal Village
or for you trampers why not try Tongariro Crossing
Napier
NZ’s art deco capital is just half a days drive away
along with the building you can check out the most excellent vineyards
If you have a thing for penguins why not visit marineland for a penguin encounter
it’s a little wrong to pack all these amazing national and world heritage parks into one number, but experiencing just one of these will make you smil
Mitre Peak & Milford Sound, Fiordland National Park
skip queenstown, it’s a bit of a tourist trap, however if extreme tourism is the name of your game
visit the worlds original bungy jumping site and ride the rapids in the shotover jet
Nelson and surrrounds
check out Able Tasman National Park
farewell spit and some lovely vineyards and boutique beers and pottery around nelson
Up North
it’s hot it’s sunny there is a total fire ban at the moment, but the bay of isalnds is so lovely
check out tours to go swimming with dolphins
the kauri coast home to the great Kauri tree Tane_Mahuta
Public toilets in Kawakawa – by artist Hunderwasser
The Cuba Street Carnival
being held on the weekend after webstock this is NZ’s vibrant street carnival
you get all the fun of cuba street and the nz music scene in one day
the night parade kicks off at 9pm but we recommend getting a good spot well before then
yummy Noms
Everyone has to eat so here’s a few place we love
– capitol, home to the best margarita in wellington and also some pretty great food
– hot and spicy, for south asian influence visit Monsoon Poon, for some indian food balti house (yes we know balti is an english thing)
– citron. there is something rather special about their Degustation menu
– Coffee & Cafes, we love our cafe culture in wellington so most places serve lovely coffee, we are also big on cake in NZ
Courtney’s list of awesome With a Taranaki slant, in homage to her home province – go the Naki!
Rent a car. Gather road trip companions (if required)
Drive from Wellington towards Taranaki. Pause for a pie at the Hot
Bread Shop in Otaki. Stop in Wanganui to visit the Sarjeant Gallery,
McNamara Gallery, and Ross Mitchell-Anyon’s extraordinary studio on the
banks of the Whanganui river.
On the way into Hawera, marvel at the giant dairy cow monument.
On the way out of Hawera, abandon the country driving in favour of
Surf Highway 45.
Stop off at Oakura beach (10 minutes before New Plymouth). Surf,
swim, or just check out the lifesavers.
In New Plymouth, visit the Len Lye show at the Govett-Brewster Art
Gallery. See if you can surreptitiously film yourself dancing in front
of ‘Tusalava’ and load it up to YouTube
Walk the whole 7km of the coastal walkway; take your togs and stop
off at Fitzroy beach.
Climb Mt Taranaki – it’s a surprisingly easy day trip (she says
confidently, having last done it as a teenager). I’ve heard the best
experience is the very early morning climb, timed so that after reaching
the summit you see the sun rise over the North Island.
Have a romantic (if somewhat blingy) evening stroll around Pukekura
Park during the Festival of the Lights. Also good – although perhaps
less romantic – with kids in tow.
Rent a bach in Mokau (about an hour north of New Plymouth) for a
night or two of sumptuous downtime. If you time it just right, you’ll be
able to stop in at the Urenui Rodeo (the national finals!) on your way
north.
Joanna’s list of awesome
Go to the vineyards in the Wairarapa. Stay in Martinborough and you can walk to a whole lot, or find yourself a driver
Red Wine, Buffalo Mozzarella and Vitello Tonnato from Maria Pia’s Trattoria
Cuba Street Carnival (The Saturday after webstock), street stalls, carnies, what more could you ask for?
Go to Mighty Mighty on a Fri/Sat night, dance, observe and enjoy a toasted sandwich in the wee hours of the morning.
Visit The New Dowse, similar to the Old Dowse, but with a mix of latte and the Arts and Crafts movement.
Laugh at the obsession with Cuba icons, Fidels, Havana, Ernestos, propose a new cultural narrative?
Talk to some kuwis, they have a habit of talking too fast, but you get used to the twang after a while.
Foxton Fizz, it may be like sugar water, but at least it ain’t made by a multinational. Raspberry Spiders from Deluxe are always good on a hot day.
Nue Zild (translation: New Zealand)
Fly to Nelson and explore Golden Bay – drive from Collingwood through Kahurangi National park, have kai (food) from the super isolated Nugget cafe and then emerge on the West Coast.
Road trip within the North Island – laugh at the parochial obsession with building large cultural icons from corrugated iron – Te Kuiti and its large Kiwifruit, Taupo and its Trout, rinse and repeat up and down State Highway One.
National Parks and day trips
Raglan – Sleepy Surf town turns it on, but the surf is a killer.
finally,
As is always the case, the New Zealand dialect is an interesting one, much as the Canadians have aboot and aye, the New Zealanders have sweet, and “yeah nah” observe and ask questions, us Kiwis will always be happy to clarify for the non-locals.
Oh, and toy dinosaurs and fricking laser guns! Yes, it’s the Webstock Trading Card Game!
Actually, think of it as social networking, the old-fashioned way. You know, where you actually have to talk to people, share information, trade stuff … and then screw them over! Mwahahaha.
You’ll be given a set of cards in your conference schwag bag. Your aim is to trade, swap and steal cards to create a hand of maximum points and power. Hand that in to the registration desk by the end of lunch on the final day of Webstock, and you’ll have a chance to win the most awesome of prizes. You’ll be given more instructions at registrations, but be sure to hook up with @webstockgame on Twitter.
Did we mention prizes?
First prize: The Goliathon 83 Infinity Beam Projector
Webstock is nothing if not helpful in aiding you on your quest to rid the world of bad websites and non-valid markup. Sometimes gentle encouragement and helpful suggestions don’t work though. You need firepower and SHOCK and AWE tactics.
We present to you, The Goliathon 83 Infinity Beam Projector. When you need to tell them to just STFU and do what you say, this will help. Think of it as your PEACEMAKER.
Second prize: Pleo – the robotic baby dinosaur
“The Pleo is a one-week-old dinosaur that will quickly grow to become one of the most fun and exciting members of your family. This amazing robotic marvel not only moves organically, explores its environment on its own, and interacts with you, but it also expresses emotions based on its life experiences.”
How awesomely cool is that? It may or may not say something about the fun and excitement factor of your family as currently constituted, but, still, a ROBOTIC BABY DINOSAUR!
Third prize: The Canon IXUS 901S
The sexy and wonderful Canon IXUS 901S camera. All you want, and more, in a stylish and desirable point-and-click camera.
Fourth prize: A miniature Goliathon 83 Infinity Beam Projector
Just like the big fellow, but small. Perfectly formed though!
Webstock takes place at the Wellington Town Hall. It’s a lovely, ornate venue, redolent of an age of soaring ceilings and stunning plasterwork. It’s a venue that lends itself to a sense of occasion.
As you can see, we sit people around oval tables, rather than in rows of lecture style seating. This came about by accident in a sense. Prior to the first Webstock we were looking at the venue and it happened to be set up for a dinner, with oval tables set about the auditorium. It just looked right, and we made a decision to do things that way at the conference. What it means is that instead of sitting in a row, where you can maybe talk to people on your left and right, you’ll find yourself sitting around a table with 10 other people. Complete with room for your laptop, power outlets for everyone and ubiquitous wi-fi. (Yes, we’re assured this will be rock-solid for the conference!). We think it makes for a more social conference.
Of course it also means that we can’t fit as many people into the auditorium as with lecture style seating. There’s a limit to how many we can seat at the tables and we reached that last year, having to close registrations a week out from the conference start. We’re nearing that limit this year again, so we’ve decided to open up the mezzanine floor of the auditorium.
The mezzanine floor offers a great view down to the main stage and we think will appeal to a number of people throughout the conference. It will also allow us to have a few less tables downstairs in the main auditorium, meaning the back tables won’t be quite as far back as previous years.
Bottom line: We’ve got slightly increased overall capacity over previous years. There’s more choice on where to sit. We’re filling up the available space quickly.
It must be the Webstock closing gig! Brought to you by the lovely folks at Google.
Webstock is taking over New Zealand’s finest cinema, The Embassy at the bottom of Courtney place, for the closing night party. A short walk down from the Town Hall, you’ll arrive to red carpet, bouncers on the door, and screaming groupies. (Your mileage may vary on this last item). You’ll be wined and dined for the evening to beats provided by the Mukunas and to a couple of sets by the (world famous in Hamilton) Trons.
It’s a chance to wind-down, to wind-up, to relax and mingle and to ensure you leave your Webstock experience in the very best frame of mind.
There’s also talk of the Webstock after-after party. We’ll keep you posted.
And if you haven’t see the Trons before, here’s a taste of them during their Velvet Underground inspired phase.
We’re delighted to have the folks from Mukuna on board for Webstock. They’ll be bringing the beats during the conference and after-parties and turning the water into funk. We caught up with Jefe and Lisa from Down the Road, the coolness behind Mukuna.
Webstock: So what is Mukuna and the Mukuna Gig Guide?
Mukuna: The pat answer is that it’s a database of music event listings accessible online, on your web-enabled mobile phone and by SMS return text. It’s also a content syndication system that radio stations, venues and promoters use for updating the gig guides on their sites.
The name comes from a genus of tropical vines, mucuna. The seeds are considered good luck and the flowers are pollinated at night by bats. Grows everywhere, hard to kill.
Another answer is that it’s an itch that we needed to scratch. It’s a project we’ve been thinking about since 2000.
Webstock: How did the two of you meet and end up in New Zealand doing this?
Mukuna: It’s a twisted story, involving a lot of geography, but it goes something like this. Lisa and I met in San Francisco during the dot com boom in the late 90s. We were living in the same part of town, working from home, running with a crew of common friends. For our second or third date we moved to Costa Rica for a year, based on a job posting on Craigslist. Then we went to Chicago for a year, and then to Japan, where, coincidentailly, we both had lived prior to meeting.
Have web skills, will travel. We’re basically migrant field hands, moving with the harvests.
We ended up in NZ because Lisa’s a dual citizen (and I’m like a piece of good luggage). She grew up in Mountain View, California of Kiwi parents–her old man’s been hacking since the early 70s, and tells a great story of how a young Steve Jobs once stopped by their suburban garage for a look-see.
Up until a couple of months ago we’d been based on K Road, Auckland’s last bastion of bohemia, as they say. We moved to Wellington because we wanted to start covering the music scene in this fine town, and figured the best way to do so was to settle in and get amongst it.
Mukuna’s core team is now up to five–two in Wellington, three in Auckland–but the crew extends much larger, and includes radio and club DJs, bands, promoters, venue owners, music critics, professional punters and a few wiley types at the fringe. It’s this network that makes Mukuna what it is. Metcalf’s law in action, you could say.
Webstock: What sort of music can Webstockers expect to hear during the conference?
Mukuna: Nerdcore.
Webstock: Jefe – your five top, all-time, desert island albums?
Webstock: We note the absence of early years Flying Nun and of any Dylan, but commend the eclectic nature of the choices! And look forward to the music. Thanks guys.
