Nelson, the northernmost city of New Zealand’s South Island, just takes your breath away.
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Tucked in between the not-so-imposing Richmond mountain range on one side and the shimmering Tasman Bay on the other, it is not hard to understand what the early settlers saw in this place to make it the second oldest settled city in New Zealand when it was established in 1841.
Is there a better way to spend your day? @Sport_360 #CWC15 #UAEvZIM @NelsonTasmanNZ pic.twitter.com/mrrDPS1OLR
— Joy Chakravarty (@TheJoyOfCricket) February 19, 2015
Blessed as it is with natural beauty, the most remarkable thing about this city of 121,000 people is the way they go out of their way to help tourists.
Twice I asked strangers for directions, and both time they almost walked a kilometer with me to point out the way! In the second instance, it was a man cycling in from the opposite direction.
He got off, and then walked with me pushing the cycle. Either they were extremely helpful, or they did not think much about my sense of direction.
Nelson is promoted for its almost Mediterranean climate, although it snows on the mountains and there is an alpine slope for skiing within 40 minutes of the city. And it has a stunning coastline.
The city takes great pride in their three national parks – Abel Tasman, Kahurangi and Nelson Lakes. And what makes their collection unique is how different each one of them are from the other.
The Abel Tasman National Park is New Zealand’s only coastal national park, with lush forests and beautiful stretch of sandy beaches next to crystal-clear water.
Kahurangi is the second largest national park. It is alpine in nature, featuring rocky tracks and caves and an incredible variety of birds.
Nelson Lakes National Park is centred around two of the largest lakes in the region –Rotoiti and Rotoroa.
And obviously, one has to mention the contribution of a certain Mr Peter Jackson. Several parts of Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit trilogy was shot in and around Nelson.
So, you find several guided tour packages of the locations.
Also, one can visit the Jens Hansen shop in Nelson city centre. They are the jewellers who designed over 40 rings for movies. The most authentic One Ring can be purchased here. In case you are wondering about the prices, they start at NWD195 for sterling silver to NZD5,490 for platinum.
Saxton Oval
The newly constructed Saxton Oval in Nelson, which was the host venue of UAE’s opening World Cup match against Zimbabwe, has a seating capacity of 6,000 people.
But if you are one of those 6,000 to attend a match here, consider yourself most lucky because it is easily one of the top five most beautiful cricket grounds in the world.
There are no grandstands, just grassy mounds. And the Richmond mountain range provides a stunning backdrop to the cricketing action.
What I absolutely loved was how the cloud formations near the range kept changing dramatically every hour or so.
Nelson is named after Admiral Horatio Nelson, who defeated both the French and Spanish fleets in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, where he also lost his life.
Admiral Nelson, so goes the legend, had one eye, one arm and one leg (which is not right – he only lost an eye and an arm in two separate battles), and hence the English infatuation with the number.
Given the name of their city, the moment a team reaches 111 or 222, the whole crowd starts hopping on one leg, bringing back memories of former English umpire David Shepherd.
