The Fair was scheduled for Saturday 3rd March but due to the Weather Bomb was cancelled for the first time in 35 years. Due to overwhelming demand it is being rerun on the first Saturday in May.
Martinborough is a town in South Wairarapa, a district in the Wellington region on the North Island of New Zealand. It is 65 kilometres east of Wellington and 35 kilometres south-west of Masterton. The town has a population of about 1300 full-time inhabitants. - Wikipedia
More information about the fair can be found here.
The last time we visited the fair was five years ago, since the week long cold and wet Wellington weather did a slight reprieve; we decided to visit the 400 odd stalls again.
Personally, I don't fancy going to a Kiwi fair; they are for the ladies... you do not find high tech toys at fair do you? ;)
I decided to keep myself occupied by taking some pictures and since there will be PLENTY of walking, ONE camera is advisable; for me anyway.
Now is a good time to find out if my favorite ultra-wide Canon G12 with the Nikon WC-E75 accessory lens is good or not as a point and shoot.
I wrote about how I turn my G12 into an ultra-wide here, it is a very popular post.
To get to Martinbourough you have to cross the 940 m (3,084 ft) Rimutaka Range which I loath, but on Saturday the four of us get into my Lancer VRX Sportback and an hour later we are at Featherston.
The last time we were at this quaint little town we had a most delightful lunch at a nice cafe called Lady Featherston, this time round we cannot find it along the main street! As a matter of fact, there are now only one cafe along Fitzherbert Street! We were told by a diary owner that Lady Featherston were closed years ago!
Desperate for food we went to the only cafe we can see, the Caornucopia Food Store and Cafe. We do not have much choice in this little town ;)
I found out later that...
Cornucopia Foodstore and Cafe opened in May 2008 as a Cafe and food retail shop in Fitzherbert Street, Featherston.
The concept was to create a unique shop where almost everything sold was made fresh, everyday. Cornucopia is recognised for its quality of outstanding cakes, pastries, breads and menu items.
They are also known for their exciting choice of cooked food and a range of artisan products made with the best ingredients by hand with passion.
They use what is seasonal, sourced locally where possible, and regard their service as second to none. Cornucopia serves the Wairarapa and the local Featherston community.
Like they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating; are they really that good?
Ming ordered the classical Kiwi Big Breakfast, it is BIG alright; she shared it with Le General. Both of them think highly of this simple dish.
This is what I ordered, bacon; fresh mushrooms and poached eggs on brioche, a very rich French bread... can't be very healthy but yum ;)
Ming's best friend, Malika who came with us ordered the corn fritters and salad.
We all enjoyed the food and excellent services, I was particularly impressed with the BIG; juicy fresh mushrooms they used to perfection!
The three breakfast, two flat white and two lemon drinks came to NZ$ 70.90; good value. We will be back!
From Featherstone it only took us 15 minutes and we are in Martinbourough. Cars are directed to car parks that are 10 minutes walk to where the fair is. Parking cost $4.00.
Is that a car or a bike? This sporty looking three wheelers even caught the attention of the ladies!
These are what the ladies come for, shopping; shopping and more shopping!
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| Just like the real thing but last a long long time! |
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| No kidding?! You could have fool me! |
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| The clay flowers are really popular! |
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| Martinborough Hotel still look good! |
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| Sorry, no oil here; plenty of wine though ;) |
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| You can buy Samoan arty rugs or even... |
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| ... arty carved stones by local Maori artist. |
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| Just like India? Gold chains galore! |
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| More artificial flowers! How about giant size scalloped poppies? |
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| Kids love these colourful animal shaped beanies! |
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| More traditional woolen beanie to keep your head warm. |
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| At the fair you can buy colourful jackets... |
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| Colourful pillows... |
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| Junk.. oops, antiques... |
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| You can even get guitars, how about 3 guitars for $10 ;) |
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| No, they don't sell dogs here! Fancy taking four of them for a walk at the fair! |
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| Of course there are all types of food on sale, this pure fruit natural ice cream is really yum! |
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| The local butcher frying up their classic heart-attack-sandwich ;) |
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| Reg Rudhall with her Fold-A-Way, the seat that becomes a table; here you see it as a bench chair. |
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| A simple fold and it became... |
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| A solid table with two bench seats! Lesley and Reg of Wanganui has been showing off their creation at the Martinborough Fair for 13 years! |
Oh.... what about the G12, how did it do?
It did great, as expected; you can have it round your neck looking nonchalant and take your shot with the ultra-wide attachment lens, giving point and shoot a new meaning ;)
1 comment:
CY I love your photos. Very good quality. It helped me feel like I went to the fair. Take care.
Regards
Paul Kang
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