Nelson, 2023

Nelson, on Tasman Bay, at the north end of the South Island, is one of New Zealand's prettier towns. Also its sunniest, FWIW. As the gateway to Abel Tasman, it gets plenty of tourists, and it's little more than an hour from Picton and the ferry (if any). For as long as we've been visiting, it's also a very RV-friendly town, with numerous free or low-cost camper parking spaces all over town. We generally have timed our visits for the Saturday and Sunday markets, which mostly feature local arts and crafts. The previous week, just arriving from Wellington, we stayed Saturday night and caught the Sunday flea market. After doing the AT, the Grove, and Wharariki, we stayed Friday night and did the Saturday market.

Previous years' posts have featured Nelson's abundant art deco,
here, its cinema (still a cinema, too)

Three of these large carparks, right downtown;
one features the world-famous Solar Superloo

Walking through ANZAC park 

Willie Nelson?

Christopher Finleyson's Aotearoa (The Land of the
Long White Cloud), 1984, on the side of Nelson's
Power House (old electricity generating plant) 

Entering Nahm, a Thai/Asian fusion bistro, recommended
by Rebecca

Our balcony table afforded views of the harbor's educational and
recreational activities; here, the 8-10  year-old sailing class is towed in

A young woman deftly launches and rights her wingfoil

And flies to the outer harbor; damn, she was good!

The 12-14 year-olds class arrives

Our food also arrives...chicken satay

A riff on Peking duck

Tom yum

Char sui BBQ pork ribs, five spice seasoning; great recommendation,
Rebecca!

1946 Nelson Ladies Rugby Union Club, the "All Hats"; wait, no...

At the Saturday market: "flat food"; even on the wrong side of the 

world, Vicki always goes for a lemon crepe

Saturday market scene

Stimulating the local economy: a greenstone worry pendant; actually
we stimulated the high street outdoor stores even more, several of whom
were having 50% off sales