Town Basin Marina is conveniently located in the heart of Whangarei.  There are shops, restaurants, marine stores, markets, bakeries, and all sorts of places to spend your money all within walking distance.  And it is just so beautiful at night with all the lights twinkling and reflecting in the water.

We had massive rains and floods during our stay.  Locals said they had not seen it rain like this in over a dozen years.  Unfortunately, with the heavy rains, comes the debris, broken trees, branches, trash, and muck down the river.

Lucky for us, the marina returned to its normal beauty within a few days.

The tide is between 2-3 meters at the Town Basin Marina making the ramps fun to walk on.  Notice the difference between the gazebo and Sugar Shack and the angle of the ramp.

Claphams National Clock Museum

Just pas the marina office is Claphams National Clock Museum which includes one of the world’s largest sun dials and a working ball clock!

Not sure I ever figured out how to tell time using the sun dial, but it sure is a work of art in the center of Town Basin, Whangarei.

The Whangarei Ball Clock

Is it a kinetic sculpture? Or is it a cultural attraction? Is it a clock? It is all these and much more. The Rolling Ball clock is now in place in its prime location adjacent to the museum. The time is indicated by balls that roll onto timing racks with markings for hours, minutes and seconds. There is always something to marvel at anytime during the day!

Inside the museum is a rare collection of unique and funny clocks.  As you enter the museum, you are greeted with everyday household items and musical instrument clocks converted into clocks.

Telling time using the balls

The Town Basin Time Ball 

Many small and unique clocks that surprise and delight the eyes.

Great old grandfather, grandmother, and grand daughter clocks line many walls inside the museum.

Do you have any interest in a clock museum?  Normally, I would say, well….not really.  However, I found it rather interesting to learn about the evolution of the clocks.  And it was great fun to see the variety of crazy clocks this man collected.

Glass Artistry

One of the many stores boasts of beautiful, colorful hand blown glass work.  I marvel at the beautiful colors, shapes and designs.  This store was unique in that it allowed you to view the hand blown glass technique first hand.

Hundertwasser Art Center

Hundertwasser Art Center is a marvel in its mere presence in the marina!  We always know how to get back to the boat, just by looking for the big gold icon!

This museum is dedicated to Wairau Maori Art.  The museum also honors and promotes the legacy of visionary, painter, ecologist, and architect, Friedensreich Hundertwasser.  It was great fun wandering around the grounds and facilities

Car Show

One Sunday, Matt and I stumbled on a small car show in a parking lot.  They had a really nice variety of collectable cars!

Gypsy Fair

A caravan of gypsies came to Whangarei offering treats, games, and artisan pieces.

The Canopy Bridge

the Canopy bridge lies at one end of the marina.  The sails, masts, and spares of the boats at Town Basin Marina inspired the look and feel of the bridge.  At night the Canopy Bridge lights up in vibrant colors in a beautiful art show.  The Whangarei community comes together periodically for festivals, art shows, and markets held at the Canopy Bridge.

Te Matau a Pohe 

Matt and I had the opportunity to walk across the Te Matau a Pohe (fish hook) bridge several times as we cross from one side of town to the other.

The hook bridge is simply beautiful whether you walk on it or sail below it.  And this beautiful star tree just takes my breath away.

Artwork All Around Whangarei

Many beautiful tikis are scattered around the parks of the city.

I loved this piece…

So many beautiful sculptures and artwork around Whangarei.

This is one of my favorite pieces.  The Camera Obscura is a huge structure that winds you inside into a dark center where the light (lower left corner) reflects everything it sees from the outside inside, but upside down.

And this young lady just seemed to speak to me

One of our tasty meals at The Butter Factory

Town Basin Marina at Whangarei is a cultural hot bed and shopping Mecca all at our fingertips.  A quick hop, skip, and a jump from our slip at the marina.

Events from this blog occurred in early November.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  In our last blog, we are welcomed into the country of New Zealand.