Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 1 – on Parliament Hill, dating back to the late 1800s, the newest addition to the Parliament Buildings is the “Beehive” (also known as the Executive Wing), an iconic executive office wing that opened in 1977
We had the opportunity to sign up online for a complimentary 70-minute tour of the New Zealand (NZ) Parliament Buildings. As the photographs below show, we went through the three main buildings and saw the highlights of each building. One interesting thing to understand about the NZ Parliament (we got a 10 minute introductory movie that explained a lot about the buildings and the process of making new laws in New Zeeland) is that the legislature is unicameral – that is, there is only one legislative body, not two (like the United States Congress with the House of Representatives and the Senate, or the United Kingdom with the House of Commons and the House of Lords). In the NZ Parliament, there is only one chamber — the House of Representatives (the Lower House) — which, since 1951, is the only representative body in Parliament. [Note that between 1853 and 1950, the NZ Parliament also had the Legislative Council (the Upper House) – a bicameral system.] Also, the government works under a parliamentary system, with multiple competing parties; the government is formed by a coalition of the leading parties who then face the “opposition”.
“New Zealand Parliament Buildings (Mãoi: Ngā whare Paremata) house the New Zealand parliament and are on a 45,000 square metre site at the northern end of Lambton Quay, Wellington. From north to south, they are the Parliamentary Library building (1899); the Edwardian neoclassical-style Parliament House (1922); the executive wing, called “The Beehive” (1977); and Bowen House (in use since 1991). Currently, an additional building for housing Members of Parliament is under construction, which is expected to be completed in 2026. Whilst most of the individual buildings are outstanding for different reasons, the overall setting that has been achieved ‘has little aesthetic or architectural coherence’.” — Wikipedia
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 2 – a Select Committee’s (dealing with Mãori affairs) hearing room that was decorated in the Mãori-style – it is the one hearing room so decorated and is quite stunning
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 3 – details of the Select Committee’s hearing room that was decorated in the Mãori-style
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 4 – the oldest of the Parliament Buildings, the Parliamentary Library, standing to the north of Parliament House, was opened in 1899
“The [Parliamentary Library] was designed in Gothic Revival style and was fire resistant, being constructed of masonry. The third story of the design was not built, to save money. It had an iron fire-door separating the library from the main entrance section. This saved the library from the fire of 1907, which destroyed the rest of the timber parliament buildings. Along with Parliament House, the library was strengthened and refurbished in the 1990s. This included recreating Gothic elements of the roof including ironwork, turrets and finials. It still houses Parliament’s library. The building is registered with Heritage New Zealand.” — Wikipedia
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 5 – a staircase in the Gothic Revival-style Parliamentary Library building (1899)
Interesting fact about voting (suffrage): New Zealand was the world’s first self-governing country to allow women to vote, passing legislation (the “Electoral Act”) in 1893 that opened voting to women in the country. “In most other democracies – including Britain and the United States – women did not win the right to the vote until after the First World War. New Zealand’s world leadership in women’s suffrage became a central part of our image as a trail-blazing ‘social laboratory’. That achievement was the result of years of effort by suffrage campaigners, led by Kate Sheppard. In 1891, 1892 and 1893 they compiled a series of massive petitions calling on Parliament to grant the vote to women. In recent years Sheppard’s contribution to New Zealand’s history has been acknowledged on the [New Zealand] $10 note.” — https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/womens-suffrage
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 6 – the Members’ reading room in the Gothic Revival-style Parliamentary Library building; the room was rebuilt as part of the refurbishment work in the 1990sParliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 7 – the old Parliament House was destroyed by fire in 1907; this newer Neoclassical stone building was still unfinished in 1918 when Parliament moved in; the building was completed in 1922
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 8 – a former outdoor space between sections of the Parliament Building was refurbished as an interior space (through the addition of a glass roof) in the 1990s
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 9 – a “peephole” view of the above new interior space in the Parliament Building [photograph # 7], from a window in the Parliamentary LibraryParliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 10 — the House of Representatives Debating Chamber in Parliament House; the government members sit on the left side of the photograph (to the right of the seated Speaker of the House of Representative, in the center of the chamber), with the opposition seated on the opposite sideParliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 11 – the center seat for the Speaker of the House of Representative in the House of Representatives Debating Chamber in Parliament HouseParliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 12 – windows and wall decorations in the Banquet Ball of Parliament HouseParliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 13 – the Legislative Council room in Parliament House that was “retired” in 1951 when the NZ Parliament went unicameral and discontinued the Legislative Council
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 14 – architectural details (elevator) in Parliament House
Parliament Buildings, Wellington, North Island, New Zealand, photograph # 15 — architectural details (skylight and stairs) in Parliament House
Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 1 – the modern residential district on the eastern side of the city, with the new cruise ship harbor in the center and the surrounding mountains in the background; Reykjavík is the country’s capital and largest city
Reykjavík, on the coast of Iceland, is the country’s capital and largest city. It’s home to the National and Saga museums, tracing Iceland’s Viking history. The striking concrete Hallgrimskirkja Lutheran Church and the rotating Perlan glass dome (south of downtown) offer sweeping views of the sea and nearby hills. Exemplifying the island’s volcanic activity is the geothermal Blue Lagoon spa, near the village of Grindavik.
Iceland is about the size of the states of Kentucky or Maine in the United States with a population of only 372,000, of which 232,000 live in greater Reykjavík – about half of those live in the city limits. Despite being a small city on the world scale, Reykjavík, punches way above its weight due to its capital city status. With almost two-thirds of Iceland’ residents living in the capital region, Reykjavík is one of the biggest small cities in the world. Unlike the Faroe Islands and Greenland, Iceland is very volcanically active. Most people in the country live along the coast — the country has a 1,000-mile (1,600 kilometers) coastline. There is a lot of geothermal activity on the island and Reykjavík is heated by a government operated geothermal water system. Said to be inspired by the steam rising from hot springs, early settlers named the bay Reykjavík, which means “Smoky Bay” in Old Norse. At latitude 64-08 degrees North, just below the Arctic Circle (66-30 degrees North), Reykjavík is the world’s northernmost capital city.
For additional perspective on Reykjavík and the natural wonders of Iceland, please see our previous blog posts from August 2019, “Reykjavik, Iceland” and “The Golden Circle, Iceland
Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 2 – on the 3D topographic map in City Hall, Reykjavík can be seen in the foreground, to the right of the vertical black line, with the city area painted orange (and closer to the front edge is the Keflavik Airport neighborhood); said to be inspired by the steam rising from hot springs, early settlers named the bay Reykjavík, which means “Smoky Bay” in Old NorseReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 3 – a view of the city from Perlan, Iceland’s iconic attraction and nature museum, that offers panoramic views, a nature exploratorium with interactive exhibits, and a unique glacier experienceReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 4 – a symbol of the city of Reykjavík, the Sun Voyager is a sculpture by Jón Gunnar Árnason, located on the coastal road next to Faxaflói Bay; Sun Voyager is described as a dreamboat, or an ode to the Sun — the artist intended it to convey the promise of undiscovered territory, a dream of hope, progress and freedom
“Although Iceland is relatively young (it has only been a country since 1944, when it gained independence from Denmark), the country boasts one of the world’s most celebrated cultures. Settled by Scandinavian immigrants (known as Vikings) and British slaves between the ninth and 10th centuries, Iceland continues to celebrate its Viking customs and traditions through the retelling of folktales about elves and trolls.” — https://travel.usnews.com/Reykjavik_Iceland/
Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 5 — the Harpa Concert Hall, an architectural masterpiece with a façade made with 714 glass panels, each a different shape and equipped with LED lights, is the winner of the prestigious Mies van de Rohe Award; it is the home of the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra and the Icelandic Opera, among othersReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 6 – a view of the small boat marina behind the Harpa Concert HallReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 7 – a brightly painted, well maintained fisherman’s home, dating back to the 1800s, in the oldest neighborhood in the cityReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 8 — Landakotskirkja, formally Basilika Krists konungs — Cathedral of Christ the King — is located in the western part of the city and is the sole cathedral of the Catholic Church in Iceland; on its dedication in 1929, it was the largest church in Iceland
In 2011, Reykjavík became the first non-native-English native city to be designated a UNESCO City of Literature. The recognition highlighted the city’s “outstanding literary history”, including the incredible importance of the Norse sagas and the central role literature plays in today’s modern city.
Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 9– Kænugarður (the Icelandic word for Kyiv) or Kyiv torg, Kyiv Square, located near the Russian embassy, was renamed as such by the City of Reykjavík in 2022 in honor of the Ukranian capital city noting, “With this decision by the city, a clear message is being sent of solidarity with the residents of Ukraine who are fighting for their liberty and independence.”Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 10 — Dómkirkjan í Reykjavík, Reykjavík Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Iceland and mother church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, as well as the parish church of the old city center and environs; it is located at Austurvöllur, and next to it is [see next photograph]Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 11 – Alþingishúsið, the Parliament House, is a classical 19th century building, located next to the Reykjavík Cathedral; the building was designed by Ferdinand Meldahl and built using hewn Icelandic dolerite from 1880 to 1881Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 12 — a view from Hallgrímskirkja’s (the towering, white Lutheran church — see photograph # 14) viewing platform of Lake Tjörnin (The Pond) with City Hall on the upper right side of the lakeReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 13 – a view of City Hall from Lake Tjörnin (The Pond) with a pedestrian bridge across Lake TjörninReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 14 — Hallgrímskirkja (Church of Hallgrimur), a towering, white Lutheran church, is Reykjavík’s most striking landmark; we went up to the top where there is an interior viewing platform with 360-degree views of the city (several of these photographs were made while on the viewing polatform)Reykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 15 — Pride colored stripes adorn the pavement of a major shopping street in the heart of the cityReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 16 – al fresco dining is popular during the long daylight days of summerReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 17 – the city’s favorite hot dog stand serves many varieties of hot dogs, but the favorite is the simple hot dog in a bun with mustardReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 18 – the Reykjavík Art Museum is the largest visual art institution in Iceland; it occupies three locations in Reykjavík – the old harbor warehouse, Hafnarhús (pictured here), Kjarvalsstaðir by Klambratún and Ásmundarsafn in LaugardalurReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 19 – a mosaic mural (this photograph is of the right-side panel of 2 panels) from 1972 adorns the side of a block-long building near the harborReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 20 – this statue (“Founder Statue”) in the center of the city honors Ingólfur Arnarson, the Norseman who founded Reykjavík in 874 A.D.; the initial statue was sculpted by Einar Jónsson in 1903 in Rome, Italy, and the final statue was erected in 1924, after it was cast in 1907 – the delay was due to challenges raising the funds in Denmark for the gift to the city of ReykjavíkReykjavík, Iceland, photograph # 21 — the Harpa Concert Hall with its LED lights lighted inside the differently shaped 714 glass panels; this photograph was made at dusk at 10:55 p.m.
Where in the world is Riccardo? 