I'm not a photographer; I don't have a camera; I don't set out to create a record of places and events. I do have a cellphone with a basic camera, and when I see something that interests me I point it in the general direction, hoping I'll be able to crop the resulting image into something usable later, when I've got my glasses on. You now know all there is to know about my photographic technique and my eyesight.

Richard and I spent Labour Weekend 2008 in the Wairarapa, a province on New Zealand's east coast to the north of the capital city, Wellington. Nothing in the Wairarapa is very far away. It's a mere 6km from Featherston to Greytown, a further 13km to Carterton, and not much further up State Highway Two to the province's only city, Masterton.

After visiting the Fell museum in Featherston on Saturday morning we were inspired to walk inland to Cross Creek, which for 75 years was an isolated settlement of 130 people at the foot of the Rimutaka Range. It kept the original rail link to the capital open until the tunnel was put through in 1955. Today there's little left of Cross Creek apart from crumbling chimneys, concrete pads and the asphalt tennis court.

The Wairarapa section of the original rail route had a 1:15 gradient. This wasn't feasible with standard locomotives, so New Zealand opted for a raised centre rail and specially-built locomotives with gripper wheels and iron brake pads; a mechanism called the Fell system.

There were only ever three Fell railways in the world, the Rimutaka's being the longest serving by some distance. Engine H199, the only remaining unit, can now be seen in all its restored glory in the Featherston Museum. It helped lay the line in the 1870s, ran on it for 75 years, then helped take it up again in the 1950s. I think there's some pathos (and probably a song) in that.

Although it was raining steadily, the landscape on the track to Cross Creek was still stunning. I'm thinking the children and I might walk the old rail route at Christmas and see some more of it. It's a four and a half hour walk across the hill.

We stayed two nights in the historic Greytown Hotel. The accommodation's not flashy (no ensuite or room service), but it's clean and comfortable and quaint and the people are friendly. Greytown has some first class eateries too. We particularly enjoyed our meal at Cuckoo, more a cafe than a restaurant; Richard recommends their Apple Pear and Ginger Crumble, and I thought their pizza very fine indeed.

Sunday brought alternating rain and sunshine as we drove to the Gladstone District and then on to the coast. The countryside seemed particularly beautiful, and my limited equipment and skills quite incapable of capturing it. The retention of large numbers of trees is notable, and gives parts of the district a Constable-like appearance while helping reduce the soil erosion all too prevalent across much of the New Zealand countryside.

We passed through a lot of picturesque small communities boasting perhaps a store, a school, a church, a hall and a pub. In some parts of the country these villages often look down on their luck, with half the institutions already closed or teetering on the brink. Throughout the Wairarapa, however, they shone with good health. I was taken with Tinui in particular, and thought its fire station very quaint.

Churches there were a-plenty. In an increasingly secular society they're often unused and appear neglected, but in the Wairarapa they all seemed to be in active service and cared for. We drove to Riversdale and then through forestry roads to Castlepoint, the Wairarapa's two main coastal holiday communities. After a seaside lunch we set a heading for Masterton.

As I said above, countryside = lovely. And if you look down the centre of the valley you'll make out what I'm told is a surge tower for a local water scheme. This enormous cylindrical chimney dominates the landscape when you get closer to it. It's not only huge, it's mysterious: there's no explanatory signage and we wondered for some time what on earth it could be.

Sunday evening we headed up the road to Carterton to watch Barry Saunders and Nick Brown (ex-Warratahs) at Lounge. Not "The Lounge", just "Lounge". It was packed, the music was great, and it's somewhere we'll return in the future.

We got talking with Chris, the proprietor, who confessed that having live music three nights a week and sixty-four different beers on offer are not primarily business decisions: both are really down to personal interest. He also offers wine "by the taste" as well as by the glass and bottle. A "taste" is about half a glass - enough to decide whether you want to be friends. All the wines are local to the Wairarapa - and the tapas platters look mouth-watering too.

Monday dawned clear and bright, and started with a long walk around Greytown, which I think is the most beautiful of the Wairarapa towns. That morning it also seemed the most sociable. We hypothesised that it must be a mandatory condition of domicile to have a dog; and to take it for a walk every morning; and to say hello in a friendly fashion to every person one meets! It certainly seemed to be what most people were doing.

We then drove to Martinborough, which has a delightful town centre with a square surrounded by historic buildings. However, we found that when you push a block or two out from the middle - we walked a complete circuit - it's disturbingly down at heel, with many unkempt properties and houses in need of paint. Featherston struck us as almost as dishevelled during our walkabout there on Saturday. Both have some lovely properties and historic buildings, but give the impression that many years of economic hardship have not yet given way to better times.

It's interesting that prosperity should be so diverse in a relatively small area of the country. I think Featherston's fortunes will improve, as it is starting to become fashionable for Wellington professionals to relocate to. It's an hour's rail journey, a trip now made in comfortable new trains which offer coffee and power for laptops. Martinborough, despite being a key centre in New Zealand's booming wine industry, is the most remote of the Wairarapa towns and less likely to benefit from this trend.

I've not mentioned art; Wairarapa has a thriving community of artists. Over the weekend we visited a number of Greytown galleries - there were two exhibition openings in town on Saturday afternoon alone. We also took in a photographic show in Carterton and an art and craft exhibition in Martinborough. We even got to meet an artist or two along the way. It's encouraging to see such a strong local interest in art and artists.

Labour Weekend may be over, but I'm finding the attraction of the Wairarapa stronger with each visit. To me it seems to offer an enviable lifestyle, and the relative ease of travelling to Wellington increases the appeal.

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