What is the importance of Wellington, New Zealand in the novel, The Voyage?

The story begins in Wellington, New Zealand, Fenella's original home. Fenella and her grandmother are traveling to Picton, where Fenella's grandparents live, and leaving Fenella's father Frank behind in Wellington. The story suggests that Frank is sending his daughter away because he cannot care for her appropriately in the wake of his wife's death. The author, Katherine Mansfield, is also originally from Wellington.