2nd week of New Zealand adventures

Hi everyone

Sorry for the lack of updates but I have only just been able to update my own written diary, and not this one. Anyway here goes:

Saturday 26th: left Auckland without a backward glance and went through beautiful mountain scenery towards the Coromandel Peninsula coast - windy, narrow switchbacks of roads, trees, palms, grasses, exposed red rocks, long reaching views of volcani plugs with vertical sides and no vegetation on them. We got to Hot Water Beach where at low tide you can dig a hole in the sand and get the hot thermal waters bubbling up through the sands. Unfortunately the tide was not low enough for us to do this, but I felt the hot water on my feet, before the next wave knocked me over!!

Instead of digging, the whole bus went sunbathing, and I and Zac (from Turkey) and his partner Teresa went swimming in the waves. The rollers were huge and the rip tide pulled and pushed us all over the place, pulling us off our feet and then we had to run up the beach to avoid the next one!. We stayed the night at Turtle Cove Backpackers - almost a homely place to stay and the owners cooked spag bol for the whole bus - yummy. It also made a change for me having to think about, buy and cook food in a variety of different kitchens.

Sunday 27th: up early again (as I questioned before "this is meant to be a holiday?!?!?"). On the road with a new driver to Rotorua, and such is the thermal activity here that we could smell the town before we got to it - sulphur and rotten eggs, yeuk! On the way we had a walk to the Karanagahake Gorge, which for my interest in industrial archaeology, was very interesting. All the old machinery for getting gold processed and out of the hills is still there, including a railway through 1km of tunnels. It was pitch black in there except for my tiny torch's light, and the best pics were with the flash of the camera. The views at the look-out points were lovely with the river running through the deep gorge and the blue sky reflecting in the calmer pools. The vegetation was a mixture of NZ trees ferns, deciduous trees, grasses, water plants - very unusual.

Rotorua: accomodation was dire - dirty, decor stuck in the 60s and not good facilities. However on Tuesday morning I moved over to the Treks Backpackers and it was excellent - so clean and shiny, well kept, efficient check-in, clean and stylish rooms. In the evening we went to a Tamaki Maori evening and saw the traditional Maori welcome (tongues sticking out, eyes rolling, the harsh gutteral "ha") challenging "invaders" to come closer and pick up the peace stick. Our "chief" of the minibus, Rob, went forward to pick it up showing we came in peace and we were allowed into the village, with its learning huts (carving, food-making, fishing, war-making), and then into the cultural meeting house where we were treated to the musical delights of Maori culture as well as hearing their folk tales. Their harmonics and singing are wonderful and they also did a haka (by the men) for us, as well as the women doing a poi dance with the white balls on the end of short ropes. Very colourful. Finally we had a hangi, which is a feast of food cooked in a pit, which was delicious - meat falling off the bones, mussels and shellfish just melting in the mouth, and vegetables done to their best. Yum again!!

Monday 28th: Had a lie in today as I didn't have to get up for the Kiwi Bus or any activities. Spent the morning sorting out trips for the next couple of days and then in the afternoon I went to the Polynesian Spa. I have been promising myself this since I began planning this trip so was really looking forward to this and it didn't disappoint. The adults only pool side consisted of 4 natural thermal pools with an idyllic look-out over Lake Rotorua, ranging in temperature from 36-42degsC, surrounded with native vegetation and lots of rock-features, knee-deep and with plenty of places to lean forward on the arms and er, go to sleep!! I got up to the 40deg pool but the 42deg one was FAR too hot, esp on my feet. I spent the whole afternoon there which, after 9 weeks on the road, was very welcome and relaxing.

Tuesday 29: before I started today I had to move accommodation, but once that was done I could spend the day being a child again :). Went out to the Agroventures site (as it is called) and my first stop was the Swoop. This is a kinda harness into which I had to step and basically be zipped up the back, attached to a wire on the back and pulled up by the bungee hoist. Be assured, Mr P, that this was NOT a bungee! The hoist pulled me up and yikes the floor was getting further away from me, and then *I* had to pull the rip cord. I did, fell about 20ft and then swung like on a trapeze, backwards and forwards and flew like a bird. At the top the pendulum was larger and so the swing longer, but it was such fun doing it.

Next I did the Extreme Freefall. No, NOT sky diving as I could never throw myself out of a plane, but it was being held up on a column of air from a huge fan, and attempting to stay there while the fan got stronger :). Into the jumpsuit, and then laid flat on the wiring, and the fan started. Well I got an instant face-lift! and then was pushed upwards, arms out like I was in a surrendering position, legs bent back at the knees and I was flying!!! I managed to stay on the air column for the full 4 minutes and then when the fan went down, I fell onto the huge cushions at the side, laughing my head off - enormous fun and probably better than skydiving.

Next ......... the ZORB! For those of you who don't know what this is, it is a crazy Kiwi invention, of 2 enormous-sized (like 12 ft tall on the outside) plastic ping-pong balls held together by long lengths of rope and suckers (trust me on this!) a smaller zorb inside into which a small amount of water is pumped, then the Zorbonauts get inside, the seal is put over the door and basically the Zorb is pushed down the hill (only in New Zealand!!!). Well it felt like being in a washing machine, I didn't know which way was up, I was pushed and pulled around by gravity rolling and rolling down the hill, got faster as I went down, and got absolutely soaked, but couldn't help laughing and giggling all the way. And yes I went back for a 2nd go, and loved it even more. Highly recommended for a stress-buster and also if you need an instant shower and hairwash!!!!!!

Well, it was only lunchtime and I had the whole afternoon to "play" with. I went on the shuttle to the Skyline Rides and Luge track. Had a nice, sensible ride up the side of the hill in the stylish gondola - a cube-shaped cabin attached to wires, and then got to the luge track. A luge is not the metal shaped tea-tray that you see on the Olympic games but something pretty close. It is a small black plastic tray, with chopper-bicycle handles on the front, you pull back to stop and push forward to go, and push off with your feet to start, stick them quickly inside and then steer FAST! The scenic route was compulsory, to get the feel of the luge and it was the longest, so I could get off at intervals and take pics. However on the downslopes, I got up a really good speed, and I went wheeeeeee down them, cornering a bit slower and hairing off again. Yee-haaa!!! I felt like a kid again, playing go-carts and had great fun, laughing so much and almost feeling like Mr Toad, going toot-toot as I passed kids going slower on the run! I had 3 goes on this and the final one was on the intermediate track which was steeper and longer, and yes, my yen for speed was satisfied :)

Wednesday 30th: a quieter day today, and practised my photography at Wai-o-Tapu which is a thermal area, with lots of beautiful volcanic waters, pools, steam, bubbles and mud-pools. In the afternoon I felt very off-colour and so did very little except go for a swim in the open-air chlorinated pool (and discovered I am very unfit!!)

Thursday 31st: on the road again out of Rotorua to Waitomo. Was a long trip so only did an above-cave walk today and got to the YHA early.

Friday 1st Feb (already?!): did an in-the-cave walk today and saw glow-worms and pretty rock formations. The others in the bus did Black Water Rafting - however bearing in mind my claustrophobia for small spaces, I didn't do this. When I saw the course that they had to do, I was SO glad I didn't do this activity.

In the afternoon we drove to Taupo "the activity centre of North Island" according to the blurb. I took a ride on the Huka Falls jet, which is a jet-boat that speeds along the river, cutting in close to the banks, and trees and vegetation and doing 360deg turns on the river, and sending spray everywhere, including on the passengers. We also got close to the Huka Falls, which discharge 2 Olympic sized swimming pools worth of water per second through a chasm, and when the water droplets are reflected in the sky the water turns a bright sapphire blue - very pretty and such awesome power of the water, especially when the boat was only about 20ft from the edge of the fall!

See you soon.