Kia Ora!

We have made it to New Zealand where so far it has been rather chilly!! We spent Monday in Auckland and had lunch on the Harbour front where the sun did come out for a little bit. Not much to report from Auckland as there wasn't loads to do so we went shopping for some warm clothes which im sure will come in very handy. Tuesday morning we picked up our hire car, which was in much better condition than the last one we hired in Australia, and headed south towards Rotorua, stopping on the way for lunch at a town called Cambridge. Just before we got into Rotorua we went to a place called the Skyline Skyrides where we had a very fun afternoon racing around on luges, which are basically trays with wheels on! We managed to get down all three routes, beginner, intermediate and advanced with not even so much as a scraped knee - we were pro's by the end!! That evening, after checking into our hostel, we treated ourselves to a bit of pampering at a local Polynesian spa. Rotorua is famous for its hot, thermal pools and springs as it lies on a volcanic area. The down side of this though was the rotten egg smell that these pools produce - its something to do with the hydrogen sulphide that they release, but it was very relaxing sitting in pools of around 40 degrees overlooking Lake Rotorua.

Wednesday we had a bit of a crazy morning as we went Zorbing ie, getting chucked down a hill in an inflatable ball filled with water (see the pics). It was sooo much fun, we were half laughing, half screaming the whole way down!! We had a more relaxing afternoon wandering around Rotorua and all the thermal (smelly) mud pools. In the evening we went on a Maori night which was interesting as we got shown traditional songs and dances,including the haka which was really good. We also had a massive buffet meal called a 'hangi' which is cooked underground for about 3 hours and it was really yummy! We even had dessert of chocoate roulade and triffle but we don't think those were particularly traditional! After dinner we went on a stroll in the forest and were shown gloworms which was cool.

We left Rotorua early on Thursday morning to go to Wai-O-Tapu which is a themal park just south of the town. We had to get there early in order to see the Lady Knox geyser erupt which happens at 10:15am every day. After that we wandered round the park itself and saw some interesting pools and craters which were brightly coloured due to all the chemicals in the water. The smell however was really overpowering so we did a very short walk around the park and then had a cup of tea in the cafe. That afternoon we drove a bit further to Taupo, stopping off for lunch at the Huka Falls, which was eaten in the car due to the rain! We didn't really do much in Taupo because of the weather but we did mange to fit in a spot of essential shopping to buy gloves, scarves and thick socks! Just spent the evening chilling and watching some tv which was a bit of a novelty as we haven't watched any telly in a while. 

On Friday we headed back to Auckland which took most of the day, although we did stop off in a town called Hamilton for a look around and also a place that we can't spell (because its Maori and very long!) for lunch. In the evening we had a fab meal of bangers, mash and broccoli (very English!) and got an early night as we were all quite tired from the drive. We had to get up ridiculously early this morning to catch our flight down to Christchurch at 8:00am. We did stop off in Wellington but only for about half an hour before getting back on the plane, but at least we can say we've been there! At the moment we are in a hostel in the centre of Christchurh; its a lot sunnier here than on the North Island so we are all hoping it stays that way! Not getting up to much this afternoon as we are waiting for Sam's bag to be delivered from the airport - it appears to have been lost somewhere between Auckland and Christchuch - but we're not worrying just yet, Sam is still seeing the funny side! We think its probably still going round the conveyer belt in Wellington!

Apart from that all is well and we are all ok (minus the fact that Jen has now got the dreaded cold thats plaguing us all). Hope everyone is fine back home and enjoying the sun - this time it's us who's jealous of you!! 

Lots of love

Becki, Jen and bagless Sam xx xx xx