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30th JanuaryOur final four days in NZ have been a real mixture of emotions.We've experienced a couple of awesome days in the thermal areas of Rotorua and snorkelling north of Auckland, we've spent some quality time with our great friends Nikki and Bruce and their two lovely children Beth and Jonny and all the while been thinking - we don't want to leave and talking about when will be the next time we can return. Saturday saw us at 'Thermal Wonderland' which sounds like a theme park for underware but was really impressive and interesting.We saw a geyser (pronounced guyser) spouting huge volumes of boiling water and steam first thing in the morning and then the cracks, caves and smelly mud and water created by the thermal activity beneath the surface.Isla spent about an hour with her nose pinched tight shut because of the smell and telling us she was about to die.Meg was moderately impressed with the huge holes in the ground with strange flourescent green liquid which Rosie thought looked like Shrek's bath but didn't really take to Nikki's and mine attempts to educate her in the geological background to the area!While some areas are more interesting than others to the untrained eye one cannot fail to be in awe of the natural wonder of the earth that is boiling mud!It is quite mesmeric and we were lucky to discover that our campground had it's own boiling mud pool which was actually bigger than any that we saw earlier in the day and throughly entertained us for half an hour.Our camping trip with Nikki and Bruce came to an end on Sunday when we all returned to Auckland and it was great to be in a house and not have to walk across a campground at 3 am to go for a pee!Monday was Auckland's anniversary day or birthday.Each area has it's own anniversary day and marks it with events and celebrations.Auckland was 168 years old on Monday and we spent a sunny hour watching the anniversary day yacht races from Bastion point (an area of land not built on and sacred to the Maori whose claim to the land was upheld a few years ago after the Government wanted to build on it and there was a 500 day sit-in to protest).Although a very young country when compared to a lot of others in the world the New Zealanders take their history very seriously and the struggles of the Maori communities and the pasting they took when the early settlers arrived (and since then to be honest), the gold mining, the nautical tales of whaling and the sporting history of the country are kept high in the public conscience.They love a chief/legend/hero/character as much as the next country and this was clearly in evidence around the time of the death of Sir Edmund Hilary.Incidentally Auckland has been the capital of NZ but it was moved to Wellington partly because it's more central to the country but also, Nikki informed me, in orderer to help placate some of the tribes which were busy arguing/fighting in the area.In the afternoon on Monday Michele and I took Isla and Meg into central Auckland and Rosie and Connie stayed at the house and played with Beth and Jonny.It was quite a strange experience as we have not been parted for more than then the length of a shower (and not even then on most occasions) since Xmas eve.However we had a lovely couple of hours and went up the Sky Tower which is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere and gave a truly spectacular perspective on the city.The windows in the observatory were angled outwards and Meg delighted by giving us the heebie jeebies by leaning out against them.Also there were glass floors which she seemed completely unphased by.Tuesday was our last full day in New Zealand and we were on our own as our hosts were back at work.We spent the day just North of Auckland in amarine reserve called Goat Island.Michele and I visited 14 years ago with Nikki and Bruce and the main reason people go there is for the snorkelling.Bruce very kindly lent us all the kit - wet suits etc and we had a complete ball.Meg and Isla didn't really get the hang of the snorkelling (bit young I think) but Connie and Rosie were really into it.Rosie especially took to it and she and I spent a good deal of time watching the fish (saw some huge snapper) and we took some bread in at one point which produced a feeding frenzy which was a sight to behold when it's five inches from your snorkelling mask!Everyone had a really happy day and we drove back to Auckland contented and wondering if we could buy a holiday cottage by Goat Island and comeout at half terms! - just the 7 grand each time to get us there!As it did 14 years ago New Zealand has left a lasting impression on us - we just love it.The sense of space and freedom balanced with a civilsed and friendly environment and the simply stunning natural features (mountains, glacier, lakes, coast, marine mammals) are terribly endearing to us and we know we will be back.We used 14 tanks of diesel, stayed at 16 different campsites, drove 5500 km, took about 600 photos and had some of the most amazing experiences with our children.I pondered what keepsakes to buy to remember it all by in Auckland airport today but the best way is with the photos and the actual memories which I know will stay alive at every meal time for the next umpteen years.It's now Wednesday and I'm writing this from our hotel room in Adelaide where we have flown to today.It's been a long one as we left Nikki and Bruces's at 12 noon and have arrived in the hotel at 10 pm although our bodies think it's half past midnight due to the time difference. Meg kept going all the way but crashed out on the luggage after we collected it from the airport (see photos) and Isla did the same in the taxi to the hotel.The children do terrifically well when travelling and although we are all exhausted and sad to have left NZ we are very excited about the next stage of our adventures in Australia.Footnote - our travels in Oz started well with a real character of a taxi driver taking us to our hotel.His name was Lyle and our chat on the journey was like having a conversation on the radio.He used affirmative and negative instead of yes and no and asked us if we were alright for 'Tucker'.He pointed out a few sites on the way to the hotel, including a statue of George V, commenting that there are a couple of 'rippers' across town (meaning other great statues)!Bed now - a shower which hasn't had a complete stranger in it two minutes before and crisp clean bed sheets - sheer luxury!
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