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Rotorua
21st February 2009
The first thing we noticed about Rotorua was the steam that seemed to be coming out of all sorts of strange places. As we arrived there were a number of steaming gardens, a steaming pavement and what looked like a steaming park. When we arrived at the steaming park and got out of the spaceship we noticed the next thing that Rotorua was known for, the smell. With everywhere smelling of sulphur, this town was made for people with gastric problems.
The park we had stopped at was Kuirau Park which represented a lot of the local volcanic specialities in the area by containing a crater lake, steaming holes in the ground, bubbling mud pools and of course the sulphur aroma percolating across town. This was our first experience of this type of phenomenon so even though the park was, by all accounts, somewhat tame, we were fascinated.
By the time we had made it to Rotorua and visited the park it was time to find a camp. We didn't actually want to get a mortgage to stay one night so we tried a few places before settling on a place slightly further out of town called Waiteti Trout Stream Holiday Park. Apart from the relatively more reasonable prices (Rotorua is well and truly on the North Islands tourist trail) the main thing about this place was... the trout stream. The clue was in the title I suppose. After some dinner we decided to make use of the free camp site kayaks and head up stream a little way. Considering I have never been on a kayak I thought I did a reasonable job with just a few minor wobbles and steering issues. Jemma, on the other hand, had regaled me stories of family canoeing days and Girl Guide kayak trips and was confident her experience would show in this activity. Unfortunately she lasted approximately 3 seconds (and that may be a little generous) before doing a very graceful sideways slide into the water. Wet but no damage done she clambered back in to her kayak and then promptly developed an inability to go in a straight line. After a few brushes (i.e. head on collisions) with the bank she got the thing under control and we actually managed a kilometre or so downstream and back without any further incident. It was good fun but Jemma has been reminding me of my quick dip in the Mekong some time ago, and my more recent dip in the pool at Angela's, for ages. The chance of me letting this one go away without suitable embarrassment was negligible.
The next morning seemed an ideal day to strap myself into a giant beach ball and get thrown down a hill. So, that's exactly what I did. It's called Zorbing and I had wanted to do it for ages but you don't often get the opportunity in downtown Birmingham. There was a bit of sales talk from the guy in the office to get us to go for the 'wet' ride (beach ball, bucket of water, person and hill) but the bag of wet clothes in the car and prospect of rain put us off that one. Sticking to our guns we went for the fully strapped in and dry option but this meant that Jemma couldn't do it due to her gimpy shoulder. I got a ride to the top of the hill and strapped in before a quick countdown and I rolled and bounced down about 100m before a big final bounce and stopping nicely at the bottom. The best thing I can think of that may be a similar experience may be doing front rolls down a long hill. It was good fun but I must admit I did feel a little bit queasy for a while after getting pulled out of my bouncing bubble.
Next stop was the Cable car and Luge. This time we both got to take part as this was relatively sedate, at least compared with the Zorb. There was a nice Gondola ride up to the top of Mt. Ngongotaha with spectacular views of the lake and surrounding areas. We then got onto a small plastic tray with wheels and handle, otherwise known as a Luge. Amateurs that we were, we had to take the beginners track but don't be fooled by the misleading title. Yes, admittedly, if you use the brake it would be a gentle ride down a hill but don't forget, after the Zorb, I am now an extreme sports expert and have no use for the brake... That did change at the point of sliding sideways round a corner at which point I decided I did actually need to take notice of the 'slow down' signs. Luckily my masculine pride was kept intact by the fact that despite starting behind Jemma I had managed a daring overtaking manoeuvre about half way down and left her in my dust...
At the bottom of the Luge you get on a chairlift that takes you back up to the top where you can do it all again. Unfortunately the 'do it all again' option was at a premium so we chose a drink and the view before heading back down in the gondola.
In order to balance up the day we introduced a touch of culture and visited a Marae, which is a Maori meeting hall. We couldn't go in as this was still used by local tribes, but just to see the intricate carvings on the outside and elaborate carved figures outside was good enough for us. Maori art and carving is something we hadn't really seen until now and overall detail in the woodwork here was incredible. If the aggressive carved Tiki faces aren't obvious enough, it's all painted red so you can't miss it.
The last thing in our activity full day was a visit to 'Wai O Taupo Thermal Wonderland'. It was essentially like going full circle and back to the sulphur volcanic areas we had seen when we first arrived. The first park we saw was free and Wai O Taupo cost $25 each but I would say that the cost was representative of the scenery. It was about a 5km walk all through the park and during that walk we got to see coloured craters stained by sulphur and other minerals, steaming champagne lakes with 4 different colours, more bubbling mud and a bright green lake. Ok, if it's written like that it doesn't sound like much but it really was a 'wonderland' of volcanic thermal fun. Not forgetting the sulphur smell drifting over everywhere that we had (nearly) got used to by then.
It was a busy day and luckily for us our camp site called Waikanae Valley Thermal Pools was again attached to a thermal spa pools area. This time it was more of a modern spa than an attraction of past glories like Matamata. We spent a very relaxing hour or so getting used to the temperature in one hot pool before hopping into the next. The hottest was somewhere around 38 degrees centigrade but we settled at the hottest but one and soaked away what remained of the day.
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