We are in Rainy Rotarua.
I was really looking forward to leaving Auckland and venturing out into the New Zealand countryside and it hasn't disappointed. The landscape is breathtaking. We're travelling with the Kiwi Experience because we got a great deal for both islands. The Kiwi Experience has a notorious reputation as a drinking, club 18-30 on wheels but this is mainly during the NZ summer. Our bus was half empty (two seats each) but a great way to meet people.
On our first day out of Auckland we stopped for a walk (lots of walks on the Kiwi Experience - very bracing) at Cathedral Cove. Having been hauled over by New Zealand bio security twice at Auckland airport (and threatened with a fine and life imprisonment) I was ecstatic to finally be wearing them. I'm not going to describe the scenery, see photos, because words can't but I love this country.
That evening our bus stopped at Mercury Bay. This is a summer resort on the coast for Aucklanders and I fully intended to go for a walking along the beach but as night fell our hostel hosts produced a massive vat of spaghetti bollognaise and the female bus contingent took over the TV with A Knight's Tale.
The following morning we set off for Rotarua via Matamata aka 'Hobbiton' where part of Lord of the Rings was shot.
Rotarua is a town beside a lake formed by a volcano crater and pockets of geothermal activity surround it. Sulphuric steam rises from the ground in people's back gardens and when we were in the supermarket I was almost overcome by the smell of rotten eggs, from the ground not the produce.
Yesterday we went white water rafting over a 7 metre waterfall on the Kaituna River. Charlotte had been looking forward to it for months after seeing the rafting on television. All strapped up in a slightly soggy wetsuit, helmet and buoyancy aid I must admit I was a little apprehensive but it turned out to be really fun, less scary than it sounds but above all a chance to see some amazing scenery that you certainly can't see from the road. The river is boarded by high rock faces with the emblematic silver fern growing from the cracks. The strangest contrast in New Zealand scenery is that between the tamed farmland and the wild, rugged indigenous forest.
As you might expect in a country of farmers the meat here is incredible. Last night we each ate 3 steaks each! SO good. The perfect end to a Kiwi adventure day.
Stay tuned for Waitomo glow worm caves...
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