Lovely smelly Rotorua 5-6 March

Sat 5 March
Before leaving Taupo we watched some of the 1300 international Ironman competitors starting out on the 180km cycling stage on the lake front, which followed their 3.8km swim. All shapes and sizes were taking part so there's hope for us all!

Wai-O-Tapu was our destination on the way to Rotorua. The North Island has lots of areas of geothermal activity and the Thermal Wonderland was quite incredible. Walking round the whole site took us a couple of hours and the sights and smells of the gurgling mud pools, sulphur-yellow rocks, and steaming pools and streams was quite different to anything we've experienced before. If anyone had told us before we came here that we'd actually grow to love the slight rotten eggs smell that floats around this area we would have thought them mad, but they would have been right.

Our motel here was a little disappointing in its size and standard but hey-ho. In the afternoon we rode the gondola to the top where we had three rides on the luge, which was in a different league altogether from the one in Queenstown as the tracks were much longer and more enjoyable. Great views from the top too. In the evening we walked into town and found Eat Street where we had one of the best Indian meals ever.

Sun 6 March
Can you imagine a better way to relax on a Sunday morning than by soaking in a private hot spa pool fed by a thermal spring overlooking the Sulphur Bay area of Lake Rotorua? Well neither could we so we popped down to the Polynesian Spa, paid our money and spent half an hour in a luxuriously warm pool. Afterwards we spent a couple of hours walking from the spa around Sulpher Bay and back into the town.

So a pretty fine day so far then and yes, it was dry and warm too. However, the day wasn't over for us as we had booked an evening at Mitai Maori Village as we were keen for an insight into Maori culture. If we thought we knew what to expect then our expectations were exceeded. The evening included seeing (and hearing) Maori warriors rowing a war canoe down a stream, a really excellent cultural show of weaponry, story, song and dance and a haka, all finished off with a Hangi feast where food is baked in the ground, similar to how food was cooked at the luau we went to in Hawaii.

Every day of this holiday seems to bring something new and different, how very lucky we are.