Bay of Plenty

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March 2nd 2008

Published: March 16th 2008

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Ali Baba

Huka Falls, Taupo

These are the falls & we are the hukas.....

Rotorua- not the place you´d live if you´ve a very sensitive olfactory system cause the stench of rotton eggs is a bit overbearing at times. Nonetheless we did enjoy our short stay there. We arrived that afternoon & had planned to go white- water rafting with a fella we had met again from Tasmania. Small world.

There were only 3 of us on the raft plus the 2 instructors. A short trip yes but it was great craic & I never laughed as much; especially when I was saw the 7m drop that lay ahead.....but that was more of a hysterical laugh.....& watching the video back later it was mad seeing the raft plunge vertically into the water & completely disappear for a few seconds. Thankfully we all managed to cling on for dear life.....an earlier group wasn´t as lucky but that was probably because there was a massive load up front...of the human variety so there was no hope for them! Basic Physics....great craic.....love rafting!

I´ve never been to the cinema as much since I´ve been away.....went to see The Bucket List cause it was one of those wet nights like at home & loads of the hostels

Tongiriro, Turangi

Before the rain came!

in the North Island don´t have T.V.s- trying to encourage communication amongst travellers but sometimes it´s nice to switch off....although in our defence we did bring 2 other people from the hostel with us. Next day we headed towards the coast to Whakatane to take a trip out to White Island.

Arriving late in the afternoon we settled into a very pretty floral-clad hostel with a great big bathroom, with dressers like something you´d find in an old house of a great-aunt. Floral wallpaper everywhere- very quaint. So the next day we went on a day-trip to White Island. It´s an active marine volcano with vents everywhere. There were thick clouds of gas coming out of them & from the lake. Because there was so much sulphur gas bubbling through the lake the acidity was apparently less than 0 on the litmus scale....so no they weren´t encouraging bathing there. But before we left we did have a chance to jump into the sea from the boat & much to my delight, it was warm. Really lovely.....the jellyfish stings weren´t as nice but after a day they were all forgotten. It was a enjoyable trip.....the gas masks & hard-hats were

Frozen to the bone, Tongiriro

One of the few photos......

a welcome addition to my ensemble.

That evening we drove up north around the Bay of Plenty to the Coromandel area. Hahei the first night from where we went to Cathedral Cove & then Kuoatane, the Blackjack Lodge, the second night. Cathedral Cove was beautiful- one of the nicest places we´ve been to on the North Isand in my opinion- white sandy beach & magnificant sanstone- I think......rock formations. There was a couple getting married on the beach when we were there- very romantic & not at all corny.....Grace & I sat watching from afar waiting for the "kiss the bride moment". Funnily enough they didn´t offer us champagne even though there were only about 6 witnesses present. Their boat awaited them off the beach. Not a bad way to celebrate!

There´s a beach with hot springs underground nearby too. You can hire a shovel & dig a hole in the sand & then sit in a pool of hot water. We went but didn´t time our visit with the tides so it wouldn´t have been a wise idea to dig a hole & sit in a pool while the tide comes in around you & swallows you