Back to New Zealand, Back to Adrenaline!

---

I can't get over how good it feels to be back in New Zealand!!!! I'm SOOOOO happy right now! Its been 6 years since I was here last and I think I assumed that the country would never live up to the memories I have. Well, it does and continues to make me smile with all of its charms!

But let's back up...my flight out of Sydney was good. Easy to navigate the airport and all that. I realized while sitting at the airport that I saw quite a few airports in the country. So let's sum up...I flew in/out of 6 airports, took 3 trains and was in 6 out of 8 States/Territories...all in 5 weeks. No wonder I was tired! I boarded my flight and was happy to have some quite time and perhaps catch a little sleep. Instead, I watched a movie. It was a treat just to have a TV all to myself. The flight was not long and as we approached Auckland, I opened my window shade and a smile immediately came across my face. I've been traveling to all new places for the last couple of months and it was so good to see something I recognized. I could see downtown and the Sky Tower and buildings and things. The green hills were a reminder of the countries beauty. I saw the island I went out to and hiked around on...I was filled with all the warm and fuzzies of years ago and I was happy!

My plan for NZ is very loose and in sorts, I didn't have much of a plan. I knew that I needed to get to the Intercity bus station in downtown ASAP in order to try and catch the bus to Taupo. I missed that one, but I had 15 min to spare to catch the one to Rotorua. So, I got on that instead. I had about a 4 hour bus ride ahead of me and I wanted to just soak in all the familiar surroundings. I recognized buildings and streets in downtown Auckland. I remembered the highway and how to leave town. I couldn't get over how wonderful it all was! By the time we were on the road for about 30 min, my eyes started to close and I drifted off to sleep. Although I didn't want to, I slept for the next 2 hrs. I was tired...my day started at 3 am in Sydney. When I woke up, we were well into the countryside and the beautiful rolling green hills. Its as if nothing has changed. We passed sheep farms and deer farms and cows and farmers out tending to crop. And even the bus drivers have remained the same...they give you commentary along the way. I love it! We rolled into Rotorua around 5:30 pm and I still had no plan. I had not booked any place to sleep that night so I pulled out my Lonely Planet book and realized that the closed hostel was just across the street. Sweet As! I walked in and asked the girl at the reception desk if she had a room for the night. Generally, I'm in NZ during Autumn and that means its the off season...so finding a room like this should not be a problem. And it wasn't. Not only did I get a bed for a good price, I have a room all to myself! This is a slice of heaven! I also got a free drink ticket and after dropping off my bags I went back to reception and booked a few things for the next few days. With my days planned and a little chit chat with Karen, the receptionist, I was off for dinner. I had only had breakfast and was starving. I went down to the Pig N Whistle pub for dinner and a pint. I got the lamb burger that was not only HUGE but also absolutely delightful! I also was able to have my favorite NZ beer - Speight! Again, SOOO happy! I watched some Super Rugby - Highlanders were on again and they've become my favorite team - and talked with a man from Tassie who is in NZ on business. I told him all about my Hobart pub crawl and he laughed and said sounded about right. He was a nice guy. It was fun to have a little company while I sat at the bar. Then I headed back to the hostel for an early night to sleep. I had already booked an exciting day!

Saturday I woke up at 8 am. I had to pack my day bag with a few things and get some breakfast before the bus picked me up. The hostel was running a special for white water rafting. Now, I've done quite a bit of rafting and was like, why do that again when I can go sledging! That's right...just another awesome Kiwi invention! Why go down a white water river in a boat when you can do it head first on a sled like thing. Oh yeah Mom, you read that right...head first! (Right now my mom is screaming saying something like - Damn that kid! and my dad is laughing!) The bus picked me up and there were 5 others on board. As it turns out, I was the only sledger for the morning run. Yay me! I suited up in all the usual gear and we headed out with the rafters. We had to go down the river at the same time as them since they were our safety back up. Whatever...I was about to go down a white water river head first! The rest was just details. Gemi was my guide...awesome chick. She runs the rivers outside of Sacramento in CA during the winter months here. I told her all about my Gauley trip and she was impressed and then started ask me who my guide was and if I knew...I was at a loss. I couldn't even remember the name of the company we went with. Either way, it was fun to chat it up. The sledging has a few rules, never let go of the sled and turn your head when going thru the white water. That's it. The rest is just on command. Simple enough! Before we got into the water, Gemi explained to me that we were going to have a prayer of sorts. She's a Maori and the company is a Maori company called Kaitiaki Adventures - it means guardian. This is the other thing I love about NZ. The integration of all the culture in everything you do. She asked the "gods" to watch over us while we were on the river and to protect us. It was all said in Maori and it was beautiful. From there, we grabbed our sled and dove in. It was a little awkward at first trying to find the balance and to use the flippers. I was a bit all over the place, but quickly grasped enough to get myself to the other side. There we sat, practiced a few moves and then waited for the raft to come down the falls. There is a 7 meter waterfall, the highest commercial falls in the world, and the rafters get to go down it. It was fun to watch them come over the side and almost bail! Even the guide almost fell out. We were laughing. As they passed us, she said lets go and we were off. For the most part, I just had to keep myself centered in the current. This was harder said than done. The water is moving really fast due to all the rain they've had and if you are slightly off line, you can go sideways. I went into the first rapid and put my head down too soon so I missed seeing most of it, but I was smiling the whole way through. The feeling was incredible! It was like tumbling thru a huge mix of bubbles but with such speed and intensity...and you're head first! I got myself a little sideways on the way out of the rapid but quickly picked my head up and readjusted. Gemi said I did a great job! We had several fast rapids in a row...I think it was 3. Each time, I waited longer and longer to put my head to the side so that I could see more of the rapid. Each time was more and more fun! Up and down and all around, I was running thru the rapids like a bullet! The speed was incredible and at times I barely had time to catch my breath and prep for the next one. Awesome! This is what I was missing in Oz! We settled into a little cove and I had to get some instruction again for next big rapid. This one sucked you under pretty good and we needed to stay out in front as best we could. I was like, sure, no problem. In reality, I was not able to do much. We went thru the rapid and I totally got sucked underneath. First rule, never let go of the sled. With a death gripe on it, I was pulled out of the rapid pretty quick and had to do this roll thing that she taught me. She's laughing going, that was great! You totally got sucked in! I was like, that was awesome, I want to do it again!! The only bad thing about rafting...you go thru the rapids so fast that you almost can't enjoy them enough! Not to worry, we had one fun one left to do. It was a nice little falls and once we went over, we were able to pull off to the side and wait for the raft of people. As we went over, I loved it! I wanted to get out of the water and do it again and again and again. But, we had to wait. While we waited, she explained that I could not allow myself to get swept out and over to a tree that was about 30 yards away. That tree was the start of a class 6 rapid and I would be in big trouble if I got caught in there. This I understood loud and clear. The big raft came thru and they almost toppled again...so funny! But they were having great fun in the boat. Once they were done, we could go back into the rapid and play. This meant that we kicked really hard upstream and into the rapid. Once we got close to it, I had to pull up ever so slightly on my sled to keep the nose out of the water. I was able to do this and keep up with the leg kicking like a mad woman. I quickly realized how ridiculously out of shape I'm in! Surfing the rapid was a blast! I lasted a few minutes and then let myself get swept back into the river. Then I kicked like crazy back to the safe area. Then I went back in again...again it was awesome and this time I lasted a little bit longer! Then I took a long break and Gemi was like, one more time...I was like, yes, one more time! This time, I stayed in much longer and even looked up to smile for the camera. Sweet! Then, just when I tried to push it for a few more minutes, my arms gave way and the sledge nose slipped under the surface. I was under water so fast that I didn't even realize how it happened! I had to do this roll thing and I popped my head up so fast from the water immediately swimming to the safe side of the river. Gemi was all sorts of giggling as she saw me. When we got out of the water she said that when I went under she was like, oh sh*t and immediately hopped that I would pop up in the right spot. Then she said before she could get to me I was already swimming in the right direction. She was very happy I listened so well. yes, there are few times in my life that i do listen this well...What a blast this was! This will never come to the States (the lawyers in the US would have a field day with this activity) but its definitely far better than being in a raft! For those of you water/rafting enthusiasts...get yourselves to NZ and try it out!

After the bit of adventure, I went next door to the Hell's Gate thermal park. This place was equally as thrilling in a completely different way. I had signed up for the walk through the park and some spa type things. I did the walk first and it was really cool. The entire Rotorua area is filled with thermal pools and the such. This happens to be a big concentrated area of them. I was able to see several pools with boiling water. The temps were at least 68 degrees Celsius or above and it was crazy to see boiling water coming up from the earth. Some of the pools were grey in color, others were black. It was bazaar to see one pool look so different right next to another pool. How is that possible!?!? The answer, the Earth is an amazing thing. I also saw several mud pools with boiling and splatting mud. This was super fun! Part of me wanted to jump in...but yeah, that would not be smart. I also saw a mini volcano that is active and constantly getting bigger. About every 2 weeks it spews and grows in size. I should clarify, this is a mud volcano...but still, it was cool. The other crazy thing was the amount of steam and mist that was coming up from the earth. In some places it seemed to fit...it was over the pools or near the mud. at other times it would take you by surprise and be coming up from a mound of rock. There was also a really pretty waterfall in the middle of all of this. The other great thing...the Maori people have used this location for hundreds of years. They had pools that they would use to cook food in and some that they used for therapeutic reasons. Each pool had a special name and purpose. So again, this is a fun excursion rooted in deep culture. After I was done with my walk, I headed into the spa pool areas. Here, I changed into my swim suit and got into a hot mud bath. Ok, this felt really strange at first, but after a few minutes, I had myself completely covered in mud and laying in the sun. It felt so good! (and 2 days later...my skin is still super soft!). After 20 min, I had to get out and take a cold water shower. This was not fun! Its not that warm this time of year in NZ. Thank god the sun was shining but either way, I gave a little scream, jumped in and out as fast as i could and made my way to the sulfur pool. This was heated up like a whirlpool but there were no jets or anything. Just a nice size pool that you could relax in. I loved it! I kept dipping my hair in it and soaking up the sun. I didn't think much of the smell because the whole place smelled and I had gotten used to it. For those that don't know, sulfur smells like rotten eggs. After 20 mins I decided to get out and wash up. They had showers for you to use and I hopped in. It was at this time that I realized how badly I smelled. 2 days later, 3 washes with shampoo and my hair still smells like rotten eggs! My swim suit is a total loss. No way its going back in my backpack at this point. I let it soak in soap all day and its still smells. This will be another causality of the trip. The one way to get rid of the smell is to wash things in ammonia. Yum, yeah...I'm not going to be doing that. Let's just hope that over the next couple of days, my hair goes back to normal :-)

After I was done with the shower I dressed again and had a bit of time to kill before the shuttle bus back to town. I sat in the sun and read my book. Then I walked over to the rafting people to see if it was shuttle bus time. Turns out I had another 30 mins to kill so I took a seat in the yard and read. The rafting guys were really nice so I also did a bit of chatting with them. Then I started talking to a few other people from a different rafting trip. All in all, it was a nice mix of reading and talking. We finally boarded the shuttle bus back into town and along the ride, I was laughing to myself as the driver was talking to the group. Kiwis can have really thick accents and they have so many slang words and they can talk really fast that it sounds like they are speaking a different language. Half the time this guy talked I had no idea what he was saying. Super funny! But as always, as nice as nice can be!

Once back at the hostel I was tired. Ended up doing some walking around and checking out some of the local shops. I actually found a necklace for myself. Last time I was here I bought all these gifts for other people and got home and realized I did not buy anything for myself. This time, I wanted to get a Maori necklace. So I bought a Konu shaped one. Its circular and means new beginnings. I love it! I then headed back to the hostel, showered, again, and went out for dinner. I ended up at the same bar because their portions were huge and I hadn't had lunch and I was craving bangers and mash. I was not disappointed!!! I made it back to the hostel early and to bed and asleep by 9:30 pm. Felt so good :-)

Sunday morning I woke up at 8:30 am. What?!?!?! 11 hrs of sleep...what a nice feeling! It must be all the fresh clean air in NZ. Or maybe that I just feel so relaxed here. Either way, I was happy. Now that I'm back to traveling in a normal like routine, I could make my way to the grocery store and buy a few things. In Oz I had a hard time because you couldn't carry certain foods across state boarders and I was always on tours and things like that. Now, I'm traveling more at my own pace and there are few rules. So I stocked up on granola bars and breakfast snacks and some fruit. It was so nice to get a few things and know that I can carry it as I go. Super happy! Then I rented a bike and set out to see the Blue and Green lakes. I was told it was a 10 km ride one way. What I did not factor into the equation was that it was essentially 10 km up hill! Rotorua is set in a mountain area and the lakes are crater lakes. So this means, uphill climb to see the beauty. The first part of the ride was not so bad. It was through town and quite scenic. Rotorua is a huge outdoorsy area so there are bike lanes everywhere and it was easy to navigate via bike. When I turned onto the highway that led up to the lakes, I was immediately encountered with hills. Up until now, it was a flat ride, now it was going to be tough. I was out of breath in no time - again, acutely aware of how out of shape I am - but kept on chugging along. I had to stop 3 times to drink my water and take a rest and after twisting and turning and pushing my legs, I finally made it to the top. Well, I thought it was the top. I did a little descend and then had to go up again. This was not good. Then I realized that the ride back would not be all downhill...oh boy! Either way, I climbed up another hill and kept my legs pumping as best I could. The scenery around me had changed and I had gone from homes to rolling hills with cows to thick forest. I was now in a national park and could tell! The forests here are glorious. So thick and dense and right now everything is green with a hit of red/orange/yellow since its Autumn. I am SO glad I'm here during Autumn. I may never want to leave! As I finally break over the last hill I'm happy to see the corner of a lake. As I round the side of the mountain, there it is! The Blue Lake! Its much larger than I'd thought it'd be and absolutely gorgeous! Its an old volcano collapsed crater lake and it truly is very blue. I slowed down as I went by to take in the view. The Green Lake was further up the road and I decided to get to that one first before resting. This also meant climbing another hill. As I was on my way up again, a woman running on the other side of the road stops me. She's Australian and had gone out for a run and was a bit lost. We're in an area that does not have too many road signs. I pulled out my map and that was enough for her. We both then talked about how pretty it was and how great it felt to breath in the mountain air! Then I was back on my way. Just at the top of the hill I found the look-out I was after. Its a spot that sits between the two lakes. The Maori people still use the Green Lake so its off limits to tourists. But you can view the lake from this area. There is a small mount built so that you can climb up and look at both lakes at the same time. One is definitely green and one is definitely blue! If the sun had been out and shining bright, the lakes would have really glowed with their color but today, it was quite overcast. At moments, the sun was trying to peek out and when it did, the lakes lite up. What a sight! I then ventured back down to blue lake and settled in to take a much needed break from biking. I sat and had a snack, drank some water and took in the area. There had been a triathlon on Saturday and the lake still had buoys out in it for the swimmers. There were also workings picking up staging and fencing from the area. The lake is allowed to have motorized boats and I even saw someone waterskiing! The sand around the lake was quite coarse and some it was a gray/black. Very interesting spot this is! If I lived in the area I think I'd be up at this lake all summer long!

After a bit I got back on my bike and headed first up the hill...please, no more hills, my legs were screaming...and then from there it was mostly downhill. I was able to take in the views better this time around and could see all the forest area and then the farmland and hear the cows mooing and all that. At one point, you could see much of Rotorua and Lake Rotorua. It was a lovely view! Overall, the bike ride was totally worth it! I road back into town and then made my way over to another thermal park. With all the steam and smoke coming up it literally looks like the place is on fire. Then I made my way down to the lake front and saw a group of black swans. Wow, they were pretty! I also met a group of little kids playing on a play ground. They were yelling at me...Lady, lady...don't get too close. Apparently there is a hot water area close to the lake and I was dangerously close to it. They were too cute. I thanked them for letting me know and they smiled. Then I made my way over to a Maori village area to see the 100 year old church. It was really pretty. Its a classic tutor style on the outside, but inside it looks like a Maori meeting house with all the wood work and carvings. And knowing how all that carving is done by hand, its makes the church that much prettier. I was so impressed by it! It also sits right on the lake so the views out the windows are so calming. This could be the perfect church. I also made my way out to the graveyard that sits on the waters edge. The lake is huge and has a large island in the middle of it. Its a sight to see for sure! From here I headed back into town and along the way happened upon an outdoor market. Sweet! I looked around at all the stuff and had some fun talking with some people. There was even a vendor selling donuts...I had to get some (the one's at Pike Place Market are better) but it was an older couple who owned the donut van and I got to talking to them for a few minutes. I love Kiwis! From the market I headed back to the ice cream shop where I rented the bike and turned it in. What a fun day of exploring!!!

Once back at the hostel, I showered up and then relaxed for a bit. I'm 1/2 way thru my book so its pretty tough to put it down at this point. Then I walked over to Tamaki Heritage Experiences. I had wanted to do something like this on my last trip, but did not have the chance. I was in and out of several museums and learned a great deal about the Maori culture, but this was the last part of it. I was going to a recreated traditional Maori village and to see some of the traditional dances and to have a dinner cooked in the hangi. I was excited! They gave you a ticket at check in and you were assigned a bus to ride as well as a dinner table number. The bus ride was about 20 min and a ton of fun! The driver was really funny and ended up saying hello in 61 different languages...complete with accents. Well done! Along the way, he teased a few of the countries as well. There is a funny exchange between the Kiwis and the Aussies. We had 4 Aussies on our bus and the driver kept giving them a hard time regarding the All Blacks and rugby. It was a riot! They keep the whole experience really traditional, so we had to have a chief of our bus and when we arrived at the village - Tumunui - he had to guide us in and interact with the village chief. There were a total of 4 chiefs based on the four groups that arrived at the village. The show starts with the Maori Chief coming out and saying things in Maori and then sending out his best warrior to challenge and intimidate the new chiefs that have come to visit. This was an impressive show! They were dressed in traditional attire and even had painted on what would have been the traditional Maori facial tattoos. There was some chanting and singing as well. I liked it. After the peace offering was made, we were allowed to enter the village. Once inside, they had stations set up that showed how a village would have been situated in the woods. You could stand and learn about different parts of their culture. I ended up listening to gathering of food and storage, weapons and wood carving. The wood carving was the most interesting because this is so integrated into their life. Everything from weapons to homes to canoes has carvings on it and there were men selected to do the carvings. The canoes would take up to 10 years to complete. It blew my mind! From here we were lead into a theater type room where they performed some of the traditional songs and dances. This was also great fun! They are linked to the original Polynesian people from Tahiti and you can see some similarities with things you may have seen from Hawaii. All of the cultures are very closely related. The songs were beautiful and the dances were exciting. They even performed the Haka which is the war dance. This is now performed by the All Blacks rugby team before every match. It signals that they are ready for battle. From here we were lead into the dinning hall. The food was outstanding!!! All of it was cooked in a whole in the ground and I had potatoes, chicken, fish, lamb, mussels, salad and the best home made bread of all time! I even snuck in a little dessert. I ate so much it was crazy! But it was so good and it will probably be the last time I have a really big meal till I get home. After dinner they sang a farewell song. It reminded me of being in Fiji. This time though I smiled instead of crying. After that, it was back on the bus and back to the hostel. All in all, a really good evening of culture and food!

I got up on Monday morning and to catch the bus to Taupo. This was the next stop on the list of places to see. I said goodbye to Karen at reception and we exchanged info. She's hoping to come to the States next year and now I'll have another contact in the UK. Sweet!

(for whatever reason, I can't get photos to upload...not sure what's going on. Will try to add some in the next blog.)

---

Photos

The steaming pools
Oh how lovely the smell of sulfur!

Boiling mud pool
Its hard to see, but the mud is actually popping and bubbling because its boiling. It was strange to see.

A boiling sulfur pool
This one you can see the boiling a bit better. The heat coming off of these pools was amazing.

The green lake
This was on my 10km bike ride in Rotorua. So beautiful!!!

The blue lake
Also from the 10 km bike. This lake looked more blue as the sun came out, but since it was overcast, the lake was a bit dark.

The blue lake
You can see how clear the water was.

The Maori church
This is in Rotorua and sits on Lake Rotorua.

At the Maori Cultural center
This was the part at the beginning when they were challenging our arrival.

Demonstration of the wood carvings
I loved watching this guy carve. Its amazing to see how they do it.