New Zealand, Rotorua, Days 20 and 21

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Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Jim wanted to leave Wellington by 9:00 since we have at least 6 hours on the road today. We settle into the car but we aren't going anywhere. The battery is dead. Jim checks in with the office to see if someone can give us a jump. The woman in the office instructs Jim to go to the mechanics shop across the street, ask for Darryl, and let him know he was sent there by the staff from Victoria Lodge and that he needed help. It was raining so Jim quickly navigated traffic to cross the road. Inside the shop Darryl was working on a car and asked how he could help. Without a question he offered a small battery pack to jump the car and Jim was on his way. Within ten minutes of discovering we had a dead batter we were back on the road.

The weather was a bit dreary with rain but nothing like we experienced the evening before. We discovered how much rain we had once we left the big city. Many roadways were flooded and driving through it was a bit dodgy in some areas. Eventually the weather improved and it turned out to be a "fine" day. Fine is an official weather term in New Zealand. We keep hearing statements like: The weather should be fining up by afternoon, It will be fine for the next couple of days, Weather in the north is fine with a few morning clouds and fine spells in the afternoon. Fine!

The terrain changes quite often on this road trip. We went through cityscape, seaside views, green hills, high desert, and lakeside views. We are staying outside the city of Rotorua in a lakeside apartment called Peppers at the Point. We are greeted by Sam, a very friendly yellow lab, and David the General Manager. He walks us around the facility and introduces us to the other friendly animals. They have miniature horses, donkeys, sheep, and an alpaca. The apartment is gorgeous and Lisa wants to stay here for the rest of the trip. The main lodge is a 1930's mansion that was a personal home until 2004. We have already decided that the days would be spent in town and doing touristy stuff but the evenings will be spent in our home away from home. We take a quick trip into town for groceries and spend a very relaxing evening at home. We made veal scaloppini with mashed potatoes and broccoli. We then went out to our patio to look at the stars. We are far away from city lights and the stars are amazing. We could get used to this.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

We wake up to a fine day and are ready to explore the grounds a bit more. We make our coffee and venture down to the lake. It is so quiet and the lake is very calm. All of a sudden Sam comes running up to us with a ball in his mouth ready for some attention. We stop by to visit the other animals and the donkeys come right up to us hoping for some treats. Next time we will bring an apple for them. The horses are a little more timid but we think the apples will do the trick. It appears as if the boat house is no longer in use as it is filled with supplies and the trees have grown over the boat docks. Who ever lived in the house before 2004 was very lucky and most likely rich because the lodge is the most prominent building on the lake. There is a paddle boat that cruises by every morning on a breakfast cruise and all the people on board take photos of the lodge.

As much as we are enjoying our apartment, we head to town to see what makes Rotorua different than the other towns we have been to so far. There is a section of town called Eat Street where the street is closed traffic, and tables and chairs are set up in the street for the nearby restaurants. We end up going to the Pig and Whistle (surprise, it's a brewery) for lunch and then tour the town.

Rotorua is on the edge of one of the most concentrated volcanic areas in the world. We want to check out the volcanic and geothermal activity but are not ready for a long drive yet. We venture over to Kuirau Park to check out the geothermal activity. This is the site of a huge explosion in 2000 resulting in steaming vents everywhere. Before seeing any geothermal activity we notice a strong sulfur smell in the air, and at times it is very strong. Lisa tried to blame Jim but he was not owning up to it. Signage indicatives we are to stay on the paths as the pools can open up overnight. As we approach the area we can hear the water boiling and see steam coming from a small opening. Then we come across some very big openings with boiling mud. At one point we walk across a bridge and the water is steaming on both sides of us and we feel like we are in a sauna, except the smell is a bit different. The sulfuric aroma leaves a lot to be desired.

Jim has been wanting to see a kiwi (the bird, not the people) but they are rarely seen even by the locals. So we head out to Rainbow Springs Kiwi Wildlife Park and Kiwi Encounter. The first thing we see as we enter is a trout pond. Jim is shocked at how big the trout are, on average they are 30 inches long and must weigh 8 to 10 pounds. The trout are transplants from northern California brought to New Zealand many years ago. He is planning on going fishing tomorrow so he is even more excited now. The park has some of their wildlife on display and we enter cages with birds all around us. To fight the boredom of being confined to a cage, one bird enjoys performing flybys coming within inches of our heads (at least that is Lisa's theory).

At the very end of the tour we enter the Kiwi habitat. Kiwi's are very territorial so they have to be kept in separate facilities. They are nocturnal so the viewing area is dark and it takes some getting used to before we see them. There are 2 baby chicks on display but they are just rolled up in a ball sleeping. The adult kiwis are foraging for food. They are very interesting creatures and are more like a mammal than a bird, long beaks, no tail, no wings, and very large feet. When laying an egg it weighs 20% of their total body weight!

We finish off the day with a nice pasta dinner at the apartment. Lisa bought another caramel slice when we were in town for our dessert. Another great day of vacation!

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Photos

Flooded Road
North of Wellington the rain caused flooding on the low spots in the road

Comments

[Max]

Fine
We found out in Ireland that "fine" meant not raining. It could be a hurricane or snowing, but as long as there was no rain, the weather was "fine." I am noticing that a lot of the local language you have experienced in Australia is the same in England, and occasionally, Ireland. We must be the odd ducks who need to sort it out, eh? Sounds like you are having a real vacation- good for you! Enjoy. Cheers! Max