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Published: March 23rd 2010
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Welcome to New Zealand!
The gods may be angry, but the locals are really friendly. North Island, New Zealand: 25th February - 4th March, 2010
Yea, and it was in Argentinium whence Liz, daughter of Derrick and Dee, and Ali, son of Hilary and Wendy, did come forth from an inn and thusly did break bread with Doug and Rayma. From their sup, Ali didst call forth the servants to bring all manner of victuals: bread, meat of kine, wine and sparkling sweet water were laid upon the table and thenceforth were taken as their sustenance, and it was good.
And Ali thus spake: “We have arrived from Aotearoa, and bring good tidings of a land rich in good soil and pasture, and all manner of those things that good land doth yield in great abundance, and all things that the good people doth render from that which the land doth yield.” And Liz thus spake: “Take this guide book, and may it lead you in your journeys in that fair land, as it has led us thusforth.” And Ali spake once again: “Ask not for suitable shelter, for herein it is written. Seek thee not fun activities, for they are thus found. But, give not into temptation when driving for traffic police
will pull thee over if - ”
- We interrupt this translation of a Latin translation of a Greek translation of an Aramaic blog entry, to bring you the New American Version of this blog. Thank you. -
Liz and Ali let us borrow their New Zealand travel guide when we met up in Buenos Aires, which was great because they had just come from there and had lots of notes and recommendations. So, for this last leg of our trip, we pretty much did the “Liz and Ali Trail” of New Zealand. It's kind of like doing the Lewis and Clark trail, but with more creature comforts and fewer grizzly bears.
When you tell people that you're going to New Zealand, the most common responses are: “don't miss the south island!” or “just go to the south island” or “the south island is beautiful.” If you say that you're going to spend time on the north island, you get a glazed look that is usually reserved for a proposed road trip in a vintage Ford Pinto. Or perhaps the muted response due a hostess who presents hot dogs at a dinner party.
Well, we went.
"Captain Cook, I presume?"
Living proof that Maori kids eat their veggies. So there. And we liked it.
Our first stop was Belinda and Callum's lovely home on the coast east of Auckland. The Beachlands, as they are known, were mostly the location of holiday homes. But now, more people live there full-time and commute to work. With lovely parks and marinas, Rayma and I instantly had the “could we retire here?” conversation. It's a possibility.
After a few days, we headed south to Rotorua. (Don't worry about pronouncing the names that come up...we never could.) Here's 2 things about the north island that make it worth a serious visit: 1) there are plenty of Maori cultural activities; and 2) it's quite volcanic, with geysers, boiling mud pools, etc., which brings out the 9 year old in anyone. Rotorua has a good selection of both.
Our first night, we went to a Maori dinner and show. I was a little wary of the experience since I thought we might see a half-hearted performance with 500 other tourists followed by a mediocre dinner. Well, the first thing I realized is that the Maori have something in common with other people we've met in Asia: they really want you, as a
visitor, to have a positive experience in their homeland. The energy during the dances and singing that we saw that night proved that the Maori take great pride in their traditions. Also, there were about fellow guests there, so a fairly small audience, which is nice.
Naturally, there were plenty of opportunities for audience participation, and I tried my hand at the Haka, which is a warrior dance that each side will perform in front of their foes before the fighting commences. The New Zealand All Blacks rugby team is famous for this dance and song, which is very loud and very intimidating. I don't think we were as intimidating, though. However, we may yet have caused an opposing army to fall to the ground in laughter, thus incapacitating them! (Check out the
video)
As mentioned, Rotorua is in one of the many parts of New Zealand that has volcanic or geothermal activity. So, there are lots of geysers, boiling mud pits, hot springs, and bubbling pools, all of which are fun to see first hand. A few of the key sites are Hell's Gate (a small but dramatic geothermal area) and Waimangu Volcanic Valley, which is a
preserved park with lots of great trails and vistas to enjoy. We even drove down to see the “buried village”, which was the site of a tourist town where people traveled from all over the world to see the pink and white silica terraces (similar to those in Pamukkale, Turkey). Unfortunately, during an eruption in the late 19th century, the terraces were destroyed and many people living in the vicinity were killed.
Finally, we stopped by the Agrodome, named for the agricultural subjects on display. The stars of the show are the different breeds of sheep, and they all need a haircut. The show was hilarious, and perfect for kids. The final act was a herding exhibition by a sheepdog, showing how the herder controls the dog, and how the dog in turn controls the sheep. Very cool stuff!
From Rotorua, we headed south to Tongariro National Park, an area frequented by skiers and trekkers. Also, one of the mountains was featured in Lord of the Rings as Mount Doom. (We can't pronounce the actual name, so we always just called it Mount Doom.) It was only visible one afternoon anyway. The rest of the time, it was
shrouded by clouds. But, we had some great hikes before we left.
Our final stop on the north island was Wellington, which we frankly did not allot much time to explore. We went to the museum (which is very extensive, and free) and stopped at Sweet Mama's restaurant for our choice of Southern BBQ or Tex-Mex. I had the hard tacos, and Rayma had the soft tacos. It was pretty authentic stuff, and we enjoyed it alfresco under a clear blue sky in the late afternoon.
The next morning, we boarded the ferry for the crossing to the south island. And lo! the good times kepteth on rolling!
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Mary Pelham
non-member comment
an exotic peek
Thank-you for another peek at an exotic land. Your descriptions are wonderful. I recommend incorporating that dance into your lives so that when you're mad at each other, you precipitate gales of laughter instead!! How's the stowaway...and it's mother?? What a grand incubation period - adventurous and happy and filled with wonder. I hope you'd understand if I tried to paint one of these photos. Your photography is so clear and crisp and the subjects are wonderful! love to you both Mary Pelham