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Published: March 31st 2007
Whew what a day! After being drowned by the rain yesterday, we arose to a gorgeous sunny day here in Rotarua (the town that smells like egg from all the sulfur of the geothermal activity underground!)
We started our day by paying a visit to the Whakarewarewa Thermal Village, which is a living village set amidst a landscape of geothermal wonders. Our tourguide Michael took us around the village and showed us how the locals rely upon the geothermal heat produced in the ground to cook their foods, bathe, etc. When you placed your hands on the ground, the heat eminating was just unreal! It was quite fascinating. When Maori people cook they use these wooden boxes which are in the ground and it works like a crock pot whereby locals place their food in the boxes before going to work and then arrive home to a dinner which is quite tasty. The sulfur brings out the natural flavour of the food, and the steam ensures its not burnt. There are loads of thermal pools in the village, some in which temperatures reach more than 170 degrees....one in particular doesn't even have a recorded depth because it goes down
soo far. We also saw loads of mud pools which were bubbling with the heat.... i just wanted to jump in for some spa treatment...Fear not I bought a wee mud face mask to use in the hostel later! Apparently locals don't have to use facewash or shampoo because the water has minerals in it that clear and cleanse naturally. The elders bathe in the water because its said to cure arthritis and all sorts of ailments.
After this we were entertained by another Maori traditional dance in which they gave several cutlural demonstrations including swinging a poi and performing the notorious "Haka"dance which is seen on the rugby pitch. Next we wandered over to "Pohutu"and "Prince of Wale s Feathers" geysers which were overflowing with action for us to see...truly amazing site.
Next, we decided to give "Zorb Rotarua" a run for its money. We trekked out to the Agrodome to have a ball in the Hydro Zorb. As backpackers, we decided we needed to do the "wash cycle,"" which was guaranteed to cleanse the body and clear the mind! Essentially myself and Brenda jumped into a giant ball whereupon a man inserted a hose into
Thermal Village
Its hot in here!the inner tube allowing soapy water to fill the ball. We were then sent free flowing down the hill without a harness to complete the cycle--once problem idiots here gave it a good push which isn't a smart start and meant alot of flailing around in the inner ball! Myself and Brenda fellall over the place and I would imagine the screams could be heard probably back in Dublin! We were soaked to the bone and not sure if we were standing or sitting when we arrived at the bottom.
Today we arrived in Auckland, our final port of call here on the North Island before flying to Melbourne where we hope to get one final adventure in before hitting OZ!
BIG SHOUT OUT TO AMY ON HER 25TH BDAY!
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Amy
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Zorbs!
Hey Susan, thanks for the birthday shout out! I feel so special! :D Those geysers look amazing. I can't believe the ground is so warm that the people there can cook their dinner in those boxes. It must be an extremely different way of life than here. I think visiting a thermal village would be fun though, and those zorb balls looked like a blast. I can just imagine you rolling about down the hill screaming bloody murder. Hysterical!! hahaha.