My adventure kicked of with a bang. Which was lucky since anything less wouldn't have overcome how tired I was (5am starts are not my friend). Our driver/guide is called 'Lucky' and she's fabulous. She kept us entertained and awake all morning and then kept us going until the evening with the promise of a free BBQ! - and it wasn't a typical free BBQ where you can have one burger, one sausage, and some salad. There was a ridiclous amount of all types of meat, a range of amazing sides to go with it, and bananas with chocolate for dessert (which I didn't get because I gave up chocolate for lent... bad move).
Our first big stop was Hahei where we took an hour walk to Cathedral Cove. It's the beach used in Prince Caspian and it is very pretty :-) . We even found a little cave to have a peek in, but we got out not long after when the tide threatened to trap us. Then later we took another trip out to Hot Water Beach, which surprise surprise is a beach with hot water :O . Sarcasm aside it is very impressive. There are too hot springs that are pushing up under the beach and at low tide they're exposed so you can go down with a shovel, dig your self a large hole, and bath in the very hot water. Or... you can go a little later and steal the holes other people have already dug :-) .
Day two of my straying and we were up bright and early (normal person early this time) travelling from the East coast to Raglan, on the West coast. The town is very much a surfers town and the place we're staying is right up into the bush. It's hidden away from civilisation and another perfect spot to just chill out and surf. From there we headed to Waitomo with its amazing caves and glow worms - which are technically "maggots with shiny shit", but they're prettier if you think of them as glow worms. I did the tubing adventure through the caves and discovered i'm not as terrified of tight spaces as I thought :-) . Though army crawling over rocks isn't as easy as it seems. When all that was over and we were well and truely exhausted we headed to Maketu to stay in a Maori meeting house. Whilst there we choose a chief and waited for him to accept our invitation into the tribe while a small boy yelled and thrust a spear at him, learnt the Haka and poi, slept on the floor in the meeting room, and woke up to Abba playing through the building :-\ ... yeah, that part just didn't quite fit. The next day was possibly the worst day so far... including the day I had my wisdom teeth out. We stopped off in Rotorua for the afternoon, a place famous for its geothermal activity, and it was disgusting. The smells that wafted around made me feel sick a couple of times. The town itself is lovely and quaint, and there are loads of activities available, but the smell... it's just indescribable. Oh and guess what, on my way back to Auckland I will be staying overnight in Rotorua. Yay. Look forward to that update. Lake Taupo was the final destination for this day and it is pretty impressive. Hard to believe it's a lake when you can't see the other side. Then from here we drove straight to Tongariro national park, which is where I am now, and it is snowing. Yes people, it's snowing. I am currently relaxing in a gorgeous lodge by the fire, with all my amazing new friends, looking forward to our group meal tonight and some classic card games :-) . I feel very much at home right now and it's a fabulous feeling :-) .
Our first big stop was Hahei where we took an hour walk to Cathedral Cove. It's the beach used in Prince Caspian and it is very pretty :-) . We even found a little cave to have a peek in, but we got out not long after when the tide threatened to trap us. Then later we took another trip out to Hot Water Beach, which surprise surprise is a beach with hot water :O . Sarcasm aside it is very impressive. There are too hot springs that are pushing up under the beach and at low tide they're exposed so you can go down with a shovel, dig your self a large hole, and bath in the very hot water. Or... you can go a little later and steal the holes other people have already dug :-) .
Day two of my straying and we were up bright and early (normal person early this time) travelling from the East coast to Raglan, on the West coast. The town is very much a surfers town and the place we're staying is right up into the bush. It's hidden away from civilisation and another perfect spot to just chill out and surf. From there we headed to Waitomo with its amazing caves and glow worms - which are technically "maggots with shiny shit", but they're prettier if you think of them as glow worms. I did the tubing adventure through the caves and discovered i'm not as terrified of tight spaces as I thought :-) . Though army crawling over rocks isn't as easy as it seems. When all that was over and we were well and truely exhausted we headed to Maketu to stay in a Maori meeting house. Whilst there we choose a chief and waited for him to accept our invitation into the tribe while a small boy yelled and thrust a spear at him, learnt the Haka and poi, slept on the floor in the meeting room, and woke up to Abba playing through the building :-\ ... yeah, that part just didn't quite fit. The next day was possibly the worst day so far... including the day I had my wisdom teeth out. We stopped off in Rotorua for the afternoon, a place famous for its geothermal activity, and it was disgusting. The smells that wafted around made me feel sick a couple of times. The town itself is lovely and quaint, and there are loads of activities available, but the smell... it's just indescribable. Oh and guess what, on my way back to Auckland I will be staying overnight in Rotorua. Yay. Look forward to that update. Lake Taupo was the final destination for this day and it is pretty impressive. Hard to believe it's a lake when you can't see the other side. Then from here we drove straight to Tongariro national park, which is where I am now, and it is snowing. Yes people, it's snowing. I am currently relaxing in a gorgeous lodge by the fire, with all my amazing new friends, looking forward to our group meal tonight and some classic card games :-) . I feel very much at home right now and it's a fabulous feeling :-) .
Your trip sounds wonderful so far Cassie. And don't give up on Rotorua. It has a lot to offer. Just open those lungs and suck it in. LOL. It's only sulphur. Think of it as an internal cleanser. XXX
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