The first day we arrived in town, we were able to get booked in to go see Hells Gate. A shuttle picked
us up right down the road from the hostel & drove us out about 20 minutes to our destination. Hells Gate is a massive geothermal hotspot that has tons of boiling mudpools, sulfur pools, steaming cliffs...you get the picture. It was cool---it was just that Sonja & I weren't the most chipper people in the world as of that morning & therefore had a difficult time enjoying it. Plus, once you've seen one boiling pool of mud or one hot sulfer pool , you've seen them all. However, after we had walked around the whole park, we were able to go into a heated mud pool, plus a couple of thermally heated pools. We were only allowed to stay in the mud pool for 20 minutes, then we had to go to the outside showers that were right around the corner to wash off all of the mud. Let me just tell you, those showers were FREEZING. Brrrrrrrr! However, after those incredibly refreshing showers, we were allowed to go into the themally heated pools. The pools were REALLY warm, like hot tub warm. So, we only stayed in the water for a short time before getting changed back into our clothes.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention that we had to take off absolutely all jewelry before getting into the pools & the sign they made us read before getting into the pools also said not to put jewelry back on for at least 24 hours after swimming. So, what did I immediately do after swimming? Yeah, I just went ahead & put all of my rings and necklaces right back on. I follow directions so well. Within seconds, all of my silver jewelry had tarnished from the sulfur on my skin. Luckily, our driver overheard me talking about it before we headed back to the hostel, and he went back inside the Hells Gate shop & dipped them in jewelry cleaner for me. Magically, my favorite rings and necklace were back to normal! He put them in this little baggie for me & said with a smile and Kiwi accent, "Now, don't put these back on until you leave Rotorua." =) I am following directions this time.
Yesterday, we went to a place called Te Puia that had an active geyser, plus a large scenic area to walk around and....drum roll please....see MORE mud pools & steaming sulfer pools haha. It was actually really nice though. The park itself was really pretty, set in the mountains. It had some nice walking paths, some Maori culture experiences, plus an exhibit for the Kiwi bird! Now, keep in mind that Sonja & I were really excited to see the Kiwi bird because although we've been in NZ for almost 2 months now & have seen pictures of the bird everywhere, we've never actually seen one. So, when you first walk into the exhibit (before you see the bird or anything), there is a sign that talks about how you can't take any pictures or videos of the Kiwi, that the Kiwi bird is noctural, and that you must keep all noise and talking to a bare minimum once you are inside the exhibit. So, we excitedly walked further inside, around this corner, and into this room that was almost pitch black.
We then followed this barely lit pathway around & came to the Kiwi's actual exhibit....which was also almost pitch black. When we first walked in, we caught a 1/2 second glance of the backside of one Kiwi hopping away into the darkness. Then, after straining our eyes for what seemed like too long trying to spot the stupid thing again, it just looked as though we were intently staring at this dimly-lit exhibit full of nothing but twigs and branches--certainly no Kiwis running all over the place. Sonja & I just looked at each other with the same face as if to say "Are you kidding me??!" Yeah, it was amusing. Luckily, we went back later & the one Kiwi that I think was even in there came back out and showed itself off a bit. Mission accomplished.
Besides Hells Gate and Te Puia, we just spent our time in Rotorua walking around town, went into some shops & ate at a couple places. It was a bigger town than most of the others we have been to in NZ. Last night, we went back to the hostel & found everyone crowded around the only lounge area still available (since you know..it was after 10:00 & the good lounge was already closed). They were sitting on the couches & on the floor intently focused on whatever was playing on the TV. Sonja & I sat down on the floor to join in as well, only to realize that the film they were so intent on watching was "A Bee Movie." Yeahhh...not exactly our idea of a rockin night in NZ. Soo, we got back up & went out for a beer instead. We went to one of the only bars still open in town & it turned out to be a perfect end to our stay in Rotorua...live music, familiar songs, and a good atmosphere. Our trip to Rotorua was also a success because Sonja & I finally found the traditional NZ necklaces we have been wanting. Although the four main shapes are the same wherever you go in NZ, the specific designs vary from shop to shop & from city to city. So, we both found our perfectly designed necklaces yesterday & bought them for each other. It was quite fitting since tomorrow we will be separating for the first time in 2 months & part of the meaning behind our chosen shapes is for a safe journey. It will be a bit strange not being with my little Sontsa, but I will see her again in a couple of weeks =)
Cheers,
Ash
No comments:
Post a Comment