Rotorua

Mon 6 Feb

Well, it was Waitangi Day in NZ, so a public holiday for all. We decided to go shopping in Taupo and, with a stiff breeze blowing, I bought a warm possum/merino beanie. As we drove out of town we stopped at the lookout, and had a clear view of the volcanoes.



Then on to the Huka Falls where millions of litres of water have to pass through a narrow chasm.





A little further downstream, we stopped in at the Huka Prawn Park. They grow freshwater prawns here, but we declined the tour and just had a lovely prawn lunch at their restaurant.

Next stop: Orakei Korako. This a hidden valley with lots of geothermal activity, including steaming water oozing from the earth, geysers erupting, and boiling mud. This place had recommendations from Lonely Planet, and later, when we saw other geothermal fields, I came to realise that this one is probably the best. Highly recommended if you've never seen any geothermal activity and you want to take a peek.





















From there we headed into Rotorua, to our motel with courtyard spa. ♣ ran a spa and we had a bit of a bubble bath in the backyard. For dinner we headed to Rotorua's eat street and found a nice Indian place (but we ordered far too much food!)