A Morning in Rotorua Day 13 Go Ahead NZ Untamed Landscapes #goaheadtours #newzealand
Traveler's Log Tuesday November 29, 2016
Morning in Rotorua
Rotorua Harbor
Ohinemutu, a Māori village
Kia Ora
Today we have the morning off to explore on our own. We should have slept late but we're up at 5:30 a.m., without an alarm. Hello, we're on holiday-what gives.
Oh well, time for breakfast buffet at the Millennium. Most of our tour group has gone off on side trips but we choose to walk around Rotorua. They call Rotorua "New Zealand's Coolest Hot Spot". We can see and smell why as we walk out the hotel door. Sulfur is in the air.
Just around the corner from the hotel is Rachel Spring. This is an alkaline hot spring at a temperature of 212 degrees F. They used to pump the hot water into the various spas that used be around Rotorua. Many people visited for the healing waters.
We slowly make our way through Government Gardens, with it's many sculptures and even a couple of bowling greens.
We wind our way around the Klamath Falls Rose garden.
The rose garden is named after Klamath Falls Oregon, the sister city of Rotorua in America.
We eventually make our way to the harbor. Lots of cool birds to see.
We continue on around the harbor and down the road to Ohinemutu, which is a suburb of Rotorua but was originally a Māori village.
The hot springs are piped/vented to "let off some steam."
The Māori village carvings are most impressive.
We had a late breakfast at the hotel but all this walking around in fresh sulfur air has made us hungry but not quite hungry for lunch so we hit Lady Janes. Ice cream and bike rentals!
Even though the air temps and rose gardens say it's spring, folks in New Zealand are getting ready for Christmas.
We make our way back to our room for a freshen up, check emails and download the morning photos.
We're meeting Tui, our afternoon guide for our next adventure at 1:20 then we'll be off for a Hangi Feast at 5:30 late in the evening. We're really excited to learn more about the Māori people and their culture.
More photos from our walk around Rotorua: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/New-Zealand-2016/Rotorua-Tuesday/
Next up an afternoon and evening of Māori Culture.
Day 1 and 2-Travel Days to New Zealand
Day 3 Queenstown
Day 4 Milford Sound
Day 5 Queenstown, Free Day
Day 6 Fox Glacier
Day 7 Hokitika, Punakaiki
Day 8 Pancake Rocks, Cape Foulwind, Westport, Nelson
Day 9 Nelson, Dinner with a Kiwi Family
Day 10 Nelson to Wellington
Day 11 Wellington
Day 14 Rotorua to Auckland
Day 15 Auckland and departure
FYI Christchurch Quake Map There was a 7.8M quake a few days before we landed. This map shows all the quakes then and now.
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