bay of Islands to Rotorua part two.......

Our day trip on the boat was fabulous. The Maori history is fascinating and it's hard to believe what a young country NZ is. Only discovered in mid 1700s and the Waitangi treaty signed in 1840 so modern day NZ stems from then. We listen to the radio in the car and there is much debate over how much money and/or land is given back to the Maori and how much parliamentary influence they should be allowed.

Back to the boat we saw a couple of little penguins bobbing in the water, lots of cormorants which are much bigger than ours and black and white. We saw Austtralian gannets with their pale orange heads and impressive wingspan. We also saw a bronze shark under the surface alongside us. We spent the day weaving in and out of the hundred or so islands. Our skipper was a feisty lass called Tammy who was just brilliant. Tall,blonde and beautiful she gave a running commentary as well as steering the boat.

We have been surprised at how different the NZ accent is to Australian. They pronounce the 'e' sound (as in bed, check etc) as 'i' (bid, chick) and often the 'i' sound as 'u' as in fush and chups! During her commentary Tammy recommended a hotel bar called the Duke of Marlborough that has a deck in front with fabulous views over the bay, however this came out as "there's nothing bitter than sitting on the Duke of Marlborough's dick to watch the sun go down".
Needless to say Dave laughed out loud and got some strange looks from the other passengers!

Pahia grew on us and the unhurried pace is addictive. We bought amazing steak and lamb from the supermarket, bbq'd it at the motel on the 'giss' bbq and then strolled down to the bay front a hundred yards away as night fell. Heaven.

Then on to Rotorua. Although it was a 6 hour drive you just don't feel tired at the end like you would be if you had tackled a 6hr drive in UK! We are in a lovely motel with our own thermally heated jacuzzi as ensuite! Bliss after the drive. The first thing you notice as you drive into Rotorua of course is the smell. Hydrogen sulphide (rotten eggs) pervades the air. You can imagine Dave's reaction!

Rotorua is set on a big lake and is famous for it's geo thermal activities. We strolled along
a part of the lake foreshore directed by Ian our hotelier (motellier?). There we saw bubbling
pools and steaming fissures just a couple of feet away from where we stood.
All the surrounding vegetation was scorched and it reminded me of one of those post apocalypse scenes from a movie.

So it's early morning on day 7 and we hope everyone is well. Bye for now xxx