Mt. Maunganui and Rotorua 2 (the sequel)

We left Hahei with heavy hearts, wishing we could have spent more time there. But we also wanted to see a few other spots around the bay of plenty before the Rotorua game. Not for the first time, we were finding ourselves tight for time. We motored along the coast admiring some simply breathtaking views and after making a couple of stops (including NZ's answer to the French Riviera - yeah right, chortle) ended up in the vibrant town of Mount Maunganui. We spent some time getting friendly with our neighbouring campers, including Rolf Harris (dubbed this because he bore a more than striking resemblance to the Aussie crooner) who seemed friendly until we knocked on his van door for a third time to ask if we could use the public water supply that was permanently connected to his van. Due to the number of people in his van, we could only assume we had interrupted Rolf's Cartoon Club!

We decided to hit the town that night as the All Blacks were playing, which usually gets the locals in good spirits. We had good cheer and good beer as NZ thashed the ever popular French (sacre bleu)!

We woke with a startle in the morning as some wise soul had decided to set up the finish line for a 10k run about 100 feet from our van. They were running over the Mount! It's a steep, breath-stealing 30 minute climb, followed by a 20 minute stumble back down, but well worth it for the panoramic views of the beach and surrounding coast line. We could have throttled the man with the mic but instead decided, if you can't beat them, join them. We didn't exactly run it, but we happily climbed the hill and appreciated the fabulous views of the bay that can be seen from the summit. That's one way to blow away the cobwebs. Another is to use an aerosol and a lighter, but that's another story!

As we slowly recovered from our strenuous morning stroll, we set off for Rotarua to take on the Russians. After one of our famous detours (taking the wrong road, not being able to find the right exit), we arrived at Blue Lake, a very picturesque spot a few kilometres out of town. Though laid back to the point of lying down, the Kiwis have been pretty good about arranging transport to the matches from all the campsites and shuttles from downtown to the stadiums. So we hopped on the shuttle from our campsite to what turned out to be Joss's favourite stadium. Built like an old Roman amphitheatre, with steps all around to sit on, it had a certain charm and a friendly, all-in-it-together atmosphere, with everyone huddled together in the drizzle eating hot chips. The Irish fans far outnumbered the Russians and there was a general sense of calm as we expected a fairly easy win. As play began, the drizzle rewarded us with an absolutely spectacular double rainbow, stretching from end to end across the pitch, a perfect semi circle. The team rewarded us with a win as well and we left the ground very happy. Downtown, the Irish fans were out in force and the pubs spilled out on to the streets. We picked a bar with a live band but hadn't  bargained on listening to the drunk revellers who had hijacked the mic...much awful singing ensued! Joss made an early (11.30) exit with Mick and Peggy and the boys stayed happily chatting away to their brothers-in-sport.

After dark the shuttles cease and it's every man for himself in the quest to find an empty cab back to the campsite. A two hour wait for a cab later (during which Neil fell asleep in a hotel lobby), the boys made it home at 4am!

Neil and Joss