On Friday 27th August we jumped on the early "Magic Bus" - one of the 3 main tour bus companies operating in NZ - at 7:40am outside our hostel. Suzanne and Chris we met the other night from England were also travelling with us to Rotorua. The bus turned out to be a small bus/ minivan which was clean, tidy, spacious (as it was just over half full) and driven by an informative driver. The trade-off was that he didn't have a great sense of direction so he needed to ask for directions a couple of times and undertake numerous u-turns. Aside from the unscheduled stops, the journey involved stopping at some sights for photo opportunities after picking up a few tourists making about 12 of us in total. We made our way up Mount Eden on the outskirts of Auckland but unfortunately it was a rainy day. That said, we did walk around and take in the views of the volcano and the city below.

We ventured onwards onto the motorway for approx 1 hour to a place called Thames to pick up more tourists. We passed many mountains, lakes, sheep and cows. There didn't appear to be many cars on the road so you can get about pretty quickly. Thames was a 30 min stop so had a coffee and a snack and then moved onto MataMata (also known as Hobbiton) where parts of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit were filmed. Our driver got a little lost on the way to MataMata (surprise, surprise), which explains why he missed the bridge we were suppose to take. His lack of direction soon turned it into a joke with
those of us in the back laughing on the one hand but worrying on the other that we may never actually arrive in Rotorua. MataMata was a 20 minute stop so we just walked through the small town and moved onto Rotorua which is known for its geothermal pools (the town is basically in a volcanic crater that was created after an eruption in 1886 - we
only found this out once we had arrived!!!!), is known for Maori "Hangi" meal feasts, its lakes and adrenalin fuelled jet boats, rafting and bungys.

We checked into our YHA hostel and planned the night to meet up with other tourists that were on the Magic bus.

The next day started badly with Mark getting his second haircut of the tour (the other being in Cambodia) which turned out to be the shape of a helmet. Let's say he was a little disappointed! The omens weren't good for the rest of the day. That evening, we went for an Indian meal. Disappointing is an understatement. The chicken was really ropey - it was very stringy with discoloured flesh. We wouldn't have fed it to a dog let alone paying customers. Lisa complained and got a 10% discount. Not content with this, Mark told the waiter to deduct the dish off the menu. Mark was very abrupt but soon got what he wanted! Trip advisor me thinks for a bad report.

The evening was spent with Suzanne, Chris and a guy called Andrew in the Pig and Whistle pub. We had a really good night with this bunch.

The following morning was our anniversary and we didn't wake up until 10am. We seem to sleep alot on this trip, I won't be surprised if one day we fall asleep and wake up not realising we have missed a whole day!

We jumped on the local city bus to Skylines for an adventure of cable riding to the top of Mount Ngongotaha (487 metres above sea level) and 5 rides of street luge. A fun gravity ride on a three wheel non-motorised cart. There were 3 tracks with a combined 5kms of track options; scenic, intermediate and advanced so we tried them all! The advanced was a little scary due to the slope depth. After each street luge we went uphill by chairlift. The views from the top over the lakes were amazing. The photos don't really do it justice.

We followed all this by a game of mini golf. For the record, Mark won. Then we hopped on the bus back to town.

We found a shooting range and as Lisa had never done this before thought it would be a great opportunity. Lisa managed to knock off 4 cans from the shelves which was pretty impressive for a first go. Mark went into full Rambo mode and was blowing everything off the shell. Boys will be boys.

It was then time to move onto the Polynesian Spa (world top 10 spa) overlooking Lake Rotorua. It was 6pm and we relaxed in 4 hot mineral spring pools for 2 hours with temperatures between 36c and 42c in the dark looking at the stars!!! It was shear bliss.

After a shower, we dined in an Italian restaurant which had a romantic feel. The dinner was really good and we finished off with a good New Zealand red wine and cheese and biscuits. What a great anniversary!!

The following morning we decided to go for a walk around town recommended by the information centre. Unfortunately it rained alot so had to walk around in bright green and yellow rain macs! We went to the thermal pools in Kuirau Park, a Maori village and craft centre selling gifts and wood carvings of statues, and the Rotorua Museum of Art & History which is located in the world famous bath housing building where patients were encouraged to bathe here. The brochure said they were world famous but we had never heard of them!!

The museum gave a cinema experience showing Mount Tarawera erupting and the floor in the cinema shook giving us the experience of the volcano erupting. We also saw great views from the viewing platform of Lake Rotorua and the Sulphur Bay.

This particular evening we decided to go shoppng in the local supermarket to purchase the evening's dinner (we declined the opportunity to buy a packet of bacon at NZ$19.....£9!!!). We were that hungry so ended up having frenchstick with ham, cheese and cucumber. This was followed by a rather large chocolate muffin and a bottle of wine. Now that my friends is a classy meal!!!! The hostel kitchen was very clean and only 2 other young people were in there..... both cooking spaghetti bolognese. Spot the students on a gap year. The hostel was well equipped with cooking utensils etc. It is just a bit frustrating that some people struggle with the concept of cleaning up their own mess. The evening was spent organising our onward journey to Taupo.

The following morning we had breakfast at the Fat Dog. Mark had sausage, bacon, scrambled egg n toast whilst Lisa had beans on toast. It was most enjoyable as previous mornings we skipped breakfast.

We then hopped on a bus to Whakarewarewa "the living village" to see how Maori families live. For centuries it has been home to the Tuhourangi Ngati Wahiao people. A guide took us around the colourful steaming lakes and thermal pools. For over 300 years they have utilised the geothermal resources for daily cooking, bathing and living. It is a landscape of active geothermal activity that is continually boiling. A traditional Maori show was held with tv crew filming an ex rugby player from New Zealand (Glen Osborne - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glen_Osborne). Mark along with a few others was called onto the stage to perform the Haka dance. He is hoping it doesn't get aired (apparently it will be shown in 2011 - it will be called "Bring your Boots, Oz")!!!

After the Maori show we left and took a walking trail through Redwood Forest - 1 hour through winding paths. It is known for magnificent stands of towering Californian Coastal Redwoods which originate from the coast of America. Their lifespan is 600 years and they can grow as tall as 360 feet with bark growing upto 12 inches thick. The walk took us through a diverse range of native plants and exotics trees. We had spectacular views of thermal hot springs too. Many photos were taken here. It ended up being a rush getting back to the hostel with only 20 minutes spare to get showered as we were going out to a Maori village for a traditional "Hangi" meal.

The large Mitai family created a sacred and spiritual place that offers cultural experiences. The evening consisted of a Hangi meal cooked under the ground (the traditional way), an ancient warrior canoe with warriors in traditional dress paddling a Waka, an actual Maori village, a traditional cultural performance, glow worms and
sacred freshwater spring. The evening was educational with a great buffet on offer. The food was good as Mark went up twice! Others went up more though.

Upon returning to the hostel, we packed our bags ready to move on to Taupo the following day.