6th February 2011

Last night I slept with a sheet over my head - cocooned! I was so bloody warm but it meant I didn't get bitten by anything and nothing crawled into any orifices so it's all good. We all slept on the floor of the main hall and some people slept outside.

I was up at 6.30am for a shower as there were only 2 between us and I was first in. When I woke up there was a middle aged woman walking around in her underwear and she looked AMAZING. Life isn't fair!

We had a free breakfast, a group photo for Uncle Boy and went on our way at 8am to Rotorua :o) We got there at about 9am and some of us got off the bus to look around the town while the rest of them went to a thermal village.

One thing - Rotorua STINKS. As it's full of thermal activity it smells of sulphur - and sulphur smells of rotten eggs :o/ A group of us went for a walk through the park and saw some thermal hot pools which reminded me of the Bog of Eternal Stench from Labyrinth!

We walked into town and Claire and I went off to the shops. We stopped at a bakery and had a pie and then went CLOTHES SHOPPING! I haven't bought anything for myself (apart from food and accommodation) since I got here so I treated myself to a strapless top (which i've never worn in my life) and a pair of short shorts (which i've also never worn in my life). Healthy eating starts now so my legs look half decent in them by the time I meet Ben! Claire bought exactly the same items too! And one of the shopping bags had a unicorn on! WOO!

We got picked up at 12.30 and headed off towards some more thermal pools. We reached the first one which you could just take photos of as it was all fenced off and the second one we drove too was a mud pool you could swim in. However, Timmy told us not to put our heads underwater as it was full of germs including meningitis :o/

I did not go in the pool.

Next stop was Huka Falls - awesome rapids and little waterfall. I had an ice cream (so much for healthy eating!) as it was sickeningly hot on the bus - I was sweating SO much I couldn't believe it.

We drove some more and ended up in Taupo, which is on a lake. The lake is the crater of a volcano that last erupted 26,500 years ago and the town is built on the edge of it. We are staying at Urban Retreat backpackers which advertised free internet but turns out you only get 1hr :o( So i'm here in McDonalds pilfering theirs instead!

I am in a 16 bed dorm with a few other girls off the bus and some random people too. The town seems nice and I am currently enjoying a thick shake - there goes my healthy eating again :o)

Claire and a few others have been sky diving this afternoon so we are waiting for them to get back before we have tea. Think it might be fish & chips. Most of them are doing the Tongariro crossing in National Park tomorrow but I don't really want to do it - especially in this heat. But we will see tomorrow I suppose!

Did you know that as at tomorrow I have been away for 5 weeks?

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