An early morning start catching the Intercity bus from Auckland to Rotorua, stopping briefly in Hamilton. A pleasant journey with the exciting prospect of meeting up with our good old friends, Treza & Sean, at Rotorua. They say you can smell Rotorua (sulphur) before you arrive, however we didn't experience this so maybe the wind was blowing in a different direction? Plenty of geothermal activity though to see in the area with steam pouring from rocks and valleys. It was great to see our friends and we found a pub to have lunch and a catch up before heading off for a welcome soak in the Wairekei hot springs- so relaxing. Then on to a one night stay on the shores of Lake Taupo (pronounced Toe paw). Great company and comfortable accommodation soon gave way to weary heads and the anticipation of another day in the Volcanic region demanded a good nights sleep!