Hi everyone, happy Easter and I hope you're not all eating too many chocolate eggs and enjoying the well-deserved holiday. Well Easter finds me in Rotorua or as the locals like to call it Rotovegas which is due to the sheer number of hotels here (surprisingly all booked up for Easter??). And it feels quite appropriate to be here for easter as it has a real egg theme - though we're talking rotten eggs not chocolate ones. Yep I'm in the thermal capital of NZ and boy does it stink. Well before arriving here I spent a few days in Taupo, home to NZ's largest lake which is the size of Singapore and, where people come to do two things - skydive and the Tongariro Crossing, both of which are subject to weather conditions, so you find a lot of people just sitting around waiting and waiting and waiting. Right, firstly skydiving. Taupo is probably the cheapest place on the planet for this - 140 bucks (for everyone at home that's 50 pounds). So in a moment of madness whilst sitting on the magic bus on the way to Taupo I signed up to do one. Got up on the morning of my dive and could not eat I was so scared but hey I thought, I'll do it if the weather holds out. 10 minutes before I was due to leave I had to phone the skydiving company to make sure I was going and so with my fingers crossed I phoned only to be told it was cancelled due to weather (yeeessss!!! - the fingers worked) and when asked if I wanted to re-book I made up some excuse about not having enough time. I know I'm a chicken but would you throw yourself out of a plane at 12,000 feet even if strapped to a fit young kiwi male? Ok, the Tongariro Crossing. This is considered to be New Zealand's best short walk through forests and up to volcanic peaks to the top of Mount Tongariro. It's 17ks and takes the average person anything between 6 to 8 hours to complete. And it's the main reason I went to Taupo. However when I get to Taupo I'm disappointed to find out that for the past week, due to weather (for a change) the walk has been cancelled. So for a couple of days at 2pm I run down to the tourist information centre for an update then after two days of waiting around with everyone else we're finally allowed to go up the next day and I book the bus for myself and Leana (my room mate in Taupo) and at 5.30 the next morning we set off. That's me, Leana and about 1,000 other mad souls. And, it was bloody amazing. Actually after all the horror stories I'd heard about this walk - people doing it on hands and knees, getting blown off the top of the red crater in strong winds (it's quite a narrow track at the top), getting lost on the track and spending hours trying to find your way back etc., - it was not too bad apart from Devil's Staircase a 50 minute climb up to the top of the crater of the volcano which was a killer. But boy was that climb worth it - in snow, hail, strong winds and freezing tempretures I made my way up the staircase to be met with one of the most stunning views I've seen whilst in NZ. It was a little foggy to start with but, as we descended a little the fog started to clear and we got great views of the Emerald Lake, and other volcanic lakes and sat in awe looking around us whilst eating our sarnies before starting back on the track. So it took me an impressive 6 hours and 10 minutes to walk the Tongariro Crossing and when I arrived at the finish via a beautiful rain forest I'm soaked, freezing, knackered and extremely elated. I honestly think this is one of the best day trips I've done on my travels and if you're ever in this area, make sure you do it. So after resting the next day with a leisurely stroll to the Hukka Falls, I took the magic bus again on Good Friday and found myself here. Still aching a bit from the crossing I spend my first afternoon in the hot water Polynesian Pools which overlook Lake Rotorua and are so, so relaxing but make you pink and wrinkled (and smelly). Then yesterday I visited Wai-o-tapu thermal park which was even more smelly than the town but pretty interesting and I watched the famous Lady Knox Geyser blowing up (with the help of soap powder) then last night I visited the Tamaki Maori Village for a traditional concert and Hangi (Maori dinner). Actually this was a bit of a wate of time, it was really, really touristy and as I don't eat meat the Hangi was not for me so I was given vegi spring rolls and rice (might as well have just gone to the local chinese takeaway, found a bench to sit & eat and watch drunk locals dance in the street). Today Rotorua has a big carnival - the Jambalana - which is a celebration of latin music and for the past few days they've been giving free dance lessons in the street to those that want to join in (see above - drunk locals dancing). So, the town has a bit of party feel to it today and I'm going down to see the parade and join in the street party later (but unless I'm drunk, I'm not dancing). Well take care everyone and enjoy the spring weather there whilst I'm just getting colder on the otherside of the world. Mind you with Groundhog Day approaching fast, things could change very quickly....