First of all - Rotorua stinks!

OK, that's a slight exaggeration. As it's a centre of geothermal activity, there is a distinct sulphurous note hanging around. You kind of get used to it. It's a bit like the smell that hangs around after fireworks.

This morning, we headed off to Whakarewarewa Thermal Village. It's an actual village with around 30 Maori families living there, just outside Rotorua. The village is built on and around a serious of geothermal springs. There are mud pools, and even a couple of geysers. It's really nicely operated, as it's a family operation. Our guide kept bumping into nephews and brothers, and telling off cheeky kids. It's not cheesy, or invasive, and good value too.

We were shown around, and shown communal hot pools used by the village for bathing, and for cooking. Afterwards, we they put on a 'cultural show', and demonstrated traditional dances, and songs, and of course the Haka performed by the all blacks.

This afternoon, on our way to our next stop over, we pulled in to see 'The Buried Village of Te Wairoa'. A 19th century village that was wiped out by mud following the eruption of Mount Tarawera in 1886. It was a bit crap. It seemed that everything was still buried, and the bits that weren't had long since rotted away. Bit of a waste of time - I guess we were sucked in my the marketing machine. Still - you live and learn!