Rotorua, Zorbing, & Luging

From February 15, 2008, Friday:
After doing some shopping in Taupo, we headed to Rotorua and had our long-awaited fish and chips for lunch. I am pleased to report that I tried fish and chips… and I enjoyed them! I even had an extra helping of fish.

When we arrived at our “Cosy Cottage” in Rotorua, we had a low-key afternoon – checked out the boiling mud pools, walked to the lake, enjoyed the mineral pools, played Euchre, and had some time to just talk and hang out with our roommates (I stayed with Katie, Kari, and Sara, which was sweet). After dinner, all of us girls had ice cream and Tim Tams, which made for a delightful dessert.

From February 16, 2008, Saturday:
None of us slept very well last night, so we were very tired for a good part of the day. Since my team was in charge of making breakfast (French toast), we had to get up extra early.

After breakfast, we headed to Te Whakarewaretanga o te ope taua a Wahiao (“The Gathering Place” in Maori, Te Puia for short). At Te Puia, we had the opportunity to learn more about the historical culture of the Maori people. While we were there, we had the observed several things:
Geothermal activity – The Pohutu Geyser and the Ngamokaiakoko Mud Pool. Although the mud pools were very tempting, we were told that we could get burned instantly if the mud touched us (it was boiling). The sulfur from the geyser smelled like rotten eggs.
Kiwibirds – the nocturnal, flightless, national birds of New Zealand (also an endangered species)
Haka dance – the famous warrior dance of the Maori people. It was meant to be intimidating toward Maori enemies. In order to appear more intimidating, the Maori enlarged their eyes and stuck out their tongues. Some of us tried to do the same thing.
During the cultural show, several of us girls got to join in on a dance on stage. We were instructed on how to use particular instruments that they use in dance (I forgot what they are called). It was interesting… to say the least.

For lunch, we had peanut butter and jelly at a redwood forest park. Katie and I took a sweet hike afterward. It was lovely!

I was pretty nervous about zorbing, but decided to follow through with what I had already planned on. I had never heard of zorbing before New Zealand. Basically, you roll down a big hill in ball with water in it. It was way fun… kind of felt like a water slide. Sara was my partner – and she very graciously put up with my fears.

After an amazing spaghetti dinner, we went luging, which was so sweet! Luging is kind of like go-carting down a mountain. I wish we would have had more time there… Brent treated us to ice cream afterward. It ended up being a pretty sweet day.