From Wellington to Rotorua

Although our second week started a bit rainy, the late summer with lots of sunshine became our daily companion. We visited the two cities Hastings and Napier on the east coast of Hawke Bay at the beginning of the week. Known for their beautiful Art Deco buildings, countless wineries, and beautiful long beaches. In Hastings, we took a fun and impressive trip to Cape Kidnapper. Funny, because the tour was done with a tractor and trailer. We guests sat on the trailer on the left and right, and then the bumpy ride went along the beach to Cape Kidnapper. Impressive, because the cliffs are between 400,000 and 4.5 million years old. Initially, it's hard to comprehend these numbers, but when you consider that we humans (Homo sapiens) have been on Earth for 300,000 years, it becomes somewhat understandable. Still, it's incredible how this enormous time allowed the cliffs' differently colored layers to form. Compressed forest soil, sand, shells, algae... At the top of the cape, there was a hiking trail with a great view. Up here is also the nesting place of the largest gannet colony in New Zealand. These seabirds can reach a wingspan of up to 2 meters and dive at a speed of 120 km/h into a depth of up to 20 meters for hunting.

We didn't do a wine tasting here, as we really don't know anything about it, but for dinner, we each had a glass from the region at the restaurant.

To see a beautiful sunrise, we drove up a small hill in Hastings early in the morning. From here, we had a great view of the sea and Hawke's Bay. Getting up early was more than worth it. To our luck, a rainbow appeared as well. We did wonder how that happened without rain, but we simply enjoyed it.

After a short drive, we reached Napier, what a beautiful town. An endlessly long promenade, a campsite right by the sea, and a cozy shopping street. Here, we enjoyed the sun on the beach.

Now it was time to get away from the coast and into the center of the North Island. There is a lot to do at Lake Taupo and the city of the same name. Surrounded by hot springs, we didn't miss the opportunity to jump into a hot pool. The hot spring flowed into a (very) cold river. In between, the water was bathtub temperature, and we lounged around for a while. For the sunset, we took a boat tour on Lake Taupo to the Maori rock carvings. Compared to Lake Constance, it gets pretty wild here, with waves like on the sea.

From now on, it was always following our noses until we reached Rotorua. On the way there, we visited Orakei Korako. A geothermal area with geysers, steaming water, and bubbling mud pools. The unpleasant side effect is the permanent smell of sulfur. Nevertheless, we were blown away by the landscape, which looked like we were on another planet. The stronghold of the sulfur smell is in Rotorua. Numerous steaming waters in and around the city completely fog the visitors. Nevertheless, we strolled through the city, visited a market of wanderers who move from city to city with their mega motorhomes, and visited a popular pub with delicious lunch. The visit to a Maori village was a must, as we hadn't experienced that last time. Kia ora! An evening with tradition, dance, and a hangi buffet. We were shown the waka (canoe) and a group of men rode it across a small stream. Accompanied by torches and shouts. After that, there were some Maori rituals, dances accompanied by singing, and explanations of their weapons, instruments, and tattoos. The buffet was prepared in a traditional way. A large hole in the ground, food in it, cloth over it, and the hot earth does the rest (hangi). To wrap it up, we took a walk to the sacred spring that supplies the village with mineral water. In the darkness, fireflies were glowing everywhere.

The visit to a 3D trick art gallery was very funny, and some pretty funny photos were taken. A short detour to the blue lake and the green lake (sacred Maori lake), followed by a walk through the redwoods, gave us further insights into the beautiful nature.

But pictures simply say more than our text. So here are a whole bunch of photos...