Christmas Party in Rotorua

The night was... interesting: I had to hide in the bushes twice and of course a car came each time. So, I had to hide behind a car with my pants down. Not the most comfortable situation.

But I made myself cozy on the passenger seat. I had Wi-Fi and a power outlet. Because of my headache, I went to sleep early.
After that, I only vaguely remember things: at some point, my host, Merrick, came back and then went somewhere. Then it rained and Merrick snored.

But I could sleep in until 9 am. Since we both had to go to the bathroom, our first stop was a parking lot with a toilet.
'Coincidentally', this parking lot was the starting point for the mountain bike trails in the forest, which Merrick wanted to try out. Coincidentally...
I was a bit hesitant because the day before I hadn't been very skilled with the mountain bike. But there was no escape...
We also did the Kids Loop first, which was a good decision. It was good for getting started. After that, we only went up one level of difficulty, that was enough.
Merrick said I was pretty good as a beginner, but I'm not so sure about that. Especially since I fell off the bike once and rolled down the hill into the mud (someone charmingly told me I was 'too close to the edge', but I had already figured that out by then). And I had just washed my clothes yesterday!
But it was a lot of fun and the 1.5 hours went by quickly.
Another bonus: the trails took us through the Whakarewarewa Forest, known for its Redwood Trees. Those who have been to California can wave it off, because the New Zealand forests can't compare to the American ones, but the Redwoods were still tall.
Not even five minutes after we came out of the forest, it started raining. Planned or pure coincidence? I don't know, but I was very happy to be in the car.

Did I mention that there's not much to do in New Zealand when it's raining? Even the museum in Rotorua was closed for a long time.
That's why Merrick visited some friends in different stores first, then we went to an art gallery and had a chat with a hot coffee. They had German pastries there!!! Pretzels, strudels, braided yeast bread,... So I had to indulge...
And then, the rain actually stopped! So we drove around the area a bit and visited some sights:
We started at the Blue and Green Lake. Both lakes are right next to each other and on really good weather days, you can see a clear difference. Unfortunately, today was not a really good weather day...
The bottom of the Blue Lake is made of sandstone, while the bottom of the green lake is made of volcanic rock. The different color of the water is caused by the effect of sunlight on the different rocks. Well, simplified.
On the way, there was Lake Tarawera, with a beautiful view of Mount Tarawera. This gem used to be an active volcano 200 years ago, which erupted in 1886 and buried an English settlement with 150 inhabitants. A tiny Pompeii, so to speak. You can visit the Buried Village, but according to Merrick, it's not worth the money. Overall, he doesn't care much for tourist attractions... I'll try to convince him to visit some geothermal parks.
At 4 pm, Merrick was invited to his company's Christmas party. It took place in an entertainment center: a building where you could play mini golf, laser tag, or go bowling. There were gaming stations, a separate area for children, and of course a cafe.
It was a private event and all guests could use some activities for free (because they were all damn expensive). Among other things, bowling, so I played bowling with quasi strangers all evening.
Well, almost the whole evening, because there was a buffet the whole time, consisting of french fries, pizza, and other unhealthy snacks.
I haven't eaten so unhealthily in a long time!

Full and exhausted, we finally went to Merrick's housecar in the evening. He lives about half an hour outside of Rotorua, in the middle of nowhere.
The car is located on the private property of a friend. He used to run a café there, but it closed because it didn't fit with the working hours.
There's not much space in the car, but there's a TV at least!
Showers, toilets, and the kitchen are outside, but I hardly mind anymore. It's kind of comparable to camping or a hostel.
Then Merrick put on a movie (Star Wars 8), but he fell asleep after 15 minutes. Unfortunately, I still wanted to watch the movie, otherwise I would have done the same...
Besides, I had to brush my teeth and walk the looong way to the toilet. How exhausting...
I know, I know, today wasn't so exciting for you. But I had a nice day.
Hopefully, the weather will hold up in the next few days. It doesn't have to be super sunny (I still have this sunburn), but please no rain. Otherwise, there's not much to do, and there's still so much to experience here!
So fingers crossed!