Rain, rain, rain

Someone didn't cross their fingers today: the weather was really bad. It rained almost all day long. And what do you do in a city that has all its attractions in nature?

In the morning, we sat in this cool café with great pastries and listened to a live jazz band.
But around noon we set off for new adventures. Today's destination: Whakarewarewa, a Maori village in Rotorua.
There are several villages like this in and around Rotorua, which are sold as cultural experiences, usually with some geysers. But Whakarewarewa is the only village where the Maori actually live, which adds a touch of authenticity.
The ticket (bought cheaply through bookme) includes a guided tour and cultural performance.
The tour was very well done and entertaining. We started with the correct pronunciation of the village name, which is Tewhakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao. It doesn't fit on a postcard...
Then we were all led through the village. It was quite interesting: cooking is done in steam boxes heated by the geothermal activity. There are a total of 7 boxes in the village and anyone can use them. You can even bake cakes in them!
The bathing water is also sourced from the hot springs. And because the water contains a lot of minerals and stuff, you don't even need shower gel.
There was smoke, steam and bubbling all over the village. But the highlight was the 3 geysers that erupted about once an hour. Next to them was a lake where the villagers actually go swimming. Genius.
A natural walk led a bit into the hinterland and to more steaming lakes and hot pools. My glasses were constantly fogged up because, in addition to the rain, there were now dense clouds. But even though I was practically blind, the field was very impressive.
The one thing that ruined the whole experience was the rain. Eventually, even rain jackets can't keep out the rain anymore and sometimes the wind was really mean from the side.
Soaked, we spent the next few hours in the car and in the library, warming up and drying off.
But we bravely ventured out again. Because we really wanted to go to hot pools, we first went to Kerosene Creek. It's a river that was heated by geothermal energy. It was quite crowded when we arrived, popular with both locals and tourists.
So we tried another river. Conveniently, this one was right next to a huge mud pool, which we could admire as well.
And it was sooooo pleasant in this hot spot, delightful. I could warm up my cold bones there. The mud is also supposed to help with my sunburn, hopefully!
In the evening, we returned to the bus all cozy and watched a movie.
The big problem is that the next two days are supposed to have the same bad weather. No amount of optimism will help: I just have bad luck. I have already seen most of Rotorua, but I would still like to do something.
Wait and see!