More of Rotorua

A must do attraction in Rotorua after rafting on the kaituna would defiantly be the skyline and luge. we took the gondola up to the top getting great views of rotorua and its lake and from there we went to the luge. the luge is a three wheel cart that is designed to work with gravity to give a ride in which it is almost impossible to tip, although we did get it on two wheels. they had three tracks to race down ranging from a scenic track through the Forrest to an advanced track where my luck ran out on my last ride causing me to ride a cart with practically no brakes. this was an insane ride down, somehow i managed to
stay on the track.  the last three rides were the most enjoyable as Bryce and I raced each other down getting air and trying to push each other off the tracks. next time we are here we really need to go and spend a day on their downhill tracks which are designed to take you up on the gondola and then you ride the mountain bike tracks down. The picture to the left is all jelly beans in the Jelly Belly shop. I was just amazed to see a whole wall lined with tubes and tubes of jelly beans.

this is part of the pool known as the artist's Platte at the thermal grounds known as Wai O Tapu. since Rotorua is a thermal region there is a lot of volcanic remnants these include; guisers, thermal pools, creators, springs and a lot of volcanic rock, we also saw some terraces. Wai O Tapu had an extremely bad smell like that of boiled eggs, this was from the sulfur and other chemicals from deep in the ground. A lot of the water was at boiling point over 100 degrees. It was amazing to be able to be so close to such a natural wonder. there is a lot of different colours seen in the waters of this park and there is also a huge green lake. The artists Platte and the devils pool were my favorite as one had heaps of different colours and the other one was a bright green.  

grade 5 rafting on the kaituna

Second day in Rotorua and i went rafting. I went with Kaituna cascades, guided by Ben we conquered a grade 5 section of the kaituna river dropping down waterfalls ranging from 3-7m. we had the most adventurist guide as he drenched us in water falls and tipped our boat on a rapid. Our team was the only one to come out of their raft down the 7m waterfall (highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world) although three of us managed to stay in, i got pushed under the water fall and its force but remained in the boat. It was sad to find the ride coming to an end as i would be happy to spend all day rafting. The gorge was beautiful, we were in sort of a canyon with a lot of deep water and quite. The water was surprisingly warm for this time of year to. This was my first time rafting and id defiantly do it again.

Woke up in Taupo today and we just looked through town and went to a 4D movie which really didn't live up to any of our expectations. we then drove on to Rotorua, on the way visiting Huka falls(partly pictured) and stopped off at a mud pool. So all in all pretty standard traveling day

Its still day three and we are staying in Taupo with a beautiful view onto NZ's biggest lake. As I love photography there was no way I was passing up the idea to do a bit of playing around with shutter speed at night. I got a few different results but this one is just to remember the view, which I would happily sit by and watch all night. Its a magical place really, sitting on the edge of water and just listening to its movement. After learning to appreciate the small things in life today, I wanted to make the most of this view because its to beautiful to forget.

Heros of our country

Day three of our family road trip we have been in wellington for the last two days shopping and experiencing a bit of backpacker life meeting great people and experiencing new things. But this; I wanted to draw attention to. We visited the national war museum dedicated to all our soldiers who have fought to keep our people and country safe. Outside of the museum were a lot of crosses with names of soldiers who have died in honer and it was emotional seeing the faces and learning the story's of the hero's of our country. Today seeing this and learning about the fights for freedom that many have battled made me really realize how lucky we are. I am so grateful to not be caught in a world where an invasion is expected at any time. My biggest respect is to the soldiers who have fought for our country and for others in battles famous or unheard of.  Today I really learnt to appreciate the small things.