This morning I dreamt of rain. Unfortunately this seems to have been inspired, as dreams often are, by reality, and I awoke to the sound of rain battering against Wendy. This noise also prompting a loo trip, I stepped out and was immediately battered by what was more than just a 'sea breeze' - I was very wide awake pretty quickly!
We shortly left the campsite and coast, going inland for some shelter. Stopping off at McDonalds for some free wifi, I soon learned that I should listen to my aunt. Her single piece of advice before I left was: "Make sure you go to Burger King for wifi, McDonalds' is rubbish". And it really was. Half an hour later and having struggled to load more than two webpages, we left, bound for Kiwi 360.
Described as 'New Zealand's top (only) Kiwi Experience', their own leaflet had not managed to entice us into their Kiwi train tour. However, we were keen to have a gander at some actual kiwi plants so we parked up and had a nosey. To me, kiwi plants largely resemble mass production vineyards, with the fruits hanging in bunches.
Leaving the site, past the giant kiwi slice which is visible from a fair distance around, we aimed ourselves for Okere Falls. The ambience of these was slightly ruined by the whoops and screams of multiple white-water rafters, but there were some impressive falls to be seen nonetheless. We walked right up to the trout pools at the top, where, adequately soaked, we turned and gratefully returned to Wendy.
After the disastrous McDonalds trip earlier, our next stop was the 'i-Site', or tourist information centre as I know it, in Rotorua. Leaving Wendy expertly parked outside, we entered the i-Site. It was very busy, given it was a Sunday, but most of the other people there looked as sodden as we did, so I suppose it may have been a sort of refuge for those unlucky enough not to have their own Wendy-type home. The wifi here was actually usable, and after a quick spot of research we decided the next stop would be the Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland.
From its name and my initial research, I had thought this was a place where kids might meet Father Christmas - but actually it was an intriguing and very smelly scenic geothermal reserve. Colourful pools, caves and waterfalls could be found in abundance, and plumes of steam littered the landscape. Particularly cool were a fluorescent yello sulphur pool, and a bubbling pool of blue water underlain by bright orange rock. We also poked our noses (before holding them) near some mud pools, which made the slightly gruesome sound you'd expect of a bubbling viscous fluid.
Back in our dry haven aka Wendy, we were glad to head to our campsite and the chance to be more permanently dry. This was not to be however, as the owner proudly told us of the kayaks that were freely available for our use. The campsite itself was based next to a pretty stream, fished for trout, and very close to a lake. I couldn't resist the opportunity to take a kayak along the stream all the way to the lake, watching the locals feed ducks as I paddled by (to help with their toilet training, apparently...). The rain finally decided to let off too, making way for a happy evening in Waihiti.
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