Monday, June 2, 2008

Rotorua Bound

Yesterday, was the 'Queen's Birthday'... a national holiday in NZ. Consequently, most everyone was off work. We went to Mt. Eden, a dormant volcano where we could see both sides of the country and down into the Volcanic Crater. Dewar later told me that he used to ride dirt bikes in the crater. Now you are not allowed to descend it. We also went to the Sky Tower and went to shops on Queen Street in downtown Auckland. We went to Pakuranga and drove by Cheryl's childhood home. Believe it or not, they have not yet recognized her house as a Historic Monument.

Today, we left Rosalie and Dewar to trek 3 hours to Rotorua (approximately 10 hours in Austin time.) Hopefully, tonight, we will be able to upload pictures. Their house is pretty cool. You can pick fejioas, mandarins, lemons, and lots of other things from their yard. They collect rain water for all their indoor water needs. Another NZ oddity... they leave their doors and windows open without any screens to cover them. They don't have the bugs to worry with that we do.

We are currently stopped for lunch in Cambridge, a quaint little village that reminds me of New England. Next stop are the glow worm caves. Hopefully, we will find a motel for the night with internet so that we can upload pictures and so we don't have to sleep in the station wagon!

2 comments:

Becky Spencer said...

Sounds like you are all having a great time! Shawn, we all know that the Historical Monument comment was just your way of trying to make up for your comment about Cheryl's shutter bug! Love to all and enjoy yourselves! Mom and Dad

Scott said...

Shawn, Your friends in Kroger are glad to see that your flight was OK and that you made it safely. Have a great time. Scott