Week 2 in NZ

Whitianga
We went to the 'hot beach' where hot (really hot, boiling hot) water comes out of the sand during low tide due to the local volcanic environment. People dig holes and sit in the sand.
We also took a 35 minute walk to the 'Cathedral Cove' where there is a beach and a huge hole through the rock. It was a very hot day, nice.
During our travels we came across many 'one way bridge'; there is an arrow indicating who has the right of way. It's a very slow process...

Rotorua
We visited a Maori village after having been greeted at the entrance by some rather intimidating warriors!!!We got to see how they practice for battle, cook their food, and are given tattoos.
We also saw a really good show followed by a hangi which is a traditional Maori meal.
We took a gondola ride to the top of the mountain with a terrific view of Lake Rotorua (which is an ancient volcano).
The whole area consists of numerous steam and mud openings as well as some geysers (which gives of a rather fowl smell)
Outside of our room we had a private spa... all the hot water comes from the thermal system.
On our second day, we went to the Polynesian Spa overlooking a thermal crater. There were many small pools at different temperatures i.e. between 36C and 43C; very relaxing, especially since we both had colds.

Taupo
This is the largest lake in NZ and is renowned for its trout fishing.
Once again we had a private spa outside our room.
We went through way too many mountains, up and down and around...

Napier
Region between Taupo and Napier is a huge reforestation area, consisting of many different types of pine trees.
This is the 'Art Deco' capital of the world, with lots of pastel colored buildings/houses. So far is the prettiest town we've seen. We had a very nice dinner of grilled tuna and veggies and of course of good bottle of local Sauvignon Blanc.

Today we drove 325 kms which took us all day to Wellington. (We went through so many little towns with a maximum speed limit of 50 kms along the way). We also discovered, when we went through Carterton town, that the former mayor was the first transgender person in the world to become a mayor and then a Member of Parliament...
We also stopped along the way and sampled some of the local wines which were very good.

Tomorrow we take the ferry to the South Island. We still have approx. 3 weeks left in NZ. Should be fun.