The 11th-13th in New Zealand

Here is an update on our latest New Zealand adventures! Hope you enjoy reading!

January 11th 

On the 11th Doug and I visited the glow worm caves in Waitomo. There were a few ways to explore the caves but we decided to do what is called "the labyrinth tour". We each got fitted into wet suits complete with hard hats and white rubber boots. Next we were each given a black inner tube and practiced jumping off small water falls with our tube on our backs. I wasn't so graceful at it the first time (Doug said it looked like I gave myself whiplash). Doug went next and made a huge splash (nearly bouncing me out of my tube- which he found hilarious). After that we walked to the opening of the cave. When we first got in we had to crawl around a bit (not recommended if you're closterphobic) and eventually we were in our tubes floating through the cave. The cave was pitch black aside from the glow worms. 

Glow worms live on the ceiling of the caves and look like thousands of tiny neon green dots. Everywhere you look there are clusters of them and they are crazy to see. To be perfectly honest they aren't actually worms. They are larvae (maggots really) and the glowing green color (I thought was so beautiful)....is their poop. The glowing green attracts their prey. In all, they live a very short life but they are beautiful to look at (well their poop is at least, odd). I'm very happy we did the tour. The glow worms were definitely something to see! 

January 12th

On the 12th Doug and I hopped on a kiwi bus to make our way to Rotorua. 

(We have a bus driver named Ben who helps us plan our trip out.)

However, before we did that we went on a walking tour through another cave. The stalactites and stalagmites were a variety of sizes.

 It takes 100 years for them to grow 1 cubic centimeter and if you touch them the oils on your hands can stop them from growing. We saw some formations that were grand in size. 

It's amazing to think how long they have been around. 

We arrived in Roturua at 1:30pm and decided to put our things in the hostel and then head out to go white water rafting. I've been rafting before but it was nothing compared to this. Doug had me talked into the trip which included a grade 5 raft tour complete with a 1 meter, 3 meter, and a 7 meter waterfall drop! 7 meters!!! (What the heck was I thinking!?!?) By the way I hate that everything is in meters here (so confusing- I miss my world being in feet).  

Anyways, Doug had me convinced that I would survive the rafting so I went, got fitted into my gear and got into a raft with 5 other people I didn't know and our raft expert, Matt. If any of you know me well you know that when I get nervous I don't speak. Well, I think I only said three words before we went down the fall (use your imagination to fill in what they were). Anyways, so there I was at the back of the raft with a girl from New Zealand (Doug was at the front with a rather large man). I thought for sure our boat was going to flip or I was going to fall out when we did the 7 meter fall. Luckily I didn't. As instructed when we got close we all sat in the boat, stuck our feet in tight, tucked our heads (my head is tucked in almost every photo) and held on to our designated areas. Before we got to the waterfall Matt so kindly informed us that about 20% of the time someone falls out of the raft because they don't hold on tight enough! I was not about to be a part of that statistic! I held on for my life!! I have never been so terrified ever! I have a fear of drowning and that fear was intensified to the max! We went over the fall and everything and everyone (raft included) was submerged in water (the waterfall smacked and pounded our bodies and raft) before we popped to the top. Seeing we all made it through we all screamed for our victory and laughed ( our adrenaline levels were through the roof!) I was happy to see Doug in the boat as well, but I'll be honest, mainly myself. (Let's face it, he's a much better swimmer than I am- he would have lived.) I was so happy I didn't fall out and I screamed so loud I couldn't catch my breath (whoops).  My body did not know what was going on! We ended the rest of the tour with a few more rapids and fun little swims. 

Moreover, we met some very kind people and the instructors were great people who truly loved their jobs, which made the experience that much better. It's amazing how quickly you become friends with people when you're putting your lives in danger together (weird). We had a blast and hope to go rafting again, possibly in Queenstown. 

After rafting we returned to our hostel and had a celebratory " we're still alive" drink before heading off to our room that we shared with 8 other people. 

Side note: the guy on the bottom of my bed bunk looked exactly like Buzz, the older brother in the movie, Home Alone. 

January 13th 

The morning of the 13th Doug and I walked down to a rose garden near our hostel before boarding our next bus. 

The roses were such a diverse array of colors and the garden was quite a "diamond in the rough" sort of place.

 

Rotorua has lots of geothermal activity going on in the area so the place smells of rotten eggs (sulfur). The roses, however smelled wonderful and my olfactory senses were much abliged.

 The garden reminded me of a scene from a Disney movie (possibly Alice in Wonderland??) 

Next we went for a walk in a red wood forest with massive trees and winding foot trails. 

Later we made a few more stops whilst on our way to Lake Taupo. One was to see some geothermal activity in a random location where mud boils (literally, I'm not kidding). 

It spews out of the ground and makes a weird gurgling noise (kind of like your stomach when it's been deprived of food too long.) 

Doug got close while taking a video and he was nearly a burn victim. Another stop was to see the (world famous in New Zealand-haha) Huka Falls! 

The falls were stunning to say the least. Their bright turquoise water was so so pretty and crisp you would think someone put food coloring in it. 

The scenery at Huka Falls has been some of my favorite so far. 

After seeing the falls we made our way to Lake Taupo which is humongous. The scenery here is beautiful as well with picturesque snow-capped mountains in the distance behind the lake almost as if they are a mirage. 

We swam in the lake and enjoyed watching sea planes fly on and off the water. I feel like the North Island has been super scenic but everyone tells us we haven't seen anything yet. Looking forward to what's ahead :) 

Thanks so much for reading! Hoping you have a great day and find inspiration and happiness through the little things in life. We live in a pretty amazing world, make it a priority to enjoy it!