New Zealand - Day 12

November 14, 2010

Today was a great day! After leaving our cabin this morning, we drove a short way north to explore the Orakei Korako Cave and Thermal Field. They took us on a boat across the lake to the base of the trail head. There, we walked around on a bunch of wooden walkways that took us all over the bubbling, steaming landscape. The ground was streaked with bright green algea and other yellow, orange and white stripes. The whole area smelled of sulfur and was surrounded by a forest of giant ferns. There was also a big cave with bright turquoise water at the bottom and a bubbling mud pool. It wasn't quite as visually stunning as we were expecting but it was still pretty interesting.

Elephant rock. See its face and trunk?

After that we drove north toward our next destination - Waitomo. The landscape on our way up there was awesome. Beautiful green hills and big trees! We felt like we were driving into The Shire - which was very appropriate since we would be sleeping in a hobbit hole that night!

That's right - we were spending the night in the Hobbit Motel at Woodlyn Park.It's a crazy boutique motel run by Billy Black the record-holding sheep shearer. He has not only created a replica of a hobbit hole from Lord of the Rings, but he's also fashioned hotel rooms out of an old train car, boat, and airplane! He also hosts his "Kiwi Culture Show" every afternoon where he gives demonstrations of sheep shearing, wood chopping, and even blows up a log! Quite an eccentric guy... As you can imagine, we were super bummed to have just missed it. Not. ;^)

We honestly had no idea what to expect from this place. But the hobbit hole is beautifully landscaped on the outside with flowers and plants, log patio furniture, grass growing on the roof, and yes - it has the iconic round windows and door! Inside it's pretty plain, but that's fine with me. As I look out the round windows at the bright green hills across the valley, I truly feel like I've stepped out of the 21st Century and into Middle Earth! =^D


Derick and Lisa had reservations to go tubing through the Waitomo Glowworm Caves with the Black Water Rafting Co. at 3:00, so James and I dropped them off at 2:45 and then proceeded to the the Otorohanga Kiwi House to see some real kiwi birds! We felt like this was a must during our trip to New Zealand and were so glad we went! This place was a wildlife park with all kinds of native New Zealand birds. But the big attraction is the big indoor enclosure where you can see the nocturnal kiwis during the daytime. We weren't allowed to take pictures in the dark room, but we still had fun seeing these awkward, fuzzy little birds hobble around on their large feet. One of the managers followed us in and told us a lot about the kiwis, which was an unexpected perk. Their eggs are HUGE - almost as big as an ostrich egg! They balance out the parenting duties though. After the female pops that thing out, the male sits on it till it hatches.

After we got through the kiwi enclosure we walked quickly through the rest of the park. We got some great pictures of the many beautiful and unique birds out there. Normally I don't care much about birds and kind of think they're a waste of perfectly good space in zoos. But somehow the special connection these creatures have to this beloved land has increased their appeal.

We couldn't stay long because we wanted to get back and take a short walking tour of the Waitomo Glowworm Caves before they closed. We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the caves so I borrowed these images off of the internet. And honestly, I didn't mind so much because it was awesome! Our guide was a Maori woman, and she took us down lots of stairs into the limestone caves - pointing out formations and things as we went along. The caves were much more beautiful than I expected, with exquisite white stalactites and stalagmites clinging to the soaring roof. The largest chamber, appropriately named The Cathedral, is an incredible acoustic space. Apparently they have an annual concert in there, as well as weddings and special events. To demonstrate, our guide turned out all the lights and sang us a Maori folk song. She actually had a really good voice, and the way the ancient words reverberated off of the walls sent chills down my spine.

After looking through the caves, we descended into the lowest chamber and climbed into a big rowboat. Then the lights went out and we floated along soundlessly on an underground lake, staring up in awe at the thousands of blue twinkly lights overhead. It was pitch black in there except for the glow of the glowworms, so we almost felt like we were under the night sky. What an incredible experience! Definitely one of the coolest things we've done so far on this trip!

This is what they look like up close.
Tons of little ropes of glowing mucus!

After we picked up Derick and Lisa we went out to dinner at one of the few restaurants in this small town. It was called Huhu and served more great local cuisine. Lisa and I both had the asparagus and zucchini soup - incredible! Definitely a great way to end the day.