New Zealand - Day 9 - Riding, Racing, and Roaming...oh my!

Before reading, put on your best Kiwi accent and ENJOY!

'Twas a sad day in Orewa as the students said goodbye to their host families and boarded our bus headed towards Rotorua. On the way we got to stop at BP to experience the Wild Bean Cafe and supposedly the best coffee in the world. Unfortunately, all the kids went to McDonald's while the leaders enjoyed the coffee.

Once back on the bus we continued our journey to Rotorua. We watched a documentary on New Zealand containing the foliage, wildlife, volcanic activity, and geography; which helped us learn more about New Zealand on our 2 hour bus ride.

We made our way to Skyline through Hobbiton where we will be visiting in a few days time. As soon as we arrived we hopped on a gondola and rode to the top of the mountain. At the end of our ride we jumped off and scurried to lunch.

After lunch the students got to luge down the mountain either on the scenic or intermediate route. Upon reaching the bottom you got to ride a ski type lift up to the top. This ride was most enjoyable as the view was spectacular. Once off the lift we meandered over to Tip Top and devoured some hokey pokey ice cream which is sweet as!

We made our way back down the mountain via the gondola and boarded our bus and continued our journey to the Waimangu Volcanic Valley. This valley is the newest geothermic area. Our guide Blake explained about how the valley was formed and how it is ever-changing. He taught us about the rarest plant in the world that is only found in this area and how it is a fern ally. Our last stop along our trail was an inferno crater lake. This is a steaming and typically blue jewel of Waimangu. The lake level follows complicated rhythmic cycles with shallow recessions occurring every few days and/or deeper recessions at longer intervals. The top of the white silica deposit marks overflow level. The lake is highly acidic with a pH around 2.1. The inferno crater is the largest geyser-like feature in the world although the geyser itself cannot be seen since it plays at the bottom of the lake.

After our walk we made our way through the gift shop and onto the bus as we headed towards our accommodations for the night where many of the kids partook in the laundry facilities.  We are looking forward to the hot springs and Mauri experience that tomorrow holds.