Around the World in 112 Days!: ROTORUA TO AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

Breakfast Cruise: As planned, we started our day dirt early. (I can sleep when I’m dead, right?) We arrived at the Lake Rotorua Wharf at 8 a.m. The office wasn’t open, but we followed a group of Koreans on the “Lakeland Queen” paddle boat and joined their one-hour breakfast cruise around Lake Rotorua. It was slightly lame, and slightly cool. The weather remained intermittently rainy during our stay in New Zealand, but we didn’t let that get us down, or slow us down! By the way, they let us onboard the boat, even though we hadn’t paid. They said we could “pay later” (when we were done). The hotel manager did the same yesterday, since we were so tired. Where have these days gone, when people could trust one another in this manner? (Of course, we paid both.) Just wondering . . .

A “Taste” of New Zealand: The Agrodome: Following our early-morning sojourn, we drove a short distance to the “Agrodome”, where we participated in two quintessential “kiwi” (New Zealander) activities: a “sheep show”, followed by a “farm tour”. Both were interesting, even if off the “beaten path” of what I might otherwise do. The sheep show featured 19 species of sheep, demonstrations of sheep-sheering, sheep dogs, cow milking and other “farm” follies. A tractor led our “tour” of the farm, an interactive experience in which we got to feed Alpacas, emus, ostriches and even buffalos! It was unexpectedly fun! We also got to taste “kiwi juice”.

From there, we headed to the “Skyline Gondola” for a view – as good as it could be, given the rainy, foggy weather.

FOR BOB/LESLIE: The next stop on our self-made tour took us across the street to “The New Zealand Caterpillar Experience”. We made this stop with my brother, Bob, and his wife, Leslie, in mind. They met (and eventually married) while working for a Caterpillar subsidiary, Solar Turbines, in San Diego. These are for you guys:

For our final stop in Rotorua, we visited Te Puia, a local geyser. They wanted app. $65 each to enter, so we observed the place from a nearby bridge:

We headed back to Auckland, where we can easily board our airplane to Sydney tomorrow. We stopped to view the iconic New Zealand Harbor Bridge (and harbor itself) and had a (mediocre, at best) dinner and drinks at its Sky Tower – the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere. Having been to the Stratosphere in Las Vegas, the New Zealand version was a disappointment. Its seating and appointments were decidedly “café” rather than luxurious; Denny’s came to mind. They charged us $30 to valet park our car, in spite of literature stating that they’d cover the parking cost. The cocktails were watered-down and overpriced. I never got the glass of wine that I requested with my dinner. They served Bill’s appetizer, without bringing out my “starter” (salad). Dinner itself was so bad (lamb overcooked, full of grizzle) that I didn’t eat it (and my waiter never asked how everything was). Yet, they charged us nearly $200! I do NOT recommend wasting your time or money on the Sky Tower dining venue/s in New Zealand! They haven’t got a clue how to earn the exorbitant prices that they charge!

Around the World in 112 Days!