Rotoroua

We did a hop skip and a jump up to Rotoroua. The place is inside a caldera. Why so many people are Ok living in a volcano seems odd to me. There is a slight aroma in the place. Luckily my sence of smell is so off I barely noticed it. There is a real old world charm about it. The Bath House, which is now a museum, dates from the early 20th centuary and was where the rich and famous came to soak in the hot water and mud. They were prescribed various "treatments" which seemd to often involve electricity! 

We didn't get to see the geysers, but we had a wander around the lake, which in parts is a milky colour where the hydrogen sulphide bubbles to the surface. The local park has interesting features like bubbling mud and steaming water. They do make use of it, and we had fun sitting with our feet is a pool of hot water chatting to some other tourists, one of whom was from my home town in Ireland! 

In the evening we went to a Hangii. This is a Maori feast. Here they cook the meat for 4 hours underground. There was a show with singing and dancing, and then we went to a local zoo for some kiwi spotting. For all it is so corny and touristy, I liked Rotoroua. Next time we will see the geysers! 

http://youtu.be/ncnNegWEgvY