| Our last stop (before Auckland) was at a port from which we visited Rotorua, famous for its geysers and other geothermal features. |
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| Our first stop was Wai-O-Tapu - very interesting scenery. You could see the steam rising behind this stream. |
It was definitely an alien landscape. |
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| Their way of saying stay on the trail. This is REALLY good advice. |
By the way, there were no railings between us and the boiling water. |
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| Steam vents and boiling pools have built up formations around them that are both fascinating and repellent at the same time. |
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| The variety and intensity of color was amazing. There were yellows, green, reds, and whites depending on what minerals were present at each place. |
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| Some of the geysers rivalled Yellowstone or Iceland. |
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| Boiling mud pots. |
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| Our second stop after lunch. |
Similar but different formations and sights. |
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| Amazing! |
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Looks like snow but skiing isn't recommended |
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| Unfortunately, the bus broke down (luckily we had seen everything) and we had plenty of time to notice the clever labelling of the bathrooms. |
After unsuccessful attempts to fix our bus, another bus was sent out for us. So after over a two hour delay, we rode back to the ship (which was about 2 hours away). The advantage of being on a ship-sponsored tour: we didn't have to worry that the ship might leave without us. |
| And so we returned to Auckland for our flight back home, having enjoyed our stay Down Under. Thank you for sharing it with us. |