Archive for the 'Rotorua' Category
What Was I Thinking?
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 21, 2010 at 1:26 pm
I am not sure what I was thinking when I said yes to crawling into a big plastic ball and getting tossed down a hill. I mean, really…what could I have been thinking? Of course Tourism New Zealand is one of our all-time favourite clients. So jumping off bridges, getting tossed down hills, etc. is fine by me. There isn’t much I wouldn’t do for them. (Oh no! I can just see them planning my next ADVENTURE, now that I have said that!)
I arrived at ZORB® and the young, friendly team quickly got me ready to roll. ZORB® is a New Zealand company that invented the ZORB® globe and the sport of ZORB® globe riding.
I don’t know about anyone else, but with things like ZORB® globe riding and bungy jumping there is a moment of absolute freaking PANIC. I am a little bit claustrophobic and the thought of going into that ball through a little entrance made my heart pound and my palms sweat. Add to that, I all of a sudden realized that they were going to push me down the hill in this big round thing! Add them up and you have the stuff that nightmares are made of!
I looked at the young man who was going to give me the push and said, “I can’t do this.” He looked right back and said: “Yes you can.” I have to give him a lot of credit. His calm and easy attitude made it easy for me to get over my fears.
I climbed into the ZORB® globe, right into a little puddle of water. It was warm, so that wasn’t such a big deal. And besides, my brain was completely focused on the fact that I was about to get pushed down a hill in a big round ball. Getting wet was just a detail.
This was like nothing I ever imagined. You slip and slide all over the place and yet, you feel completely safe – and terrified – and full of fun all at the same time. As the ball first begins to move, it’s like your entire focus changes and the only thing that exists is you in this little round ball. This space becomes your entire world. And you move all over the place in this ball. I imagine that it’s a matter of physics how you are moved through the ZORB® globe, but when you are doing it, it feels like you are hurtling through a different dimension. Inside the ball it’s just white, but everything is more defined. It’s like the world is moving in slow motion, but at an incredibly fast pace.
When I saw the photos, I thought, “Holy doodle, that’s me in that ball!!! Look at that.”
It’s a crazy ride and definitely worth doing!
A Step Back Into Rotorua’s History
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 20, 2010 at 2:12 pm
Yesterday afternoon, I had a great tour with Elite Adventures. Led by Huru, a knowledgeable Maori guide, we went 24 kilometers southeast of Rotorua to Buried Village of Te Wairoa. Here is where I learned about the 1886 eruption of Mount Tarawera, which killed more than 150 people.
We also saw the Blue and Green Lakes, which are spectacular and have strong cultural significance to the Maori people.
It was a very interesting and very emotional place – one that made me feel more connected to Rotorua.
My Friend Ann
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 20, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Ann Parker
I used a photo for TRENZ last year that had me in a helicopter with a headset on. (It’s also the image on the Twitter account.) A few months later, I got an email from someone that said that her boss had pointed out the photo and thought we looked alike. After going back and forth for a bit, it turned out we have a fair amount in common. We’ve been friends on Facebook ever since.
Me
My Facebook friend, Ann Parker, and Dorien Vroom, her boss and the woman who started this whole process, came and met me for a drink last night. It was great fun. Ann works with Dorien, a partner in Volcanic Air Safaris, so we have tourism and a love of travel in common as well. It also means that I will get to see Ann and Dorien at TRENZ too, which gives us more time to catch up.
Ann is one of those people who come into your life and you feel like you have known them forever. One of the great things about travel is the people that you get to meet. Sometimes it might just be a brief exchange with people, others you might spend a bit of time with, and others become friends for life. I have a funny feeling that Ann is the later.
New Zealand is always full of surprises, amazing moments and new friends.
A Kiwi Encounter…Did He Just Flirt With Me?
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 20, 2010 at 12:44 pm
Yesterday was a very busy day. First stop, Rainbow Springs. This is a wildlife park with a strong focus on conservation. It’s also an award-winning tourist attraction with great features including kiwis, tuatara, sheep, and native birds. It is New Zealand’s only “open to view” kiwi hatchery and rearing facility.
The Kiwi Encounter at Rainbow Springs was very interesting. We learned about the challenges that the kiwi bird faces in the wild and how Kiwi Encounter is helping to keep the funny little bird from extinction. There were once millions of kiwis living in New Zealand. Today, that population is declining so rapidly that they could be extinct by 2015 – that’s not very far away.
Save the Kiwi is a big part of the BNZ Kiwi Recovery’s Operation Nest Egg Program managed by the Department of Conservation.
We were walked through the process from when they receive the egg to when it is released back into the wild (to its papa kiwi) at six months old. The best part was that we got to go into a special area and see three kiwis in a recreation of their natural environment. One of the birds, Victor, was really charming. He was full of life and had lots of energy. He kept running back and forth right in front of me, drinking water and looking for bugs. I swear he looked right at me several times and was flirting with me!!!
Kiwis are interesting birds, and while I have seen them several times in photos and videos, seeing them in person is something very special. They are really unique looking and have odd little movements and mannerisms. (Can a bird have mannerisms?)
The kiwi is New Zealand’s national icon and below are a few interesting facts that you might not know:
- Kiwis are flightless.
- They are burrowing creatures.
- Kiwis have loose, hair-like feathers.
- They have more mammalian features than any other bird.
- Kiwis have large ear openings.
- External nostrils are found at the ends of its bill.
- Kiwis fascinate scientists!
P.S. – While I did find a kiwi boyfriend, Kiwi Encounter does a fun thing with Photoshop to make it look like you’re holding a kiwi. Check out the image above, all the birds were Photoshopped in.
Click here to see more images.
Arriving In Rotorua
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 19, 2010 at 4:55 pm
After a full day touring the countryside and checking out glowworms, we arrived in Rotorua.
The Rotorua district is located on the southern shore of Lake Rotorua, in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a population of approximately 53,000 and about half are Maori. Rotorua is one of the original tourist destinations in New Zealand. It has been welcoming visitors for more than 200 years.
As soon as you arrive in Rotorua, you know it, as the air smells different here. The scent of sulphur in the air is characteristic of the area. Here there are spouting geysers, boiling mud pools and warm geothermal springs.
Rotorua is the heartland of New Zealand Maori culture, and visitors have the opportunity to experience their warm spirit.
Although most of the Maori population lives in the urban areas, there are about 35 marae (meeting grounds) in the Rotorua district.
We’re staying at the Heritage Rotorua and located in the hotel complex is the Pohutu Cultural Theatre. Here we saw a traditional Maori show and enjoyed a feast.
The show was exceptional and interactive. I started with a glass of a NZ Sauvignon Blanc; I figured you would expect no less of me! And then we were offered a mouth watering hakari (feast), which included the freshest produce from the whenua (land) and moana (sea). Our hakari was cooked in infused steam, which has been done by local Maori for generations.
After dinner, a cultural performance group took to the stage to perform a world famous haka. This is dramatic and engaging and the group was exceptional as they gave us a breathtaking glimpse into the Maori culture. They shared legends and traditions through song and dance, traditional weapons display, poi and stick games.
It was a great night!
Click here for more images.
