June 6 & 7

Josh says: On our way to Tauranga, it was kinda boring, but we saw a lot of sheep, cattle and other livestock. To prevent boredom we played our various screen items, and Burke navigated. When we got to Tauranga we stayed in a hotel called Harbor City Motor Inn. It had some free wi-fi that mom and I used. Then we went to a nice Italian restaurant, where I got a salad and garlic bread, and mom and Burke had Fetticine Pollo (cheese chicken). The next morning we got some breakfast at the Sunrise Café and they served free ketchup (unusual in New Zealand). 

Then we set off to Mount Manganui, a beautiful mountain touching the sea that sits at the entry of the harbor to Tauranga. Then we collected some beautiful shells like scallops, pupua, and snails, on some outcropping of rocks that was on a trail that went around the bottom of the mountain. We didn’t try to take the trail that would take you to the top of the mountain- it looked pretty steep. Around the rocky and shelly outcroppings (the volcanic rocks surrounded the mountain’s base where it touched the sea and the waves crashed up on the rocks bringing millions of shells around the rocks) there was no sand unless you dug below a huge layer of shells.

 On our way back from Mount Manganui, we took a bathroom break, and while mom and Burke were in the bathroom, I turned on the outside shower and the wind blew the water on me and I got soaked. On our way to Rotorua it drizzled a bit but there were many sights to see, especially Kiwi 360 a Kiwi (fruit) growing facility with a giant climbable kiwi statue in front of it. One side was golden, and one was green, because they grow both green and gold kiwi fruit in New Zealand.

Burke: After Kiwi 360 we drove Rotorua. We found a Top 10 Park to stay in and soaked in their mineral pool. Once we got settled in we went to a place that served take-away Chinese Food and Fish and Chips, so I ordered the Flounder and Chips assuming that it would be strips of flounder, no. It was a whole flounder. They took the flounder and threw it whole into the deep fryer. The next day we went out and saw the sheep show at the Agrodome where, at the sheep show, Josh got to milk a cow and I got to feed bottled milk to a baby lamb. 

Then we went to a place called Rainbow Springs where we were able to see some native NZ wildlife and actually see some live Kiwis (The animal.) The last thing we did yesterday was the Luge on the mountain. The Luge was a cement track on the mountain on which you ride a kart down. We then went back to the camp and had a microwavable dinner.


The boys didn't particularly care for the sulfury smell of the geothermal activity in Rotorua and were even less interested in seeing the smelly pools and mud pits, but it is a unique place. We're heading to Christchurch by plane today, so we'll finally get to see George after a full month apart and we'll update you on more of our adventures from the South Island soon! Cheers! *we're picking up heaps of kiwi lingo!*