New Zealand

For the last 4 days of our trip, we stayed in Waitomo, New Zealand.

HeRoos learned to drive on the opposite side of the road. There were only a couple times my heart skipped a beat. He did really well and it was definitely worth renting a GPS to help us find our way around.



I had no idea how amazing New Zealand was! Every where we went, we were surrounded by beauty. It was the end of their winter time so things were cold & rainy but still breathtaking. We enjoyed the slow place of the country.





We stayed at the Somersal Bed & Breakfast. These were our hosts, Jenny & John. We had such a nice time visiting with them. They were so kind and gracious, we felt like we were staying with relatives.



This is Jenny & her sister who was visiting from Auckland.



The next few pictures are taken of the acres of land at the Bed & Breakfast.













We drove to Hell's Gate & it sure smelled like it ! :) I soaked in a mineral bath & had a massage & mud facial while HeRoos chose to look at the geothermal springs & erupting geysers. He doesn't know what he is missing.



This was the drive on the way home. We stopped at a cafe for lunch.










The Latter-Day Saint Temple in Hamilton.







This day was probably the highlight of our trip. We went on a hike in the rainforest and then abseiling in caves.









We chose the Haggas Honking Holes Adventure. We had no idea what we were in for. It was strenuous-we had to climb, crawl, and repel with water sloshing in our faces.





The girl in this picture is looking at "glow worms." It really isn't a worm. It's a larvae that glows because of the poop inside of it. Once it turns into a fly, it lives long enough to reproduce and then it dies. When we turned off our head lamps we could see them glowing all around the cave.



That's me- we had SO much fun!


HeRoos & I getting drenched. There were 2 guides and two other people in the adventure. One of the guides has worked there for 8 years and he had never seen so much rain in the cave. It was moving swiftly all around us, making it difficult to walk & get around.



The mud is supposed to be good for our skin so we gave each other facials.



Our guides were a hoot. They kept us laughing but we also felt completely safe under their supervision.





We were exhausted but it was worth it.

Someday we want to take our kids back to New Zealand and explore even more of the country. New Zealand is now one of my very favorite places.