back to back trips

I felt guilty going away and leaving the boys at home, so a day after I got back home from Adelaide, we jumped into the car for a road trip to Rotorua. Man, the TRAFFIC both ways. What should have been a 2.5 hour trip, turned into 3-4.5 hour drives... ugh. I know it's the school hols and such, but sheesh.


The boys call it Roto-ruined now anyway, mainly due to a massive accommodation bungle on the motel's part, which left us in a dump of a place (that the original place moved us to after many, many, many phone calls trying to find a place) , of which we abandoned and got the last, the very last, hotel room in all of town (for a whopping price too, but when teenage boys won't touch the kitchenware nor get into the shower due to the utter filth, we just walked out! I could not even be bothered complaining... ).


Rotorua was packed - I've never seen it so busy! We tried to go luging/up the gondolas three times, but after circling the carpark and seeing queues out the door all 3 times, we left.


But we did go to one of the most stunning volcanic/thermal valleys this morning at Waimangu. It was not the best weather, but we did the 1.5 hour self-touring walk. Incredible, amazing, just stunning. Lots of pics.... This country is just amazing.