After our weekend in Welly, we were anxious to have more of a relaxing trip for our next getaway; fortunately for us, some of our new, good friends, R and A, had invited us up to their bach (lakehouse, or “cabin,” for you Canadians) for a weekend. We were excited to do something more in the realm of what we would normally do for a summer holiday – get to the lake!

We had been warned how much Rotorua stinks, so we were prepared for the smell of sulphur in the air. The smell is due to all of the natural geothermal activity in the area. We got out of the car, and soon realized it was not as bad as we figured it would be. Besides, we figured it was a great place to fart, because nobody would ever know the difference! I had to remind Greg that the smell of the air unfortunately didn’t hide the sound of the farting though. 😂

We did a cultural experience on Saturday, at the Living Māori Village of Whakarewarewa (pronounced not at all how a Canadian would read it). We’ve been slowly learning more of how to pronounce Māori letters, and we learned a bit more from our tour guide at the village. Our experience included touring the village, which is still a functioning home to many people, learning the history of the place and the culture, and eating a “Hangi” meal, prepared in the geothermal steam oven underground.

Our favourite part of the experience was the show, in which we saw songs and dances, as well as the famous, “Haka.”

Traditionally the Haka was used to psych the warriors up for battle, both physically and mentally, and to scare and intimidate opponents. (Māori friends, please correct me if I’m wrong on any of this cultural information!) It was an honour to finally get to see it performed, and to enjoy some other songs and dances. They were amazingly talented people, and we loved every minute of it.

We headed out to the bach with our friends after the cultural show, and went out on the boat for the remainder of the afternoon and early evening. Greg tried out “the disc,” which is a round piece of wood that goes behind the boat.

He didn’t try the 2X4 though, which they call “the plank,” as it’s apparently “next level,” and the smaller of the two discs proved challenging enough! I even got out on the biscuit, because I figured, when in NZ, take the chance to ride the biscuit!

We loved “champagne pool,” which was a little geothermal pool along one edge of a small bay in the lake. It has very hot water coming out of a rock in the side, and it heats up the pool like a hot tub. We relaxed in there and had fruit, cheese and crackers! Greg did some cliff jumping with R, and we swam in the lake when we needed to cool down. Greg commented on how surreal the experience was to him, and it definitely was one we will remember!

For dinner we had smoked trout that R had caught that morning, a steak dinner, and wine on the deck, overlooking the lake, next to a fire. We even had some roasted marshmallows!

Our friends took us for a surprise adventure after dark. We hopped in the car, and then walked down a dark road until we saw them… glow worms! I’d been hearing about these bright and beautiful creatures from people in the cellar door and had become quite curious about them, so I was happily surprised to get to see some for myself! They are part of the arachnid family, (Greg wasn’t scared of them though, and even touched one), and they glow in the dark! It was too dark for me to capture them in a photo.

Our day was so relaxing and fun; it had all the elements of a typical getaway weekend at the lake for us, plus so many new, cool, unique to New Zealand elements, and we felt right at home. I slept SO well that night.

Our friends cooked us pancakes in the morning, and after some cards, we went back out for a day on the boat, filled with more picnics, hiking, and watching the girls do silly tricks on the biscuit and swing from a rope into the water, before packing up and heading home.

We stopped to do a short walk to Huka Falls on the way home, as a quick waterfall stop is something one can do in New Zealand!

Overall, we loved Rotorua, the culture we experienced, the feel of the city, and most of all, being at the lake and making memories with good friends.