As we didn't have much time in the country, Jason and I decided to rent a car for a few days. Our first stop was Waitoma. This area contains a heavy concentration of underground cave systems, several open for guided tours. The Kiwis, with their usual adventurous bent, have added an interesting twist to the standard tour: inner tubing down a subterrainean river in the pitch black. And this, so called "black water rafting", is indeed what we did. All I can say is that it was Awesome! Particularly wading knee deep in mud, swimming above my head in ice cold water, and seeing the bioluminescent glowworms hanging from the ceilings.
After the caves, we continued on to Roturua, with a few side trips to see a huge arch (collapsed cave) and an impressive waterfall. Rotorua itself is an area known for its geothermal activity. Geysers aplenty - as well as bubling hot pools, sulfur stench, and hot springs. Had a nice soak melting in 100 degree water, staring up at the stars. We also found a series of excellent mountain biking trails just on the outskirts of town - shhh! Don't tell the hostel owners what we did to their bikes!
From here we continued southwards to the center of the island. We were planning to do one of the classic hikes (or tramps as they call them here). This was the three day Tongariro circuit. We would stay in rustic huts, packing in all of our food. Unfortunately, the weather was not so cooperative. We waited out a day of rain, and met a pair of Germans in the same predicament (Nadja and Pete). The next day looked more promising, so the four of us headed out on the trail. Unfortunately we ended up hiking through one day of drizzle and one day of gale force winds and pelting rain. We were very glad for the gas heaters in the hut, and spent most of the time drying out our clothes over the grate! But the third day was as nice as you could imagine, and made the whole thing worth while. The scenery was the most spectacular of the whole track, with steep volcanic cones, irridescent lakes, craters, and lava flow. A good day, though we were a bit tired at the end of it all.
From here Jason and I split. I would continue on to the South Island, while he would take his time working his way down to the end of the North Island, then on to Fiji and home. I took the overnighter to Wellington, and spent the morning walking around this interesting city. Talking about planned cities: the civic center contains the visitor's information center, the art museum, a second gallery, ticket and event sales, and the public library. Plus they have a brand spanking new National Museum (Feb'98) which totally kicks ass. It's got a bit of many things, and is extremely well presented. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to do it justice - as it was I had to hustle to make my connecting ferry to the Southland. Which I did with at least 20 seconds to spare.
I spent another night in Nelson, then made my way to Christchurch in the morning. Here I rented a car for a few days and headed off to the Banks Penninsula, just south east of the city. The main town here is Akaroa, where they have a funky war memorial. I spent the night at a farm hostel, complete with cows, sheep, fowl, and resident brewmeister. The hosts get up each morning, and weather permitting, take the group out sea kayaking in the harbor. This was actually the big draw for me, and I was psyched to go out for a while. We cruised down the coast, running into a small pod of Dusky Dolphins. For a brief time they surfed around the kayaks before being chased off by passing motorboats. Cool! We paddled into a small sea cave, where there was just enough room to turn the boat around. The best part was the echoing sound of the waves in the cave. On the way back I even got out of the boat and harvested what they call a paua - otherwise know as abalone. Someone had grabbed some mussel from the multitude hanging on the shore rocks and we had a nice seafood snack. After this I took a hike up into the hills to a ridge trail with an incredible end view. A very good day.
The following day I spent working my way back up to Christchurch to catch a plane to Singapore. Christchurch has has a little bit more than a touch of English influence, but was a bit sprawling for me. One of the coolest things was the old stone university campus they converted into artist studios and galleries. Lots of tourist shops, and a big church in the center. There is also a nice big park. I ran across the 100 year old model sailboat racing club going at it - races every weekend!
Not even close to enough time in this country - but I had to meet my grandfather in China. I reconciled myself with the fact that even another month wouldn't be enough time - besides it was turning to fall. The rest of New Zealand would have to wait for another trip.