Last Morning in AucklandAuckland Museum The day is perfect: sunny and warm with a Sunday morning relaxed vibe.We are at the Auckland Museum for opening at 9:00am. It is a great museum with interactive exhibits on New Zealand, volcanoes, Maori culture, animals and New Zealand’s involvement in military conflicts. John and I have no problem passing away a few hours. Auckland Dominion GardensWe next go out into the Auckland Dominion …
Hobbiton MagicHobbiton Another sunny day and we are off at 7:00am from Rotorua to get to our 9:00am tour of Hobbiton. I’m so excited.Hobbiton is the location for the filming of the scenes of “The Shire” in the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) trilogy and then The Hobbit trilogy. The set was actually dismantled after LOTR was filmed and then recreated 10 years later on a permanent basis for the …
In and Around RotoruaWhakarewarewa Maori VillageAnother bright sunny day.We head out to the city centre a check out the Government Gardens. They are stunning in the sunlight. We decide to come back later in the day when the sun is shining on the museum.We next head to the Whakarewarewa Maori Village to watch a cultural performance. This is actually a living Maori village (meaning people live there). The show …
A Geothermal DayOn our way to RotoruaThe day is clear and sunny, I wish I could say the same for the roads. We stop a lot for construction. We are driving the Thermal Explorer Highway.The cities in New Zealand are much smaller than ours and there is so much natural beauty. This is probably because the total New Zealand population is 5.1 million.Taupo and Huka FallsJust before we get …