DAY 5 – MURUPARA TO TAUPŌ
After a rainy night, when I woke up in the morning, the sun was shining bright in Murupara. I headed towards the lake to admire the lush greenery that surrounded it. The energy of this area was so strong and positive, that I was inspired to do my Qigong practice. With this renewed energy in the morning, I wandered around the lodge and got to pet a friendly goat as well. Headed back to my hut to get ready for my next adventure.
After bidding goodbye to Nadine, our first stop was at The Kaingaroa Rock Carvings. The carvings were made by earlier occupants of the Kaingaroa Plains, possibly by Te Marangaranga, who were defeated by Tangiharuru and Apa and driven from the area. The dug-out canoe showing in the carvings is the most common subject of North Island rock art. There are various explanations about the depictions in the carvings but we will never know which story the artist intended to portray, maybe it’s the story about the earlier occupants coming to this island on a canoe or it might have some symbolical or ritual meaning.
After admiring the ancient rock carvings and hearing various interpretations from both Ina and Burto, it was time for us to drive towards Lake Taupō.
On the way, we stopped at Waiotapu Geothermal Mud Pool. Seeing the mud pool bubbling in action was a very cool experience. Since the temperature can reach up to 100 degrees celcius, it’s not safe to jump in the mud pool unless you want to become one with mud for life.
A short drive from the mud pools, is the Waiotapu Hot Springs, where we got to relax before moving on to Taupō.
My First Time Bungy Jumping –
We stopped at Taupō Bungy and I decided to jump off the 47 meters high cliff over the lake. I had no idea what to expect, it was spur of the moment decision to do Bungy Jumping. In hindsight, it would have been better if I had done some research about the position of hands and the best way to fall. I wanted to conquer my fear of falling from heights and this was the best way to do it, with the support and encouragement of my tour family. The moment you are on the edge of the ledge and when you look down from high up could be nervewrecking but that didn’t bother me. In fact, not getting proper instructions where my hand position should be and I had to jump, threw me off for a second. After the jump and when I was in the air, I told myself “I am royally fucked.” The descend happens so quick that it was hard to enjoy it since it was my first time doing it. The bouncing up and down, and being pushed from left to right in circles close to the rocks, did make me feel if I was going to crash on them, but nothing of that sort happened. The safety crew in the boat helped me get on it and brought me to the landing area from where I had to climb back up the hill.
It was an experience like nothing I have ever done before. I suppose the best way to conquer fear is to do it multiple times. I was hoping to do more bungy jumping on the tour but I started getting lower back pain the next day, so I’ll have to wait for another trip or I might just do sky diving, which I hear is much easier and doesn’t have so much impact on your back.
After bungy jumping, we checked into the Haka Lodge. My private room was tiny and it didn’t have the bathroom inside it, which was a bummer. At least, the bed was comfy which was a big plus. I have to say that YHA has better individual room accommodation and they provide amenities just like a hotel does, from hot water kettle, tea, coffee and hot chocolate pouches, to soap and shampoo bottles.
Sailing in Lake Taupō –
After getting settled me, met with the group to go for sailing in Lake Taupō. It was very relaxing to be in the sail boat, admire the scenic view, feed birds and enjoy our Pizza and wine dinner. We made our way to the famous rock carvings on the Western Bays.
Mine Bay Māori Rock Carvings –
We also got to check out the rock carvings on the Western Bays of Lake Taupō, which was done by master carver Matahi Whakataka-Brightwell after he had completed his 10-year training period with Māori elders. He came to his grandmother’s land at Lake Taupō to mark the occasion with a significant carving. Matahi decided to carve a likeness of Ngatoroirangi, a visionary Māori navigator who guided the Tūwharetoa and Te Arawa tribes to the Taupō area over a thousand years ago. In recognition of the cross-cultural nature of New Zealand, Matahi carved two smaller figures of Celtic design, which depict the south wind and Ngatoroirangi stopping the south wind from freezing him. The main carving is over 10 metres high and took four summers to complete. The artwork is Matahi’s gift to Taupō. He and four assistants, Te Miringa Hohaia, Steve Myhre, Dave Hegglun and cousin Jono Randell, took no payment other than small change donations from local bar patrons to cover the cost of the scaffolding.
After a beautiful evening at the lake, we headed back to our Lodge. Since I am traveling light, it was about time I did a load of laundry, which would last me for the next 4 to 5 days. While my clothes were getting a fresh spin, I suppose my tired body needed some TLC as well, so I hopped into the jacuzzi, followed by a super hot shower.
DAY 6 – TAUPŌ
Today was a day off for the tour guides and we had a full day in Taupō to do whatever we wanted. Some of the team members had signed up to go for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing early morning. I had opted not to go for this crazy hike because I didn’t have the right clothing and I was more interested in spending time in this cute town. I am so glad that I didn’t go for the hike because when I woke up, I realized that my lower back was in pain.
In spite of the pain, I left the lodge around lunch time to explore this small town, which has a lot of cafes, restaurants and boutiques. I stopped at “The Cozy Corner,” to have a cup of their Dandelion Chicory latte with Flourless Orange Cake. It was nice to just relax and hear the locals chit-chat about their life.
It was cool to see a lot of street art around town.
I headed to the library to use their free wifi and find out if there was a Chiropractor in town I could go to for my back pain. Couldn’t find one that was open but I found, “The Massage Clinic,” where I met Paulette who specializes in the Bowen Therapy, where gentle movements are applied across soft tissue to promote self healing. She didn’t have an open slot but was able to accommodate me in between her clients, when I told her that I was in pain and needed some help. My body felt much relaxed after the treatment and I ended up buying the muscle healing cream which she had made it herself and used during my treatment. I used the cream in the morning after shower and before going to bed, and after few days my back pain had subsided a lot.
After the relaxing massage, I treated myself to a delicious thai dinner at Siam Thai Street Food restaurant. Maybe it’s a touristy town but the food price in this town was not reasonable at all.
Headed back to the lodge to relax and just stay in bed. I suppose that’s what my body needed after putting it through so much since the past few days.
DAY 7 – TAUPŌ TO WELLINGTON
Today was going to be a long drive from Taupō to Wellington. Woke up around 7am to have breakfast, shower and pack my bags, and be ready to leave the lodge at 8am.
Our first stop was at the magestic Huka Falls.
Next, we stopped to admire the snow capped Mount Ngauruhoe.
Taihope Gumboot Throwing – who knew that gumboot throwing can also be a sport! Well, the locals at Taihope surely know how to have a good time. Except me, all of my tour mates participated in the gumboot throwing competition. Since I could still feel my lower back in pain, I decided to just be a spectator and cheer from the sidelines.
Our lunch stop was in a town called “Bulls.” This town is such a Bull fanatic that they have cleverly placed the word “bull” everywhere in town. See it for yourself.
Windy Wellington –
Around 3pm, we finally arrived in Wellington, which is the capital of New Zealand and second most populous urban area with around 400K+ residents. Watching people’s hair blowing in various directions, made me realize that this city is definitely the windy city, not for their winding talks by politicians which Chicago is known for, but due to the strong winds through the Cook Strait.
We had traveled from the north to the southmost of the North Island within the past 7 days, and Wellington sits at the southernmost point on the Cook Strait. It’s a compact city, which has a waterfront promenade, sandy beaches, a working harbour and colourful timber houses on surrounding hills. My favorite was the “Cuba Street,” which had so many quirky restaurants, cafes and boutiques.
We drove first to the top of the Mount Victoria so that we can have a panoramic view of the city. OMG! The wind over here was ferocious.
We descended back to the city center and before going to our accommodation, we drove around town so that Burto could show us where things were and we could explore it on foot at our own pace after checking in.
We were staying at the YHA Wellingon which was walking distance to the promenade, museums, restaurants, shopping and financial district. It was nice to be staying again at the YHA. My room had a nice view of the historic Central Fire Station and Mount Victoria, even had en-suite bathroom and to top it off, the hostel had even placed chocolates on my bed.
Had a quick shower and put on some nice clothes than my usual comfy shorts and t-shirt but it was too darn cold so had to fall back to my super comfy hoodie.
Met Shravya and Dominique in the lobby and we headed to the city center to explore and find a good restaurant for dinner.
Finally, we did find a really nice Italian restaurant which had some nice street views and yummy food.
After dinner, we headed to the promenade to checkout the views before heading back to our hotel.
