#33 - More Fun in Rotorua and Taupo

In addition to the Agrodome, Rainbow Springs and Wai-O-Tapo we did a bunch of other really fun stuff in this area.  There is a gondola that goes up the mountain to a fabulous restaurant, The Stratosfare (clever name).  We went at sunset for the amazing views, and gorged on the selection of delicious items on the buffet.  NZ green lipped mussels prepared three different ways.  Lamb chops, leg of lamb, and lamb burgers.  You get where this is going.  Jeff was happy.

But the real reason we went up there was to do some star gazing through their high powered (very expensive) telescopes.  Our guides helped us to interpret the night sky and we saw a very colorful nebula and other galaxies not visible to the naked eye.

One of the reasons we had such a great view is that there is very little light pollution around Rotorua.

This is a photo of the Southern Cross, visible only in the Southern Hemisphere.
Look closely and you can see the four stars forming the shape of a cross, with the brightest at the top right.   If you see more than 4 dots you probably have spots on your phone or computer screen and need to clean it.  

That’s me all bundled up in “loaner jacket” on a chilly night looking into the scope of an amazingly powerful  telescope 

Another first for us was going “Rail Cruising”.  We got into a tiny little railroad car with only four seats.  We were the only ones there that day, so had the little car to ourselves and no one else along  the entire 10 km stretch of tracks.  It self drives and automatically and slows or increases speed as you go along.  The only thing you have to watch out for is cows crossing the tracks in which case you yank on the emergency brake and hope they moooove out of the way!

Miles of unobstructed views and just the clickety-clack sound of the tracks beneath you

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And no trip to this area would be complete without a drive up to the Blue and Green Lakes.  We stood at the lookout point with views to the Blue Lake to our right and the Green Lake to our left.  The signs do a good job of describing what you see and the background.  The difference in color was much more visible than shown on these photos.

 

Blue Lake 

Green Lake 

With so many bees busy making honey around here, there are lots of shops and places to stop to taste the delicious nectar.   Tasted mead for the first time which I learned is made from fermented honey.  It’s not going to replace wine on my table.

Don’t panic.  We did not adopt this cute kid while in NZ.  He just looked adorable in his bee keeper suit and who knows, this experience might result in his growing up to become an apiarist.  (One’s vocabulary expands on a trip like this!)