Day 11-12

New Zealand Extension

Our last night aboard our Viking Venus, there was a special show put on by a performing Maori women and men.  New Zealand was settled first by Polynesians about 800 years ago.  They are known today as the Maori, and their language, as well as English and sign language, make up the three official languages of NZ.

The group put on a standing ovation performance, and we were lucky enough to be there in the front row.  I don’t mean to scare you, but here is one of my many pictures.

Be sure to check out the faces.

The next day, we were taken by bus to the center of the north island.  It is amazing how much of the island is sparsely populated, yet used extensively for agriculture.  Among the rolling hills was ranch after ranch and lots of pastures for grazing of cattle or sheep.  We had lunch at one of the ranches.

All the food was either raised on the ranch or on other nearby ranches.  I forgot to ask where the ice cream came from, but the flavor was Hokey Pokey, a vanilla ice cream with tiny honey comb pieces.  Our group of 90 had a great lunch cooked and served by very hospitable ranch owners.

I even found a peacock up in a tree on the ranch.  We haven’t seen any live kiwis so far.

We then traveled to a cave famous for the discovery of glow worms.  When I think of worms, I think of gardening or fishing.

It is hard to imagine entering a dark cave and finding thousands of glowing worms on the cave ceiling.  When the guides didn’t use their flashlights, it gave the appearance of the stars in the sky on a very dark and clear night.

We returned to the road to get to the north shore of Lake Taupo, the largest lake in NZ that is located inside the caldera of a huge volcano.  We checked into the Hilton Lake Taupo where we were given a “suite” that is bigger and nicer than our house (minus the guest room) with a balcony and many windows facing the lake!   We are now near Tongariro National Park.  Tomorrow will bring more adventures!