Rotorua

For the school holidays, we went up to visit Rotorua, a town known for its geothermal activity and also known as RotoVegas, for all the 'bling' activities. Our friends met us there and we shared a house on Lake Rotorua for the week.

There had been a recent snowstorm on high desert rd, the part of the main highway that runs by Mt. Ruapehu. We couldn't resist stopping to have a snowball fight.

Mt. Ruapehu

To break up the 6 hour drive we stopped for the night at Lake Taupo, the sunken cauldera of a supervolcano. Our Wellington friends, the Robertsons, met up with us there for dinner and the lights festival on the lake.

Festival of lights on Lake Taupo

Our backpacker room overlooking the lake

We went to the outdoor hot baths with the Robertsons the next morning. It's a huge hot pool complex with a rope swing. So nice to be warm!

I didn't realize until after taking this photo that we were posed in front of the "don't poop in the pool sign", i.e. a "code brown".

Outlet to Lake Taupo: thundering Huka Falls

Another hour north, Lake Rotorua

The main park in the city is full of (fenced off) hot steam vents and bubbling mud pits. Just your average city park...a colorful bunch of Dannenhaurs and Haleys!

Hot water and steam vent

Sharing a house, playing games and cooking together made it a perfect vacation, despite the 24/7 rain outside. As two American families living in New Zealand we thought it was high time we cooked up a joint Thanksgiving feast.

When the rain abated for a bit, we hit Kerosene Creek, a natural hot water river. I love all the different versions of hot pools in New Zealand-- including hot sand that can be dug into pools at the ocean, and hot rivers.

Mostly, we played all kinds of games. The kids have known each other since we moved here and are like New Zealand cousins. 

We all wanted to do an escape room but it was too expensive. So the adults made up an escape room for the kids. 

Table of clues (coffee not a clue). 

Karen started the game with a riddle.

Clue in the map directions

For the final challenge/puzzle--a room with lasers. The kids had to navigate through to get the right keys to unlock the trunk.

We gave the kids an hour to solve the puzzles and they finished with 30 sec to spare! Apparently when you finish an escape room you write your time and where it was: "Ngongotaha DIY escape room".

All the kids made a daily pilgrimage at dusk to feed the very hungry ducks and swans.

A six hour drive home that took us eleven!