Posted February 29 at 11:48pm local time.

A lot has happened since my last update, so I’ll pick up where I left off and continue to give you an overview of our travels. Be prepared – this is a long post. Oh, and happy leap day!

On Sunday the 17th we attended Cairns Baptist Church because it was within walking distance of the Cairns Central YHA. I met a really neat guy from Switzerland who was there to improve his command of the English language. He was living with one of the families that attended the church and had invited him to live with them while he was there studying. We swapped contact information, and it’s possible I’ll get to see him again when I’m in Europe later this year. After church we went out to lunch with some of the other church members and had really interesting dialogue for a couple hours. We spent the rest of the Sabbath planning and resting.

The next day we headed out to snorkel and SCUBA dive, as detailed in my previous entry.

Tuesday we were picked up and taken to the Skyrail cable car station. Before climbing aboard, we stopped at the Aboriginal museum next door where we saw and read more about their history and culture, including a slanted short film which tried to promote the oxymoronic “noble savage” image. Australia still has problems dealing with the Aboriginals, and more events like Sorry Day aren’t likely to fix them any time soon. The situation is interesting, yet sad, and warrants a dedicated post sometime in the future.

When we did make it to the Skyrail cable car we were treated to a fantastic ride up over the mountains and through the rainforest to Kuranda where we visited a bird aviary and meandered through the shops targeted at tourists. We then took the train down and back into Cairns where we were deposited a block from our hostel.

On Wednesday we got up early and left the Cairns Central YHA to go to the airport where we caught our flight to Sydney. After about a six hour layover – where we made use of the free WiFi – we picked up our connecting flight to Auckland, New Zealand. We wove our way through customs, stocked up on local currency from an ATM, and found a shuttle to take us to our accommodations in the Apsen House in downtown Auckland.

Thursday found us sleeping in and then enjoying the complimentary breakfast served up at our “boutique budge hotel.” After a brief strategizing session we headed off to the Auckland Museum. We first hit up the gift shop where the cheerfully lady gave us over twelve dollars in free post card stamps with the post cards we purchased! The museum had a number of very well constructed, informative exhibits including one outlining each war in which New Zealand participated. We barely made it through the whole museum by the time it closed and we were given the boot.

On the way back into the city to find a place to eat dinner we paused to observe a small crowd and a number of TV cameras at the University of Auckland’s new business school building. Inquiring, we found out that the prime minister was about to arrive for a building dedication ceremony. We stayed to watch her arrive, then spent a few minutes talking to the people who were there to protest the Election Finance Act recently passed by the New Zealand government. After our first introduction to New Zealand politics we chose a Japanese restaurant for dinner where I was able to practice my chopstick-wielding skills on my bowl of ramen noodles. That night we explored the city some more, heading back to the Aspen House via Queen Street.

On Friday we had to vacate the Aspen House because we hadn’t reserved through that night and they were fully booked. While my dad stayed to take care of some business and planning he had to do, the rest of us took the bus through the rainy drizzle out to the Auckland Zoo. Besides the usual animals found in zoos, we saw rare native animals like the Kiwi and the Tuatara.

After reuniting, my dad and I took a taxi out towards the airport to pick up the rental van that will be our traveling companion during our stint in the country. The taxi driver wasn’t very happy because his taxi company had a deal with the rental car company for a flat $25 fee for the trip which the rental car company footed to get their clients to their location. Driving out of the city, then back in, during Auckland rush hour didn’t make the trip worth it to him, and he gripped about it the whole way as he cut off other drivers, blazed down the shoulder on the highway, and consulted his map for shortcuts when stopped at traffic lights. We were reimbursed by the rental car company since we paid the driver out of our own pocket in order to prevent his having to wait for them to come out and pay him. When we did sit down to complete the required paperwork the lady hesitatingly told us that the van they had for us was involved in an accident but suffered only minor siding damage. They didn’t have another they could give us at the moment, but they would have one by Monday and they wanted to swap us then. Even though we were going to be a couple hours away on that day, they still insisted that they would drive down to make the switch.

After receiving the keys to our Toyota van we picked our back to Auckland in the gridlocked traffic where we loaded up our luggage and moved to our new lodging – the YMCA. Most people have at least heard the song “it’s fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A,” and many have probably sang along while gesticulating the letters at the appropriate times, but I doubt many have actually stayed at a YMCA. Well, I’m going on record to say that I thought it was fun to stay at the YMCA. We ended the evening with a trip to the grocery store and dinner at Little Turkish Café where we were subjected to a TV showing a random assortment of music videos from The Talking Heads and Aerosmith to The Fray and Bon Jovi. The food was excellent though.

Saturdaywas spent resting, doing laundry, planning, and making reservations for the future.

On Sunday the 24th we attended the Reformed Church of Mangere. After church we were invited over for lunch by a homeschooling family in the congregation and had a wonderful time at their home. From our time with the Whetton Family we learned a lot more about New Zealand politics, the university system, and the homeschooling network in New Zealand. We were very blessed by their hospitality. They gave us excellent directions back to the highway and we headed on to Wiatomo. We arrived at the Big Bird Bed & Breakfast in time to see Ross, the owner, feed a number of the ostriches they keep and give a short talk about the birds whose brains are smaller than their eyes. Later that evening we made it to the Waitomo cave for the underground tour with stalagmites, stalagmites, and the featured glowworms. We returned to the B&B where we cooked our own dinner for a change.

Monday morning we arose early to receive the breakfast Ross’s wife brought us and greet the rental car company employee who arrived with the undamaged van. After loading up the van we headed a short distance up the road for the Ruakuri Cave tour. We were thankful that we went on the early morning tour, because there we no other people on the tour. It turned out to be a wonderful tour with an experienced guide named Zane who had actually worked on the renovation of the cave tour – digging, drilling, and installing the walkways we traversed. The $2,000,000+ renovation ensured the cave was beautifully lit and easily accessible. We were able to see more glowworms, many so close we could have easily touched them.

After a couple hours in the cave we trekked the bush walk that Zane recommended to us. It was defiantly worth following the trails to the end to see waterfalls, caves, and diverse foliage. When we pulled back onto the road we backtracked to Hamilton in order to hop on the highway towards Rotorua. Driving in New Zealand so far has been very pleasant because every drive is a scenic drive. The first thing we did when we arrived in Rotorua was stop at the i-Site visitors center to book at traditional Maori Hangi dinner. After unloading at the All Seasons Holiday Park we headed off to the hotel where the dinner and show was to be held. Most of the touted Hangi feasts pander to tourists and are held in modern hotel ballrooms built especially for the occasion. What was surprising was hearing hymns like “Amazing Grace” and “Nearer My God to Thee” sung in a Maori tongue as background music before the show. The show included songs, dances, and lots of examples of the Maori warrior’s challenging stance – eyes wide open and tongue thrust outward and down. The meal was a very good buffet which included Hokey Pokey ice cream – supposedly a New Zealand tradition we had wanted to sample. We finally found out what it was all about after numerous attempts at asking locals which usually returned informative responses such as “well… it’s vanilla ice cream with Hokey Pokey in it.” To us Hokey Pokey tasted like caramelized sugar with a butterscotch flavor. The ice cream simply contains small balls of this crunchy and sticky substance.

Tuesday morning we drove to the other side of Rotorua to the Agrodome where we saw nineteen different breeds of sheep, a shearing demonstration, and a sheep dog demonstration. After lunch – the usual fare of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches – the girls decided to relax in the car in the shade while the guys headed up the mountain on a gondola to the luge tracks. The luges we used were not at all like the luges used in the Olympics. They were black, three wheeled carts with shallow depressions for sitting in and spots on either side of the steering handles for your feet. Pulling the steering handle back pushed the wheel down, lifting the front and starting the luge rolling. Pulling the handle back farther lowers the wheel again – but not all the way – serving as a break. The first track we went down was mandatory as the first run. It was called “the scenic course,” so we thought it wouldn’t be that exciting, but it was actually really fun! We rode the chair lift back up and went down again, this time on the intermediate course. We flew down the hills, leaned into the curves, and had a blast racing each other downhill just like the gigantic billboard with all the warnings said not to do. :) My little brother John especially had a blast. In the past he has complained that our family never does anything fun and always spends our time at museums (which must all obviously be boring). Hopefully soon you’ll be able to read about his luging experience in his own words, as it is his current writing assignment.

No visit to Rotorua is complete without visiting the natural thermal springs of the area, so we went to Hell’s Gate Thermal Reserve to see the bubbling, steaming grounds. When we arrived the parking lot was barren save for only a few cars. The only other group there was a Japanese film crew there to film a Japanese model at the mud bath and spa. Apparently thermal spring mud baths are popular with celebrities as well as the general public. The sulfur smell was very strong and some of our party had a harder time dealing with it than others, but it was fascinating to see the scarred landscape and hear and observe the thermal activity as we wound our way along the path which was clearly marked with large warning signs displaying scary words like “danger,” “burning,” and “serious injury.”

I’ll end here and probably just save up for another 10-day overview in the future. A New Zealand photo gallery is in the works too. Be patient – this my holiday you know. ;)