Dodgy Geyser!

It's been a day of firsts and pleasant surprises. As we're in the area of so much geothermal activity we went to Wai-O-Tapu to see what it was all about. First up was the geyser above - Lady Knox Geyser - which erupts at 10.15am precisely, thanks to some added soap! After man's intervention on that front we could be forgiven for a certain amount of scepticism for the sights to come, but in reality they were amazing. Now my knowledge of geology is virtually non-existent so it's over to Stan and Edward for a quick lesson on our return. What I do know is that the landscape created by so much underground activity is nature in the raw. Like a prehistoric film set in technicolour. And there was a Champagne Pool bubbling away too!
However the best thing for us was the mud pool which wasn't part of the area but which mesemerised me so much we stayed for ages. You could hear the mud bubbling, gurgling and plopping before you saw it. And then little mounds in a trembling lake suddenly erupted spurting out great grey plumes. It made me laugh and it was entrancing.
Just as we had to see kangaroos and koalas in Oz so we had to track down the Kiwi in NZ. Sadly it is now endangered so we went to a native wildlife place to see one. Now I'm a bit scared of birds but this one is very cute: fluffy and big and unable to fly, snuffling around in the dark with its long beak. I'm glad we saw one.
On returning to Rotorua we had a stroll around the lake and what a surprise that was. Away from the town it was a real haven of wildlife. I've never seen so many swans before, black ones too.
It's been a real day of contrasting landscapes. A good day. We head off for Christchurch tomorrow. It's been a week since we last went on a plane - and that's a long time for us!