new zealand 2003 - day 5

What a difference NZ$40 can make. Our first night at the hotel was a budget double next door to a room for 4 loud "backpackers" (and I do use the term loosely). We had a fire escape/balcony outside our window which all of the "backpackers" in the hall would stand around smoking on. This second night there was only a "hotel" room available which cost more, but was larger and every detail seemed to have been upgraded. The view of the lake was lovely and our hall was quiet and smoke free. When we checked out in the morning we got to say goodbye to the hotel's namesake, Thomas the cat. There are a lot of cats in New Zealand. While we waited to board our flight, we could see the Remarkables passing in and out of the clouds. Flying back to Rotorua we noted the extensive cloud cover and wondered if it would rain afterall. At the Rotorua airport, we called the shuttle for the Tongariro Crossing, as their service is weather dependent in winter. "Sorry, mate," he told Jeremy. Predictions for rain meant the crossing was a no go the next day. We went into town for some lunch (more fish and chips) and to get our bearings.

We drove to Murupara, near the Whirinaki Forest Park and found a place to stay. The original plan was to camp, but winter nights in a tent encouraged my cold. The Murupara Motel was just what I needed. Apparently, motels have a different meaning in New Zealand than the US. All of the motels we stayed at had kitchens and all of the hotels were like US motels. I should mention that we never stayed in a high-end hotel because, well - that's just a waste of money. We paid a visit to the Department of Conservation (DOC) visitor's center to get a few maps and the weather forecast for the next day (rain rain rain). The Maori ranger urged us to visit Te Urewera National Park too, but we didn't have the time to drive so far. More reason to return to New Zealand. We picked up some groceries at the local market for our dinner that night and had more friendly encounters with the locals.