Bicycles and birds

6 Bicycles and birds

We picked up our rental bicycles on Wednesday, March 15.  Jet, the dog, did not make an appearance, but we’d already booked based upon them having a dog, so we got the bikes and rode all over. 

We found this really cool tree made from old bicycle parts.  What a great way to recycle them.  Plus, it had lights on it, but we never made it back down in the evening to see it all lit up.

At the other end of town we wandered onto a bike trail that runs through a thermal area.

We were able to ride all over the thermals.  It was rather like riding over a rocky trail.

What a beautiful place.

It was a great day of wandering from one end of town to the other, along bike paths, wooden boardwalks, over thermal areas and town streets.  It was not only fun, but a little exercise as well.  There were only a couple of small hills, so it wasn’t too strenuous. 

We walked off the path a bit.  At a couple of the thermal holes we found wood that appeared to maybe come from a tree, or from the planks they use to make walkways.  We figured that maybe when they'd had an earthquake some of it might have come down and been overtaken by thermal activity.

Looking out, there were thermal pools everywhere. 

We came across a small river and followed the path along it to the other end of town.

Rotorua is a great little town, and I’m enjoying it.  There is plenty to see, good places to eat, and loads of nice people.  This one will be difficult to leave.

We ended up at a restaurant whose name escapes me.  It wasn't our first choice, but the other one wasn't yet open.  What a great this one turned out to be.  I had chicken and venison.  It's served on a hot block and you cook it yourself.  The block was a volcanic stone, and cooked our meals perfectly.  What a super idea.  It was served with steamed vegetables and a Waldorf-style salad and an aoli sauce.  They use aoli a lot, and I really like it.

Stef dropped a raisin and this opportunist grabbed it.  He had to fight off others but managed to eat quite a bit of it before it was taken away.  The birds must live a good life with people dropping food all over.  This place where we were was called Eat Street, and there were a number of restaurants in this little walking-only area.

We had to return the bikes by 5:15 p.m., so we were on time and then wandered some more.  But we needed to get ready for our next great day of exploring. 

This was the in-room thermal pool.  It's totally surrounded and has steps to sit on.  The water comes in through two faucets, and believe me, the hot water is HOT!!!  It felt good on the feet and body ... but we had to leave it tomorrow.

It seems I’m mostly going to bed early, and sleeping hard and long.  Guess I need it.  So off I go.