/>Downunder 3: Heading north
The third and final part of the sage, in which the fellowship visits the smouldering ruins of the north island.
After a delightful morning boat trip through the Cook Strait, we arrived in Wellington. It being Sunday, most shops were closed, so we continued our journey in the direction of Rotorua. Before arriving there we stayed a night in the vicinity of mount Ruapehu. This was close to the location where Peter Jackson filmed the Mordor sequences for the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As it said on a sign at one of these locations, the giant battle from the first film "Took place in parking lot #5". I believed them.
The north-island is a geological active area, as was apparent from all the hot lakes, geysers, and
other nasty stuff.
We concluded our tour in the Bay of Islands area. From there we went back to Auckland, for the journey home.
Visiting Australia and New Zealand was a great experience, only way too short. You'd need something in the order of four months in each country to really see it all. Nevertheless, both places have left me with a incredibly positive feeling and a hunger to get back there.
(Oh, and you might have noticed, I redesigned restyled again.)