Cheese the Bus Driver and other tales of New Zealand

Day 7 + 8

Yesterday morning we actually had a chance to sleep in for a change. Usually the Kiwi Experience bus leaves quite early. Best night sleep I reckon I had during this trip. The town of Waitomo is really quiet so it was really peaceful and relaxing actually. A nice change from being situated only a couple meters from the backpackers bar a couple nights earlier.

Before we left Waitomo we went on the same walk as the previous day for the people who missed it while they went on a caving adventure (which I passed on – a bit too expensive for my taste). I really enjoy the short walk actually. Very pretty – it reminded me of a jungle a little bit and the caves are nice cool retreats especially that morning when it was really humid and muggy.

After our Ruakuri hike our driver, Cheese (yes, he calls himself Cheese) insisted on taking us to a rabbit shearing demonstration. He claimed it was so hilarious you would “piss yourself.” Cheese also stressed that the rabbits are not treated in a cruel manner and it is not as bad as it sounds or looks. So we went to The Shearing Shed (one of the few buildings in Waitomo) for a little free show. When we entered the room a big fluffy Angora rabbit, Brandy, was awaiting her fur cut. The moderator explained to us that these rabbits need to be sheared up to four times a year otherwise they could die from the heat.

The next part did look kind of cruel and looking around at the faces in the room, there was a mixture of horrified, laughing and not-sure-what-to-think looks. The lady doing the shearing tied the legs of the rabbit and so it stretched out and it look really uncomfortable for the rabbit but the moderator assured us that this process is not cruel and that they had been approved by some humane association, making it alright… I guess. Then they went on with the shearing. So much fur came off that rabbit, it was unreal! I will say that it was an …. interesting thing to do, I guess. The rabbits were cute though. Really puffy – like a giant cotton ball with ears sticking out.

After departing the Shearing Shed, we made way for Taupo (pronounced toe-pour). Taupo has a lot of outdoor activities but unfortunately the two days I was there, it was raining and windy so there was not much we could do. People who wanted to go skydiving were disappointed when that was cancelled. Taupo has the largest lake in Australasia. It can actually fit Singapore into it! There are a lot of volcanoes around and yes, they are actually active. I really wish I had more to say about things I did in Taupo but alas, we cannot change Mother Nature. Plus it might be for the best because this is the first rain in about two months that this area has seen, so they did need it. I did manage to go for a bit of a walk along the lake front to snap some pictures before the rain and treacherous wind hit.

The night we arrived in Taupo we hit the new bar below the hostel. After listening to loads of early 90s pop music, which my hostel roomie and I reckon only just arrived here in New Zealand, we thought it might be a good idea to check out the Irish pub around the corner. A great idea it was. It was really cool and actually worn in – as if you could smell the musty smells of cigars smoked there long ago before a smoking ban and beer being spilled on the floor. Ah, bottle that scent – Eau de Irish Pub. Ha ha. Anyway, there was a young bloke playing that night and we were commenting on how lovely his voice was. Turns out that this guy recently signed a $5 million contract deal with Universal and he was just coming back to Taupo to show his appreciation for his friends and family in that town (it is not a very big city either – about 22,000). His name is Will Martin and all the locals I spoke to kept saying to me “Take a picture with that guy – it’ll be worth millions some day!” It was funny but really nice to see how proud they were of this 21 year old. So, I took a picture with him and will cherish it as these people told me to. I also bought his album today as a nice little souvenir. That way, someday if he does become big (but honestly his music probably wouldn’t be big in the States) I can say that I saw him in some po-dunk bar in Taupo, New Zealand. Very lovely.

Tomorrow morning I am heading back to Auckland. It has been a great week exploring the country side and actually seeing the real New Zealand. The people are so great and very proud of their country. When you travel, you really have to leave the cities because when it comes down to it, a city is just a city. A country’s true colors come out outside of these areas of steel and concrete. I will be in Auckland for a day and since I didn’t see much of the city besides Waiheke Island, I am going to go on a free day trip of the city. But more about that later. Cheers!