When we passed the Maritime Museum, I noticed an advertisement about Ocean Globe Race that would leave from Auckland for Uruguay for the third leg. How exciting to witness this live event!The sailboats are at the starting line. What a beautiful day as the winds are carrying them out to sea. This is the 50th anniversary of the race. They aren’t allowed radar, technology, GPS, etc. I think that they want to compare apples to apples They are a lot of other stipulations. One is that someone under 24 has to be on the boat. Additionally, the crew can vary at each leg.There is a yacht app called YB Races so we decided to follow their progress. Rob and I chose boats. Neptune is my boat. Rob chose Maiden. It turns out that his boat is an all women crew. You go, girls!!
Wēta Workshop allows you to make special affects from masks, robots and monsters to building “worlds”. This company did all the special affects for The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Do you recognize Rob under this freaky rendering?Here he is sitting on his thrown.There are lots of white boards around the building.This world is a miniature castle on the left and a tent encampment on the right. Many shots are made by drone.We boarded a bus for Rotorua. (Or is that Rutabaga?) We have a quick stop in Hamilton where I see this clever decor for a music store. I tried to figure out what song it is. Does anyone know??This was a cool kids park in Rotorua. These kids jump from trampoline to trampoline.We walked to our lunch spot called Eastwood through a forest. I love to see brooks.These were tall Douglas Firs over 125 years old.
New Zealand realized that they needed lots of lumber but should not cut down theirs that take hundreds of years to grow. They brought in lumber from all over the world to ascertain which tree grew best. The radiata pine was the most successful and is grown throughout New Zealand.
It is ironic that the radiata pine is endangered in its native forests which incidentally are in a small portion of California and Mexico!!
Some reviews for Eastwood Cafe said that the food was good and the building was even better.The inside was beautiful. Most restaurants have water glasses near a water spigot so you can get your own water. This faucet was above a flower pot so no need for a drain!!
These purple flowers are all over, especially along the roadside. When I inquired about the flower, I was told that it was a noxious weed. Hmmm. Wouldn’t it be nice if all the weeds were this pretty!!
Tonight we are in search of glowworms. They need three things:
Darkness – They don’t like light, not even moonlight so a dense canopy is needed.
An overhang in order for the glowworm to attach itself.
Near water for humidity
We joined a group called Real Rotorua. Our guide, Stephen, outfitted us with Wellies (rain boots) and torches (flashlights). We walked through a dark wet forest.This doesn’t do it justice but glowworms were everywhere. Glowworms make long sticky strands of mucus to catch insects. They live across the top. The light is actually a result of burning off poop. We also learned that they take turns with 12-hour shifts.New Zealand silver ferns can grow over 100 feet tall. The top is green but the underside is silver and more prominent when seen at night Depicting the unfurling frond of the New Zealand silver fern, the koru represents new beginnings, life & hope.This fern is growing baby ferns on its leaves. Do you see the little koru? Stephen calls it a fiddleback. Wētā are giant flightless crickets, and some are among the heaviest insects in the world. Wētā are endemic to New Zealand. Some species are now critically endangered.
This sheet spider is endemic to New Zealand. He sure looks dangerous but only if you are an insect!! Maybe that is why the wētā is endangered!!
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