We picked up our Happy Camper camper-van in Auckland and headed to Waitomo Caves for some black water rafting.



I thought Australia was in the middle of a drought but this is ridiculous.







Ended up being a lot of fun and we got to see some amazing glow worms on the roof of the caves when we turned our head lights off. Next stop Rotorua.



I thought the smell was ok, a bit like the aftersmell of fireworks. Maybe I was affected by all those years working at the Moomba Festival.



We visited the Whakarewarewa Thermal Village. The local people of Tuhourangi/Ngati Wahiao invited us into their home. This brown shack is the bedroom, complete with central heating.



The kitchen with the Champagne pool, now that's my kind of kitchen!





The Bathroom with mineral baths.



Mud bath anyone? Ooh La la!



The entertainment room with the Pohutu and Prince of Wales Feathers Geysers which erupt every 15 minutes.



The dance house where everyone gets together for a boogie. I thought the guy on the left was MOST entertaining. What a haka!



It was great to be given an insight into life for the local people and learn about their crafts, customs, culture and belief systems. For example if someone bugs out their eyes and pokes their tongue out at you, it means they like you.



So don't be offended if we poke our tongue out at you, when we next see you.



After a hectic day of sight seeing we spent the evening in a hot thermal pool and it felt like we were there for ages.



The following day we travelled to Napier. It was a really interesting place.

At 10.47am on February 3rd 1931, an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 on the Richter Scale, and the ensuing fires, devastated central Napier. In addition to this the coastline changed with the upheaval of a large mass of land in Hawkes bay that left many fish stranded and now is the Napier airport. It was decided to rebuild the city from scratch in the style of the time, Art Deco, and within a very short time, only two years, it was the world's newest and most modern city in 1933.











The next day we got in our cute little mobile home and headed to Wellington. It just so happened that the Dragon Boat Festival and the International Festival of the Arts were on while we were there. The city had a great energy about it.



We even got to see some outdoor circus performances by a group calling themselves "Gravity and other Myths".





Took the Cable Car Tram up to a lookout and the botanical gardens.






That tram car driver was a bit suspect and so were some of the names the gardeners gave to some of the trees in the gardens.





Early the next morning we caught the first boat to the South Island.



Ok, it was a ship not a boat.










It might not look it but it was really windy.



We were visited by a Weka that evening. Looks like a cross between a Kiwi and a chicken. It didn't think much of the pumpkin seeds I fed it but the risotto I made was stunning.



Drove past the Pancake Rocks and they were weird.





To my shock and horror, not long after this photo was taken, I was arrested!



Luckily for me it was a case of mistaken identity and I was released shortly after this photo was taken.



We arrived at the Franz Josef Glacier and it was truly majestic.





The scale of it was breath-taking.





It was like being in the Antarctic and our expert guide (Troy), did a fantastic job of clearing a safe path for our journey. I was very impressed with his........ technique.





It didn't take Michael long before he traversed the ice like a pro.







Some of the formations were beautiful.



Some were just bizarre!



As we walked around we heard ice cracking, water running and rocks falling, sure signs of the glacier melting. It was a reminder that these amazing water features will not be around for much longer if global warming continues at the current rate.



Some of the water that comes from the melting glaciers is so mesmerizing that you want to jump in. From personal experience in this river, I advise to resist that urge as the water was bloody freezing.



We stayed in a great caravan park in Jackson called Jackson's Retreat. They had their own rain forest and waterfall in the back yard. If you are ever near here, I recommend staying for the night. They even drop you off at the local pub at night and the pub owners drop you back after you have had a satisfying feed and sozzled yourself silly on New Zealand beer. I recommend the Monteith's Rata Honey and Spice Flavored Summer Ale.





I got Michael to do some modeling and I think there is a career in it for him but you be the judge as I am biased after 12 years. Look at him, he is a natural!



These friendly ducks did a great job of de-bugging our van after driving through Arthur's Pass.



While the ducks were busy at work we got to meet two lovely ladies and their van named Mavis. This was a 1950's caravan converted to fit on the back of a truck and we were envious.



Spent the last day in Christchurch and it was a great way to finish off the trip.







Just beautiful!

So if you have ever been thinking about going to New Zealand, I say DO IT!

It is such a beautiful country, especially the South Island.

Back home and hit the ground running with a gig at the Melbourne Museum, where I portray an Ice-Cream seller in Melbourne during the late 1800's. Then off to Mexico for another Strange Fruit gig in Late April.

All the best campers!

George

Tags: Holidays