Spring break ended last week (i meant few weeks ago this draft has been in the list for a long time!) and the break was greatttt for the first week only as I was clueless on what to do the next week. I can't imagine how people deal with life if they're not going anywhere apart from studying?
So, there was no one requesting for this itinerary though but I just want to jot this down so I can remember this journey, how our journey went, what we ate, jokes we made, forever.
1st day - We rented a car for $30 per day and started our journey bright and early around 8.30 am. Our first stop was Cornerstone Alpacas (Hamilton) and the journey took us around 1hr 30min of driving. Yeap, you can just drive in New Zealand with your Malaysian driving license! The Alpacas were so cuteee and I just knew that they're like humans! They choose who they want to be feed with, cuddled with, close with. If they're not comfortable they simply stay away from you. Hahaha the entry was $25 per person and along with the presentation of the origins and stuffs about Alpacas, I think it was worth it.
Next stop was Hamilton Gardens (Hamilton) with no fees entry. This garden's simply a park with flowers but the place was huge and there's a division where you can go through kind-a-like gardens from some places of the world if you understand what i mean? It was amazing because you're like entering different parts of the world when you went into the different gardens.
Onto the next place which took 2hrs+ journey, Huka Falls! The Huka Falls was majestic. No words can describe its magnificent monsterness mashAllah how can a monster be so beautiful????? I kept praising Allah for His exquisite creations that's only a few that we're able to see/feel. Haih I can't describe la you guys have to go and see it with your own eyes, feel the breeziness with your own skin, and you wont stop berzikir i promise you haha subhanAllah. So it was our last stop and we booked a motel ($60/night) nearby to settle our night.
2nd day - We went through 1hr+ journey early in the morning to Waimangu Volcanic Valley to witness the Inferno Crater Lake (Large hot spring, another indescribable creation). The admission fee was $38.50 i think? It was 3km hike to get to the hot spring, and you'll walk along the geyser, which you won't feel sorry for your feet because the view were always da bomb dot com (amazing). With additional $45, you'll get to ride on a boat to go to the Lake Rotomohana and witness some more active volcanic activities around the lake and some explanations of the historical spots underneath the water. I don't think the pay was worth it but since its just four of us on the boat then it's okay la we have the boat all to ourselves haha
Our next stop should be to visit Maori's village but since there were some mishaps on finding the right place we went to the next and last place of the day (it was already mid-day), which was the Rotorua Skyline! There were packages of the rides and we all took $89 for 5 luge rides + 1 Skyswing + Gondola. The Skyswing was amazing but if you went to Penang Escape Park already, its almost 85% the same as one of the rides its just the view was breathtaking and the hanging was higher. It was freaking cold that I kept shivering while playing the luge and the skyswing! Even I didn't feel nervous to ride on the Skyswing because I was bothered to finish it all quickly and drive to the motel with heater on.
After we settled down, around 8pm we went to the Redwoods Treewalk (Rotorua), which is 553m walkway over 21 suspension bridges between the trees with hanging nightlights. Because its already dark we couldn't see much of the forest, thus if you're planning to go I highly recommend for you to go during the dusk, its the best time to snap some photos and to see the view clearly. Nevertheless, the place was still awesome and could be moree if it wasn't too dark. Nah la the night photo from noob Intan!
3rd day - We started off this day with a journey to Hamurana Springs, but then the place was closed for renovations for few weeks. However, we managed to stop by the Lake Rotorua to capture some good photos and experienced some stuffs with the geese. Omg they were so scary when they thought you got food for them and came chasing you like crazy. Hahaha
We proceeded our journey to the Blue Spring. The water was as clear as crystal but not so blue though. Its more to green with a hint of blue haha Again, I was mesmerized by the place and there was a walkway along the Spring but we couldn't go through the whole trek because we thought it was going to rain continuously but then it wasn't. It stopped right after we went into the car. *roll eyes*
Onto the last but not least stop, the Hobbiton Movie Set (Matamata)! Dear lovers of LOTR and Hobbit series, please include this awesome place into your must-visit list of places!!!!! The entrance fee was $79 if I'm not mistaken and the price included the tour & 2 hours inside the movie set. Don't worry, 2 hours are more than enough actually for you to knock on each door of the Hobbit's house if that's what you want to haha Apart from the movie set, the view of the farm surrounding it was also breathtaking with sheep eating grass you know.... exactly like in the movies.
&& That's the end of my Spring Trip '17 don't forget to comment down below on what posts are you expecting me to write about and please susbscribe... nah no I'm just kidding. Hope this little information can benefit you in some ways tho.
