Toen ik in het stadje Rotorua aankwam vroeg ik me af hoe die 60.000 inwoners konden leven in een stad waar het dagelijks naar rotte eieren stinkt en waar de stoomwolken uit putdeksels en achtertuinen opstijgen. Het leek wel het decor van een zombie horrorfilm. Ik zag zelfs in voortuintjes kleine sputterende ieniemienie modderpoeltjes daar waar bij ons een stenen Paulus de Boskabouter met zijn kruiwagentje staat. En dan die rotte eieren meur bohhhh…. De inwoners van Rotorua zijn het kennelijk gewend en schijnen er weinig moeite mee te hebben en de eerlijkheid gebied me te zeggen dat ik twee uurtjes later er ook al een beetje aan gewend was geraakt.
Chemische stad
Rotorua ligt precies op de grens van twee tektonische platen, waarbij de Pacifische plaat onder de Indo-Australische plaat wordt geduwd. Hierdoor zat ik nu op een plek waar geisers uit de grond schoten, kokende warmwaterbronnen dampten, donkergrijze modderpoelen pruttelden temidden van stinkende zwavellucht, af en toe onderbroken door aardbevingen en vulkaanuitbarstingen. Klinkt niet echt als een chille strandvakantie op Zakynthos maar ik was hier dan ook niet om op een strandbedje te liggen met een cocktail in mijn knuisten om vanachter mijn zonnebril naar mooie vrouwenkonten te gluren.
Lady Knox geiser
Ik was hier om de felgekleurde meren te zien, de stoom die uit de grond spuit, de ontelbare sinkholes en grotten met kleuren, de Lady Knox-geiser, die elke ochtend om 10.15 begint te spuwen. Het leuke is dat ze hier een beetje de boel belazeren om de geiser aan het spuiten te krijgen. Het warme water van de geiser wordt onder de grond gehouden door het gewicht van de hoeveel water wat er boven op ligt. Daar gooien ze dan een stukje zeep in waardoor de oppervlaktespanning van het water afneemt. Hierdoor krijgt het heet water de kans om er door heen te spuiten en hoppa: de geiser is geboren. Sommige geisers hier spuiten wel 30 meter hoog en dat tientallen keren per dag.
Waikite Valley
Hierna ging ik naar Whakarewarewa Village, een ‘living village’ waar een Maori meisje me veel vertelde over de kunst en cultuur van de Maori en hoe belangrijk het geothermische gebied voor hun leven was. De dansvoorstelling skipte ik na het debacle van vorige week. Ik gaf het meisje een neuskusje als dankjewel en ging weer verder naar de heetwaterbaden van Waikite Valley vlak bij Wai-O-Tapu. Heerlijk een paar uurtjes poedelen met een schitterend uitzicht. De dag sloot ik af met een paar lekker biertjes in een lokale kroeg hier in een buitenwijkje van Rotorua.
This area is full of highlights to witness: pristine islands, great scuba diving spots, the most relaxed people, a surreal ocean colour and the prettiest beaches you have probably ever seen. As you might know, Fiji has many, many islands to visit (330 islands). The two main islands are Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. This blog solely focuses on the islands at the west of the country. You can not cover everything from Fiji within only one week anyway, so it’s better to only concentrate on one part of it. Otherwise you would spend way to much time on transportation.
The first stop I took was at Beachcomber Island. I had been traveling through New Zealand for a month. This was very intensive. Ride a lot of kilometers, I did’t have much sleep but I had seen a lot. The island was so small that you walked around within 10 minutes. There was a big beach where people were sunbathing. In the evening this island turned into a party island.On the island I decided to work for one day. I did not have to have money for this. I wanted to do some work again. With my slippers I provided cocktails for the young people who were sunbathing on the island.
If you rather want to take it slow, just hang out at the private beach until the sunset. It’s absolutely spectacular! As the sun sets down you can enjoy having some local drugs which they prepare in an wooden bowl but you can not compare it to the western drugs. You can eat tons of it without having a nice feeling. And ohh, due to a malfunction there was no water in the shower. We washed ourselves in a rain barrel haha.
We left early in the morning with a local diver in a speedboat to a spot on the open sea. We didn’t see any land around us anymore The diver first jumped into the water. To see if the sharks would bite ghe ghe. After all, this was dangerous: hugging sharks! After that we jumped into the water. Under water it was super nice. We certainly saw five reef sharks but they were still far away. Our companion shot a few small fish with his harpoon. He used those fishes to lure the reef sharks. These reef sharks are still too small to live in the open sea. They are a prey for the adult sharks. Therefore, they stay near the reef where they can hide in the narrow crevices and under rocks.
Once in the water some reef sharks swam underneath me at a distance of one meter. I tried to catch them with my bare hands but they were too fast. After 20 minutes I was lucky to stroke one. Our local man grabbed one and we were allowed to hug him. This was super creepy! If I had to do it again, I would not do it. Certainly not after seeing the video of the Dutch biologist Freek Vonk (see link above). After the action is done, you will also be brought to a matchless coral reef nearby. What you see there is absolutely wonderful. Even in places like 
I knew it would be a challenge, I knew I would love it and hate it at the same time, I knew that if I did complete it I would feel proud (as well as relieved). But you can not compare a 6-8 hour hike with hanging out in a pub for 6-8 hours which I manage easily with two fingers in my nose. As the clipboard came back around, I got hold of it before it got back to the coach driver and I signed myself up! Yeahh ! I was IN…..and that meant a lot to me. The hike is 19.6 kilometers and ascends 765 meter and descends 1126 meters. Wtf !
The transport picked us up at 5:00am the next day. It was a 1 hour drive from our hotel to the starting point of the hike. On the way there I reread messages from my friends who wished me the best whilst listening to Muse until my phone battery expectedly died. I thought I would have been snoozing at that time of the morning,
I guess the excitement and nerves were more than kicking in. We were only the two of us and I had already made a pact to stick together, take regular breaks and enjoy the experience to the max. I had my snacks, lunch, 3 liters of water, my old school camera as well as my nerves at the ready. I was all set (well, just about).
We arrived at the start of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing at 6:30am. We did a quick toilet stop, gear check and exchanged words of encouragement before setting off. The start of the trail was like the beginning of a great movie: it left a long lasting impression and created excitement for what was yet to come.
There was a traffic light with the signal green. That traffic light warned the hikers for volcanic activity. But we checked the activity on this site before we left 
There was no path at all? There was a peg in the ground every 20 meters. There was no path at all? There was a peg in the ground every 20 meters. Here you had to walk to. How you got there did not matter. The two of us reached the part called “the Devil’s staircase” it has an uninviting name for a reason: it was a tough obstacle to defeat!
Although it felt great to overcome that section of the hike, Tongariro Crossing was taking its toll on me. There was no path at all ? There was a peg in the ground every 20 meters. Here you had to walk to. How you got there did not matter.I was damp because of sweating, I had a slight stitch in my lower back and my calf muscles cried for a long break.
The beautiful views soften the pain. My eyes were spoiled by my surroundings. Pain and sweat were no longer in my mind. This hike definitely had its ups and downs, not just because of the nature of the trail itself, but because of the physical and emotional demand it came with.
The part I found most difficult was the steep, never ending slope that I very ungracefully stepped/ almost slid down (I felt like Bambi, who knows what I actually looked like!). I nervously watched others fall on their butts and one lady managed to full forwards onto loose rocks.
I found all of this very unsettling, but I actually felt a lot better after I took my first drop backwards. It reminded me that I am human and that it’s ok to fall as long as I get back up. After making it down the slope, the eggy sulphate smell combined with our setting was indescribable.
Seeing the three volcanoes with different characteristics married with vibrantly colored lakes, assorted rocks and moody candy floss clouds gave a whole new meaning to natural beauty. I felt like the worst of the hike was over and the rest would be easier to manage from that point onwards, a little presumptuous of me, right?
The hike continued to be visually stimulating and the trail seemed to be a lot kinder on my mind and body compared to before. From now on it went downhill. We walked over volcanic rocks and at each step we slipped down the mountain for a quarter of a meter. This was so nice. Soon we found out that you could also run down the mountain instead of walking.
With every step we put down our feet disappeared into the volcanic ash.For some strange reason Maureen and I had assumed that we were a lot closer to the end of the trail than we actually were. We realized the reality of our position when we reached the lodge. Our facial expressions were exhaustedly shocked. One of the sign posts stated that we had an estimated 1 hour and 30 minutes left!
Although we took regular breaks, ate lunch and drank water frequently, the hike had been extremely challenging. So challenging to the point we had built up a false hope of it being over shortly. Reality check completed. It was time to stop whining and complete the hike! I clumsily rolled my ankle whilst stepping down on to a mesh type fixture on the path. I stopped briefly to review the situation and apply some numbing cream that Maureen had at hand. The people that were passing had stopped to make sure that I was ok and were ready to step in. I reassured everyone that I was alright and able to continue – and that I did.
Actually, we had nothing to complain about. The weather was fantastic. We fully enjoyed the sun. I have a number of friends who have done this hike. They did not see anything because of the rain and the misty weather. Still other friends were standing in front of a red traffic light. They were not allowed to walk because of the volcanic activity.
Maureen occasionally kept looking at me every now and then to make sure everything went well with me. I was as good as I could and sooo ready to see the end of the course. Right, left, right, left … a lot of muddy steps later, we made it! 
The Tongariro Alpine Crossing took about 9 hours to complete (including many short breaks and a lunch break). The feeling of relief and pride was much greater than I had predicted and my smile went from faded to marked. In the evening we took a few beers to celebrate this day. Cheerz ! 
Mount Ngauruhoe (volcano) is the real name for Mount Doom. Mt.Doom is a fictional volcano in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth legendarium. It is located in the northwest of the Black Land of Mordor and close to Barad-dûr.
