To date in NZ this was turning out to be the most activity fuelled week we were experiencing. Paid for activities that is! We got up early so we wouldn’t be in with the tourist crowds too soon in the day. The Wai-O-Tapu park is south of Rotorua on the road to Taupo, we camped not too far away at one of the DOC campgrounds at Rerewhakaaitu Recreation Reserve which meant we were on the right side of town and only a 20 minute drive away from the park. Gates open at 8.30 and we were there not long after for some thermal action! We got a map on the way in and walked around the largest loop in the park (red) which took us just under an hour. The first loop is really enticing to start with; hot pools, sulphur smoking from the depths below, craters and mud pools and then we arrived at The Champagne Pool. This is amazing; a huge bubbling pool with a surface temperature of around 74 degrees Celsius. On top the water appeared to be pink and the edges orange with wind blowing the steam around the pool so much so it looked like a whirlwind. We were impressed!!

We would come back to the orange and yellow loops later on but we had a prior appointment with a Geyser located a few minutes drive from the main entrance to the park. We drove along with the now gathering tourists so we could experience the blowing Lady Knox Geyser at 10.15am. We sat in an auditorium style set up whilst more and more people starting taking their seats. We weren’t really sure how it would work but it did say that for the front rows we’d expect some spray…we were at the front! But we wanted to get some good photos! After a while and waiting to see if the Geyser would blow a ranger came along and started chatting to us about the history of the Geyser with some funny stories about prisoners working in the area finding it and building stones around the flute in order to make the Geyser blow higher.

Since then the stones are now a part of the Geyser as it is now moulded by the gases and liquids produced. He did artificially induce the Geyser with some crystal antiseptic blocks and poured it down the shoot and left the Geyser to do it’s thing. We waited for a few minutes and then it started to bubble before finally shooting water high in the air around 10m or so. It kept going and going and after about 10 minutes we left but it is reported that the Geyser can blow for up to an hour.

Following on from the excitement of the Geyser we went back to the main park and toured around the other two loops. Not as impressive as the first but there is a lot to take in and different formations along the way. There are also lot’s of eggy smells but that’s all part and parcel of being in a volcanic park. After a good few hours we left and were satisfied with our experience. It cost $32.50 each and we felt it was well worth it. A mini Yellowstone of sorts and a geeky learning experience too!

Moving on from Rotorua we continued our drive southwards to Taupo with the intention of heading to Tongoriro so that we could stay in preparation for the Tongoriro Alpine Crossing. It was quite a long drive and we didn’t stop in Taupo mainly because we were planning to come back after the hike. The drive in total was around 3 hours to Whakapapa Village where the DOC information centre is located. When we got there the very helpful staff informed us there was no way we would be hiking the Alpine Crossing the next day or the day after. In fact Sunday looked to be the best day and she suggested we head to Napier to find some sunshine as it wasn’t going to happen here! Oh no!! We re-thought our plans and decided to drive back to Taupo for the night and then head to Napier the next day before driving back to Tongoriro on Sunday along a different route. Sounds like we had a plan! So back to Taupo it was and we stayed at the YHA as they take in vans for $16 per night. It’s a nice hostel and it always suits us to have a kitchen and showers so we parked up, cooked and walked around a quiet Thursday night in Taupo.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

We went out for a bike ride with one of the Chinese girls’ Sylvia who was staying in the dorm with us, she was friends with another of the girls working at the hostel. It was good to have her with us as she could help us to find our way by asking the locals which way to such and such a place. She wanted to go to a specific village called Xixhou which is about 20km away from Dali old town. We wanted to cycle through some of the villages closer to the lake so we could explore the farmland, the most direct way would be to cycle along the high way for the entire ride but that’s no fun, so we compromised and spent some time cycling to the villages and some time catching up and taking the highway to the furthest place.

The farmland in Dali is very lush and extremely beautiful to photography. During our stay in Dali the sky was a perfect blue and it was a very comfortable temperature indeed, only being cold in the shade. By night it dropped significantly but we had electric blankets to cope with this!

So we took in the scenery around us, some farmland, some lake and some road. It was stunning. We got to Xixhou at around 3pm and ambled through the village market before stopping for some very good value soup rice noodles. For 3 of us to eat it cost around £2.80, and the food tasted really good. The only bad thing was a local guy pestering us for left over food and drink, he wouldn’t leave us alone and eventually got what he wanted. Still the setting took us away from this. We continued out of the village and took the road to some older parts of the area. Once more fantastic views, terraces and buildings surrounded us.

We decided to make our way back at around 4pm and set off for Dali. We were going quicker than Sylvia on her lady-like bike so we waited for her every so often, plus the drivers on the road aren’t the most reliable often overtaking two cars in one go so we wanted to make sure we were all with us. When we got back Sylvia joked about how fit we were compared to her and she said she’d only ever ridden a bike once before in her life. Considering this fact she did very well indeed.

When we got back we ate at an Indian restaurant down the road from our hostel and enjoyed more chai. Back at the hostel there were a few more travelers, Helen got chatting to Jane who she’d seen at various other places around China. It’s very easy to bump into people when you use Hostelworld for recommendations on where to stay. Many people also choose to travel through South China from Vietnam as it’s a good route and the weather is pretty good in Yunnan.

So it was our last night in Dali and we really loved the town and the hostel had a nice vibe too. We decided to nip back to Bakery 88 the next morning to get some take-away sandwiches with very good cheese and meat! Yum!! We also sneaked in a few more granola slices.

The bus back took the scenic route as part of the highway was closed but this wasn’t a bad thing as it meant we got to drive through some more beautiful countryside and villages. It was quite a luxury bus with only a few of us on board, and we got back to Cloudland at around 7pm. We had some food, chatted away and got ready for our flight to Guangzhou the following day.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)

31 today!! Eek!! A far cry from last years fancy dress vintage themed party with all my best mates at Holyrood!! Still being in Beijing was pretty special and we made the effort to go and see some sights for the day. Dave bought me a lovely notebook from the Frank Gehry exhibition shop, I’m always jotting and sketching down thoughts, plans and ideas so it was very warmly received! A Porridge and banana special for breakfast and we were on our way.

We set out for the Beijing Botanical Gardens, inspired by the success of our bus journey a few days ago we attempted to tube and bus it to the site. The lonely Planet were not entirely accurate in providing information as to which bus to get so we ended up on the wrong path. A quick turn around for a taxi and we arrived at our destination. It isn’t perhaps the best time of year to visit the Botanical Gardens as not much is in flower, but we did find some lovely paths out towards a temple and icey lakes to throw stones on. There was a fair amount of ice on the lake and some gorgeous frosty views. Its well out of the city so you do feel far away from the business of central Beijing.

The tropical greenhouse (much larger than your average garden greenhouse!) was a nice place to get warm and enjoy some cactus growing plants alongside more brides and grooms to be having their pre-wedding photographs taken amongst the orchid garden.

On our way back we stopped off for a quick birthday bite at Japanese fast food chain Yoshinoya. A place that didn’t really entice us whilst we were in Japan but is definitely projected as being a more upmarket food chain over in China, interesting! They even had vegetables on the menu! We went back to the apartment and decided to get ready for our night out.

We had very good intentions of going for a massage at Dragonfly, our favourite and slightly self-indulgent massage parlour in Beijing! What stopped us in our tracks however was an hour delay at Xinjeikou metro station, this was so far our favourite stop as there were never as many people using it and it was well located! So we changed plans and head straight for Gouladjie which was only a few stops away, there was a Malaysian restaurant recommended to us around that way that we wanted to go to. We found Cafe Sambal on the left hand side a couple of streets down from the tube stop set in a Hutong area. It’s a little hidden away behind some wooden doors but inside was a very nicely lit ambient bar and restaurant which was packed to the ceiling with locals and westerners…good so far! At the bar we waited for a table and drank mojitos. We love it that you can buy mojitos over here for around £3, I’m pretty sure we’ve had one for as low as £2! The food was very good, although they could do with upping their portions a little! The room was a little chilly where we sat, but having said that the atmosphere was lovely and as far as birthday settings go this was again pretty frickin’ sweet!

After dinner we went for a walk along the street and came across a very cosy little desert cafe. This was enough to entice us in and we sat with our ginger teas, apple cake and chocolate truffles whilst watching the world go by.

Thank you Dave for a lovely day! I think the 30 year plus grumps came across me when I realised I am now past the tender year of 30, which has been a blooming marvellous year so far!

All my love and thanks for all the birthday messages on Facebook.

Helen x

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)

We didn’t want to write too much about our visit to the Summer Palace as we feel the imagery may say more. We were really captivated by this magnificent site consisting of lakes, temples, bridges, paths, pavilions and hilly landscape. It truly is a breathtaking experience. We imagine that whether you go on a bright summers day, a snowy day or a misty day (as it was when we went) you will still be able to experience the beauty and history that exists here. Perhaps our favourite place in Beijing so far? We spent the main part of the day here wandering around the grounds, stopping for a pack lunch whilst looking across the foggy lake and we photographed until the sun came down. If you ever get a chance to come to Beijing the Summer Palace should be at the top of your agenda.

Enjoy.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)