The Nose Knows

February 13, 2002- Making Lemonade
(photos:Lady Knox Geyser,
Thermal Pool)

It’s a dark stormy night. Cold air crept in from the South with a fierceness born in the recesses of Antarctica. But, no worries, the sun has shone today in New Zealand and natives were optimistic.

Our destination was Rotorua a town that turned a major negative into a selling point. It’s known for thermal activity, spas, and the all-pervasive stink of rotten eggs. We spent the day getting there but enjoyed the journey. We stopped at a vineyard, oohed at the delicate wines, aahed at the luscious scenery, remarked at how we hadn’t seen cornfields since leaving Ohio, and admired the elegance of farm raised Bambi deer in the pastures. I guess that’s what gave Karen a taste for venison tonight.

Rotorua was charming if somewhat depressed with empty storefronts and massage parlors dotting the main street. We went directly to the museum and Government Gardens. One movie centered on the early culture and legends of how the thermal springs came to be. Never mind scientific explanations about tectonic plates and the splitting off of Australia and New Zealand from Gonwanaland (when all the great continents were joined). The Maori story tells that when the founder of New Zealand came from Hawaiki, he met a monster/man. The newcomer parted the earth, the monster was swallowed up, and the anger of the monster has fueled the thermal infernos ever since. Tribes living in the area had a good life. Steam vents provided warmth, heat for cooking, and curative baths. As Europeans arrived, Maori settlers learned to capitalize on these assets. In 1886, an elder predicted that because Maoris were greedy, they’d be punished. Sure enough, Mt. Tarawera erupted and buried the village. The special effects of the show included our seats shaking and reeling

The other film was news footage interspersed with interviews with survivors from Company B of the 28th Battalion, an all-Maori volunteer unit in WWII. They fought bravely and suffered extensive casualties losing 2/3 of their troops.

As we left the museum, the sulfurous odor assailed us and the rose gardens seemed to be the place to go. Each bush was dangerously over laden with roses in displays as spectacular as I’ve ever seen.

When we checked into the Rydges Hotel it was fitting that our room not only overlooked Lake Rotorua, but in this odoriferous town, a horseracing track too.

February 14, 2002-Thar She Blows!

Happy Valentine’s Day. In keeping with the impending holiday of love New Zealand was target marketing the pink dollar. They realized that a lot of gay people are DINKS (double income no kids) or SINKS (single income no kids).

The Lady Knox Geyser at the Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland blew at exactly 10:15 AM each day. How did the geyser adjust for Daylight Savings Time? In the mid 1800’s, prisoners planted pine forests that cover the hills today. The hot springs were used as an outdoor laudromat. The addition of soap to the springs caused the tension to break down between the cooler surface water and the hotter water belowground. The geyser was activated and their laundry went for a ride on the plume Today it looked like a giant science project. Soap powder was poured into the hole to activate the eruption on schedule. The white cone of the geyser leapt from the earth to a height of 7-8 feet; a frothy burbling began; a large white bubble formed looking as if Casper the Friendly Ghost was trying to escape. The froth overflowed and the waterworks spouted at least 100 feet into the air. The mist quickly cooled and was carried across the spectator area creating a larger splash zone than Shamu the whale at Sea World ever dreamed of.

We continued exploring as we walked through pungent odors on paths and boardwalks amidst thermal pools, steaming craters, and lakes creating a natural palette of green, red, violet, yellow, ochre, and blue.

We drove through a volcanic valley of wonders. The ground had convulsed leaving hills at odd angles. Karen was determined to get a picture of sheep, but wasn’t prepared for the camera savvy nature of the flock we chose to photograph. As we pulled to the side of the road the sheep started plodding uphill away from us. When Ron put down the window, they turned in unison and posed. As the window went up, they turned their backs on us and continued their climb.

In the afternoon Karen shopped while Ron, David, and I went back to the Government Garden area and the Blue Baths. They were opened in the 1930’s to replace hot spring baths that were started in 1885. It was the first place in the world allowing coed and mixed race swimming. The building was restored to its original art deco glory and one pool is still used for bathing. No one knows why they’re called Blue Baths since the original ones were a dirty green color, but the name has stuck. Until more recent years, the water was untreated and so cloudy that at the end of the day pool employees joined hands and walked across the bottom to see if anyone had drowned.

Toby