Kerosene Creek & Taupo
Kerosene Creek was home to some pretty cool hot springs*. Although it’s a site listed frequently in guide books and travel maps, there were only a few people visiting when we were there. This created a welcome sort of quiet so we could relax and enjoy the spa-like river. For caution’s sake, just keep an eye on your valuables (I’ve heard lots of warnings about theft), and remember: hot springs smell like sulfur. Therefore, if you bathe in it, you and anything you wear will potentially smell like sulfur too.
Next we drove into Taupo, a nice, walkable town. A huge park, lots of shops and cafes, and an easy stroll down to the harbor make it a great place to spend several touristy hours hanging out and window shopping. A new attraction coming soon? “4D Earthquake,” apparently some kind of crazy earthquake-reinactment-experience. The place wasn’t open yet when we were there, but we chatted with the owners who made it sound intruiging.
Pictures to come – I’m in random wi-fi /picture access mode at the moment.