Our first stop after leaving Rotorua was the geothermal power station, they are pretty green here with loads of hydro, geothermal and some wind power but usual nimby attitude for the big windmills, lots of gleaming steel and steam though.
Rainbow Springs is a where they have a number of endangered species of birds
including the kiwi which as it is a nocturnal bird we could see but not photograph, so the stuffed one outside will have to do!
Not sure I approve of playing with the biological clock of these birds by changing the lighting but I suppose it brings in the punters who help fund the breeding project. They also have the largest lump of green stone to have been found, type of jade and loads of jewellry for sale buit generally expensive so this must be worth a bit.
They also have good specimens of the 'silver fern' which will no doubt be flaunted later in the year as it is the emblem of the NZ rugby team.
This was followed by a show at the Agridome, showcasing the types of sheep they have here, shearing and a sheepdog at work. Unfortunately not so interesting with the advent of the discovery channel etc! But here is lovely merino sheep looking suitably supercilious.
After a lunch stop with some fun corrugated 'art'
we went on to Cambridge, pleasant town further north where in groups of 4 we met our hosts for a farm stay. Mine were a retired couple George and Ann whose son now runs his dairy farm which we visited first, seeing the milking parlour etc and the family pigs
before going to his very lovely home on the side of a hill with amazing views.
One of their other sons is a general manager for Fonterra the main NZ dairy company in Sao Paulo, a familiar name from my time at Brebners. Lovely home cooked meal before retiring to bed.
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