Day 2. A caving we will go

Due to my *stumble* yesterday afternoon (tripped over the footpath, and in trying to stop myself falling actually wrenched more bits of me than might otherwise have been the case) it was a stiff & sore fifi who 'limped bravely' out to the rental car for our drive to Waitomo and the glowworm caves.

We left Auckland at some ungodly hour (6.30 AM ! - I'm on holidays fgs!) for the drive to Waitomo and the caves.

The first cave we visited was Aranui. It was raining and we passed a party of older Australians who were on a 3 day walk through the area. We shared a shelter with them while we waited for our guide, and they waited for the rain to ease a little.

We had an excellent guide who explained the history of the cave to us, and told us about the efforts being made to preserve and conserve the caves and then totally flummoxed us by telling us she was going on ahead to open the door and turn on the lights.

Tres amusing.

The cave was awesome - stalactites & stalagmites, interesting rock and rock-coral formations. We were allowed to take photos but my shots do not capture the size and grandeur of the cave. I've had to rely on postcards for that.

Next up was the glowworm cave. This too was very intriguing and interesting. This tour finished with a boat ride thru the cave in pitch black lit only by the glowworms. There is one huge cave where they hold concerts - it would be awesome to see the Christmas Carols Concert there.

As I exited Waitomo with my usual grace and poise I stepped in a pothole on the side of the road and wrenched my other ankle. Am now limping bravely on both ankles! (note - i survived the caves without incidents but I apparently can't cope with footpaths and roads - go figure)

Back to Auckland Airport (via Hamilton and Waikato) as we were flying to Dunedin later in the evening.

Air NZ has just redone it's domestic terminal - it's practically all selfserve, you print your own boarding pass & luggage labels and put your suitcase on the conveyor belt yourself.

By the time we arrived in Dunedin it was 9pm and raining and cold so we threw ourselves and our suitcases into a cab (Driven by the Patricia Cornwell reading Jill) and headed to our hotel.

Arrived at the hotel, let ourselves in, had a cuppa and hit the sack - tomorrow would be another day...