Off to South Island

We are presently in Wellington (check your maps), waiting for the ferry after driving down from Tongariro National Park two days ago where we did a beautiful 8 hour hike (Tongarino Crossing). Part of Lord of the Rings was shot there, mainly the Orc world parts, so you can picture the very active volcanic landscape. At the top of the pass, an area appropriately called Emerald Lakes, we could see many thermo vents. We even touched one or two out of curiosity. (They are due for another eruption, so hopefully it won't repeat the explosion of 65 million years ago. One theory is that it erradicated the dinosaurs from the earth). It is a busy hike, and in the peak season there are 2000 people on the 17 Kim. trail. It rained a bit, for the first time in our first week in NZ. In the evening we walked through a rich ski hotel at the park and they had a piano man who sang with rich tones. He was Maori and the language as he talked to some of the people listening was very much like Hawaiian, a close language. Most names here are in Maori and we hear people speaking it in the street. Maoris are 15 per cent of the population and immigrants from Polynesia make up another 5 per cent. He was young and Michele asked him to sing a Beatles' song.

Nous sommes à Wellington pour prendre le traversier pour l'île sud. Nous venons de faire une excursion d'une journée (17 km) dans le parc Tongarino. Le sentier nous amenait dans une passe entre deux volcans actifs. C'est une marche très populaire, et en été, il peut y avoir plus de 2000 marcheurs. Il pleuvait un peu pour la première fois depuis notre arrivée en NZ. Une partie du film Lord of the Rings a été filmé dans la région.

Dans la soirée nous sommes allés prendre un verre à l'hôtel de luxe, et un chanteur maori nous divertissait. Il y avait un groupe de Maoris qui lui parlaient dans leur langue. Ca ressemble un peu au Hawaien. Les Maoris forment plus de 15% de la population et les immigrants polynesiens un autre 5%. La plupart des noms du pays sont en Maori.