Roadtrippin' Part 3

Saturday:

• Our first stop of the morning was the Waitangi grounds.  We thought we'd get in with free admission (because we're sort of NZ residents), but no such luck.  We had to pay the $25 admission fee!!! We got to see the Treaty house where James Busby stayed during the time of British colonization in NZ.  There were panels on the walls explaining the different rooms and facts about the events that happened there many years ago.  

• Outside of the house was a whare runanga that had been erected 100 years after the signing of the Treaty.  It was beautifully made with intricate carvings and designs.  Outside the door of the house was a sign saying, "Please take off your shoes before entering", but it seemed Logan and I were the only ones to pay it any attention.

• There was also a whare waka, which housed two gigantic war canoes which were also very intricately carved.  
• We were finished with the Treaty grounds at about 11:00 and we weren't scheduled to go on our dolphin cruise until 1:30, so we decided to hang around town until then.  We forgot that it was Labour weekend, and therefore it was packed with tourists and locals alike.  There was a market happening in town as well as a concert and fair (which you had to pay to attend).  We walked up and down the street into all the little sovenier shops and such.  I got a really cute ring, which has pieces of shell, paua, kauri wood, and pounamu! Had some fish n chips for lunch before setting off for the cruise.

• The dolphin cruise departed at 1:30 and it was crowded with heaps of people.  Our first stop was Russell, a town with lots of history.  It used to be known for it's lack of law and was nicknamed "the hellhole of the Pacific".  We then continued on past many of the islands in the Bay of Islands and came across some dolphins who played near our boat for a while.  They jumped and flipped while everyone attempted to snap pictures.  We went through the famous Hole in the Rock, but honestly I don't understand what is so cool about it.  It's just... a hole in the rock.  Whatever though :) We stopped off at an island for an hour and we all were free to explore.  Logan and I stayed along the shore line collecting shells.

• We got back to Paihia at about 6:00 and were starving!  We had some seafood chowder at the restaurant near the dock and then headed back to the holiday park for the night.