I've been away on a little tiki-tour to The Bay of Plenty.
There is something special about this journey.
Travelling through the lush green of Waikato farmlands
to the steamy place of hot mud pools and geysers.. Rotorua.
This is Mokoia Island in the middle of Lake Rotorua.
The island of Hinemoa and Tutanekai.
Hinemoa swam the lake, to be withTutanekai,
following the sound of his flute.
On the island is a hot water pool where Hinemoa warmed herself after the swim in the cold lake.
A Romeo and Juliet story of forbidden love.
There is something special about this journey.
Travelling through the lush green of Waikato farmlands
to the steamy place of hot mud pools and geysers.. Rotorua.
This is Mokoia Island in the middle of Lake Rotorua.
The island of Hinemoa and Tutanekai.
Hinemoa swam the lake, to be withTutanekai,
following the sound of his flute.
On the island is a hot water pool where Hinemoa warmed herself after the swim in the cold lake.
A Romeo and Juliet story of forbidden love.
Swan spirits of Hinemoa and Tutanekai?
I stopped by Lake Rotoiti
and the big male swan postured and hissed to let me know he's boss.
A lovely break before driving over the Rotoma Hills.
A twisting, turning road, up and over, through the bush.
I spent two days with my lovely sister.
This morning we went out to Whakatane Heads,
before I set off for home again.
In the far distance you can see White Island,
an active volcano,
and Whale Island, peaceful and beautiful.
I travelled home along the coast to Tauranga and over the Kaimai Hills.
The sky was strangely pale and the sun was strangely ringed.
Tonight there is a ring around the moon.
It could be a sign of rain coming,
but it could be the ash cloud from the exploding volcano in Chile
that is disrupting air travel in NZ.
We seem to be so aware these days
of the dangerous and shaky planet
whose thin crust we inhabit.
Interesting - thank you for sharing your journey
ReplyDeleteI believe, for us, last night was a total lunar eclipse.... perhaps you were witnessing that? Lovely photos of what must have been a very nice trip. The photo with a slight slant is very intriguing with its dreamy quality.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking us with on your journey, Joan.
ReplyDeleteThere is an awareness, isn't there, of our "shaky planet whose thin crust we inhabit." I just love the way you put that. Earthquakes and volcanos, consuming fires and on and on. We have had a tremendous amount of rain here, and a record number of tornadoes. This spring, at Easter, for the first time I can remember, I didn't make roast lamb. The prices were exorbitant. I then remembered the flooding you had last year and the problem the sheep farmers had. We get much of our lamb from New Zealand. Oh dear, I've rambled on. Your pictures are lovely and peaceful.
In these shaky times, all the more reason to pause and enjoy the moments of beauty such as you show us. Thank you, Joan!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful journey; thank you for taking me on it Joan. The sun and moon look so mysterious.
ReplyDeleteJust gorgeous, Joan. I felt like I went on the journey with you. You live in such an amazingly beautiful country. Thank you for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteYes, we've taken the earth for granted for so long...maybe it's a good thing we're listening much more closely these days. Seems Mother Earth has a lot to tell us.