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Swimming with Wild Dolphins in Bay of Plenty, New Zealand
On Day 4 of our December 2017 honeymoon, we woke up extra early so that we could be at the marina by 8am to meet our ship captain for our next adventure: swimming with wild dolphins. As soon as we located our captain, Paul, he informed us that no one else had booked the tour that day, so we would have the boat to ourselves! The boat itself was lovely—a large catamaran with a cabin area inside and a large bow in the front for us to sit and enjoy the views. We pulled out of the harbor around 8:30am and headed straight towards the open ocean. Matt and I…
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Rotorua, New Zealand
In the morning, we woke up early and drove straight to Rotorua—a lakeside town about an hour inland from the coast. Rotorua is known for its geothermal activity, as the town sits on the caldera of a massive volcano that last erupted several thousand years ago. This volcanic activity makes the region home to several geysers, geothermal hot springs, bubbling mud pools, and sulphuric gas. And let me tell you—that sulphur smell is extremely strong. Our clothes likely still smell like rotten eggs, and it’s impossible to get used to that stench. Rotorua is also famous for its Maori culture, as the city is one of the first places the…
