Racing and Rotorua

This past weekend Kaleb and I did a running race right outside our front door. He ran a half marathon and I a 10k. I was sick the day before and had some wicked blisters from our hiking adventures last week, but managed to make it through in just over an hour. I consider this not bad, as part of the course is a trail run with some hills.

Sunday evening we met with a meet-up group (a social website) for dinner. It was a mix of ex-pats and Kiwis. We had a great time and met some nice people.
Because of the storms hitting the country right now, we aren't able to do the Tongariro Crossing (an 8 hour hike up and down a few mountains) this week. Instead we hope to go to Rotorua where there is a lot of thermal activity and cultural activity (or people zoos as I like to call them). The shows put on by Maori in this country are more theatre than people zoo, though it depends on where you go. Some places have villages where people live and pretend they've never had any interaction with Europeans. I will never go to these. However, a dance and singing performance is a different thing all together. Since Kaleb has a cold right now, we are still unsure if we will go. Luckily it's easy to buy last minute bus tickets, especially when the destination is only an hour and a half away.