"Steven, your Y chromosome is showing!"

The title was a quote from this weekend, Aerin's or Allison's, not sure which. Steven and Tomas went exploring after kayaking, a very boy thing to do since we were being picked up very soon. I believe the Y chromosome comment was made while Steven was climbing a random cliff. Go figure. I guess that rash (male-ness comes out like a rash, in case you were wondering) is getting more and more difficult to control. Haha.

This weekend was epic. We left Wellington in 2 cars (there were 9 of us this weekend) Thursday afternoon and drove 7 hours to our first hostel. Tired is an understatement. Friday we got up relatively early and went blackwater rafting. We abseiled into a cave (it's like repelling, sort of), waded through the water to get our floats, hiked upriver to a flat spot, turned off our headlamps and just stared at the ceiling. There were thousands of gloworms in this cave. It was an amazing sight. We then floated down the river (through the cave) for a little while before climbing up onto the rocks and doing some caving. We climbed over, under, and through random rocks and holes, trying not to fall or lose our gumboots in the process (not an easy task). Maneuvering in wetsuits is not as easy as you might think. I can't describe this experience in enough detail for you to understand how cool it really was. We hiked back upriver (still in the dark, cold cave, in water up to our knees in most places) to the cave exit, where we had abseiled in 3 hours earlier. That means it was a big cliff that we now had to get back up. This was accomplished by climbing up the side of said cliff, which was covered in moss in some places, had very tiny ledges for toes, and was perfectly vertical in other places. Still, we all made it out alive and very sore.

The rest of Friday was spent napping and relaxing. At least some of us chose that option. The boys (Steven, Tomas, and Matt) decided to go exploring, so they took one of the cars and went who knows where and apparently explored a cave on their own. Now you know why we call male-ness a rash. They just can't help themselves. Charity and Aerin explored the town for a little while. Sheri, Allison, Miranda, and I chose to nap for a few hours instead. Great decision. It's amazing how comfortable a foreign place can be when you're completely exhausted and how peaceful it can be when you send half of your group off to do other things while you sleep. :)

Saturday was another busy day, but it was much less strenuous. We visited some hot springs, where we spent a couple of hours lounging around and enjoying the hot water. We then went to a place called Hell's Gate. Hell's Gate is one of the most active geothermal sites in NZ, apparently. There were dozens of pools of hot water, bubbling up from underground. Of course, the whole place (and therefore all of our clothes and belongings) smelled like sulfur, but it was too cool a place to pass up based on the smell. We were able to put our hands in one of the pools (one of few that was less than 98 Celsius) and feel the mud, which was thought to have healing powers. Saturday night we went to a Maori cultural dinner and show, which turned out to be even better than we expected. We had an amazing dinner. I tried lamb, fish, mushrooms, and some other random things that I can't really identify. I wasn't sure how I felt about eating lamb, but it was really good. I'm not a fish fan, but this fish was amazing. I went back for a second helping. I really am embracing new experiences and trying new things every chance I get! The actual show was fantastic. We got to experience the Maori culture, and Sheri and Steven got to experience it firsthand. Sheri was called up to do a poi dance (it looked pretty complicated, you have to be really coordinated to manage. It involves swinging a ball around and catching it, and bouncing it off the back of your hand. I can't even describe it) and Steven was called up to perform the Haka, or war dance. The video is on his facebook. I suggest everyone go watch it. I'll try to post it here when I get a copy. :) Miranda and I were laughing so hard we were crying, so my pictures didn't turn out too great, but it was worth it.

Sunday, we went kayaking down the Whanganui River... 22 kilometers down the river. It was very tiring, but definitely worth it. The 5+ hour drive back home was less than exciting, but the car karaoke was pretty awesome. We have a 3 day week this week, leaving for Taupo Thursday morning and coming back to Wellington on Sunday. So much to do, so little time!

The girls after kayaking the river