Celebrity Solstice, Bay of Islands & Tauranga New Zealand

We boarded the Celebrity Solstice in Auckland and sailed north to the Bay of Islands

As it was for most of the trip, it was raining off and on but pleasant

Lemon pop and vinegar chips for a snack

I thought I saw a kiwi but it was a different bird. Very rare sighting apparently

Cute town, Russell Island

Too cold to swim though

Great Pyrenees relaxing at a shop

Aussies say "Feesh and Cheeps" for lunch, whereas Kiwis say "Fush and Chups"

Nice to have the place to ourselves. Some of our friends went to the Hole in the Rock.

The next day we went to Tauranga to visit the geothermal areas. Of course this was our sunniest day!

It actually didn't smell as bad as other geothermal areas we've visited (like St. Lucia)

The black swans were beautiful

We had the option of doing a full mud bath but we were so hot the thought of getting hotter wasn't appealing. Our friends did it while we wadded in the foot bath and said it was very refreshing.