On the morning of December 27th we drove about an hour to reach the reconstructed site -- in beautiful rolling hills -- of
The Shire where Peter Jackson did the filming for both the Lord of the Rings movies and also the two Hobbit films that are yet to be released. Unfortunately, we were required to sign an agreement that pictures taken of
Bag End and other Hobbit holes would not be posted on the internet until the 2nd Hobbit film is shown in theaters in December, 2013. However, as part of the tour that we paid for we did watch a sheep-shearing on the farm -- with Ron having a chance to feed one of the lambs.
After the "Shire-and-farm visit" we drove further afield to reach the much-recommended
Hamilton Gardens -- a very extensive arrangement of formal gardens (Japanese, Chinese, Indian, English, American, Italian Renaissance, etc.)
Pictured to the left is the Italian Renaissance Garden and right below it are the spectacular flower beds in the Indian garden. Also pictured is Nancy standing in the English Flower Garden. Especially the Japanese and Chinese gardens seemed to call us to
slow down, sit down, and meditate on the beauty of God's creation. Unfortunately, our time schedule, like so much of life, didn't seem to cooperate!
Other Rotorua experiences included attending an evening Maori cultural event that included a
Hangi Dinner (meat & vegetables cooked for 3 hours in a pit in the ground). The picture of the Maori warriors was designed to depict a "welcoming ceremony" on the arrival of people (us) from another tribe. The last picture shows the very ornate Rotorua Museum that we visited on another evening. - rw
On the morning of December 27th we drove about an hour to reach the reconstructed site -- in beautiful rolling hills -- of The Shire where Peter Jackson did the filming for both the Lord of the Rings movies and also the two Hobbit films that are yet to be released. Unfortunately, we were required to sign an agreement that pictures taken of Bag End and other Hobbit holes would not be posted on the internet until the 2nd Hobbit film is shown in theaters in December, 2013. However, as part of the tour that we paid for we did watch a sheep-shearing on the farm -- with Ron having a chance to feed one of the lambs. 
After the "Shire-and-farm visit" we drove further afield to reach the much-recommended Hamilton Gardens -- a very extensive arrangement of formal gardens (Japanese, Chinese, Indian, English, American, Italian Renaissance, etc.) 
Pictured to the left is the Italian Renaissance Garden and right below it are the spectacular flower beds in the Indian garden. Also pictured is Nancy standing in the English Flower Garden. Especially the Japanese and Chinese gardens seemed to call us to slow down, sit down, and meditate on the beauty of God's creation. Unfortunately, our time schedule, like so much of life, didn't seem to cooperate!
Other Rotorua experiences included attending an evening Maori cultural event that included a Hangi Dinner (meat & vegetables cooked for 3 hours in a pit in the ground). The picture of the Maori warriors was designed to depict a "welcoming ceremony" on the arrival of people (us) from another tribe. The last picture shows the very ornate Rotorua Museum that we visited on another evening. - rw
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