After flying from Cairns to Sydney, the Lass family has finally made it to New Zealand! We first spent the night at a hotel in Auchland, before heading towards Rotorua to go on a tour that Brady's been anticipating since the trip was first planned.
We're going on an adventure to the Shire Mr. Frodo! New Zealand contains multiple filming locations for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films, and a tour in Rotorua allowed us to go to Hobbiton, where the set for Frodo and Sam's homes in the Shire are still kept in their prime for multiple photo opportunities no matter if you're an elf or an orc!
Needless to say, Brady enjoyed himself and quickly spent his merch money. We stayed in Rotorua for another day to check out the sulfur scent and thermal activity in the otherwise peaceful town.
But New Zealand's also known for their extreme sports, one of which was the invention of Zorbing. Where the v̶i̶c̶t̶i̶m̶ rider goes into a plastic ball filled with water down a mountain. Brady (being the only one under 50 years old) heroically volunteered himself as tribute and was so dedicated to the art that he didn't bring swim trunks and got his khakis wet, it was totally not because he wasn't aware that 90% of zorbing involves getting wet!
Afterwards we spent a night in the town of Napier, a place once shattered by an Earthquake. Even if we weren't there for long, we were treated to some interesting sites, including a black beach and a hotel room taken straight from the '30s!
We spent the next day at the capital city, Wellington. We got more Peter Jackson content with a tour of the area, including an overlook of the city, a location of an iconic scene from Fellowship of the Ring, and a tour of Weta Workshop, which does the makeup, special effects, costumes, and armory of some big blockbuster movies in the last decade.
"GET OFF THE ROAD!"
But the journey isn't over yet! Stay tuned to hear more about our escapades in the land of the long white cloud!
On a side note: As gorgeous as the settings and backgrounds are, you may want to consider your safety and sanity if you choose to drive around here.
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