Day Four January 15, 2008 Tuesday

Today I woke up at about 8:00. I felt 100% better from the night before and ready to start the day! First thing we did was have breakfast, It was amazing, French toast, fruit, whipped cream, and syrup, mmmmmm! After breakfast we packed up our tents and said goodbye to all of our friends at the backpackers lodge and headed to Rotorua. The car ride was fun, my friends had a ‘get to know Becky’ session, so I got to tell my life story. Also, my friend Stephanie fell asleep on my shoulder and drooled a little on me, it was hilarious! When we pulled into this new lodge we were amazed at how every single place seems to get better and better. The bathrooms at this place are absolutely amazing and we have a big kitchen too! Once we had our tents pitched and everything and ate lunch, Mark told us that we were going to go to a luge and gondola ride. Now I have been on the luge at park city, so I was expecting something similar to that, but I could not have been more wrong. This place was like a go-cart race track down a mountain with no guard rails and sharp turns! I swear, the best thing about New Zealand is that they have absolutely no regard for personal safety! We rode up the mountain in a gondola that over-looked one of the most amazing views that I have ever seen in my life. We all got our tickets for our five luge rides and got in line. I was on video duty of course and got a few interviews and impressions about the luging. When I finally got in line and was ready to go I decided to film the actual ride itself. So there I was barreling down a hill holding onto a thin little metal crossbar between the handles and trying to keep the camera steady while not crashing to my death! Frankly I think the picture of me would have been fairly hysterical! After I finally got down the hill I got on the chairlift to go back up and put the camera away to enjoy my other four rides. The luge was very fun and exciting, and has basically ruined all wussy American luges for me for the rest of my life! After the luging adventures a few people went swimming in the lake, while others went shopping. Because I forgot a towel and conditioner I decided to go with the shopping group. The most amazing thing about New Zealanders is that they don’t like to work. Work is just something they do until they go home, not an integral part of life. As a result, almost all stores close at 4:30 pm! Because we didn’t get to town until 6:00 we were pretty much out of luck. It was really fun to walk around and look in the windows though, and we did finally find a supermarket that was open that I was able to get a towel, shampoo and conditioner, and some toothpaste, which I also forgot. When we came home we were supposed to have dinner, but the burners were being slow, so we didn’t end up eating until 9:00. In the mean time my tent buddies and I had a small tent party with about five other girls, so there were about eight people in our little three-person tent! Also I got to play doctor to a few people who had cuts and stuff. Eventually dinner was finally ready and it was delicious, and finished off with amazing ice cream. After that I took a shower and shaved my legs, I will never underestimate the beauty of a good shower and shaved legs again in my life! When I got back to my tent I was trying to read my scriptures and write in my journal, but my roommates and I ended up having a giggle-fest for about an hour! Now they are both finally asleep and I am about ready to pass out too, goodnight!