Exploring Tongariro and Taupo: A New Zealand Travel Adventure (No.10)

On the ninth day of the trip, heading north from Wellington
1️⃣ Cuba Street: In the morning, I visited Cuba Street in Wellington, which has rainbow zebra crossings, various vintage and record stores. The street has a unique vibe. I browsed a record store, but unfortunately, I don’t know much about New Zealand singers and am not sure who the famous local singers are (Photos 8, 9).

2️⃣ Levin Town: On the way north from Wellington, we passed through Levin town. Towns usually develop along the highway, with shops on both sides of the road. We bought a New Zealand Angus beef burger at McDonald’s 🍔 hahaha.
3️⃣ Tongariro: Continuing north, we arrived at Tongariro National Park, which is the first national park in New Zealand and the fourth in the world.

It has 15 volcanoes, the most famous of which, in order of height, are Mount Ruapehu, Mount Ngauruhoe, and Mount Tongariro. In the Lord of the Rings films, Ruapehu was the filming location for Mordor, where the orcs gathered. Ngauruhoe, with an altitude of 2,291 meters, is the “Mount Doom” in the movie, where Sauron forged the One Ring and where Frodo destroyed it.

This immediately brought to mind scenes from the film.
4️⃣ 20.2km Hike: The most famous hiking trail in Tongariro is the Tongariro Alpine Crossing (TAC), which is marked as 20.2km. Due to our itinerary, we didn’t plan to complete the entire route. We only walked the first 3 kilometers before turning back (which was like the warm-up stage of the whole walkway).

However, we saw a volcano 🌋, and it reminded me of Frodo and Sam arriving in Mordor and heading towards Mount Doom. Next time I visit New Zealand, I will definitely plan a full day for the Tongariro hike, hahaha (Photos 1-7).
5️⃣ Lake Taupo: It is the largest freshwater lake in New Zealand and Oceania, with an area as large as Singapore.

When I first saw Taupo, I couldn’t help but exclaim at the vastness of the lake. We rested for a while in a park by the lake and had some croissants to replenish our energy. By the lakeside, we saw the Tyndall effect as sunlight penetrated the clouds, which was incredibly beautiful (Photos 10-14).
6️⃣ Waterside Restaurant: In the evening, we arrived at the center of Taupo town, where there is a “Love Taupo” sign and Maori-style decorations.

Most restaurants close at 8 PM, but fortunately, we found the Waterside restaurant, which serves dinner until 9 PM. We ordered a seafood platter, which is the three-tiered plate in Photo 15, containing shrimp, shellfish, meatballs, fried fish, and calamari. We also ordered grilled salmon. The three-tiered plate was quite eye-catching, and everyone passing by would take a look, hahaha.

Did no one order this before? From the Waterside restaurant, you can see Lake Taupo, and at this time, we could see the sunset. The food and the view were both excellent.
7️⃣ Stayed at a motel, the room was spacious and had a small kitchen. The receptionist asked if the wind was strong coming from Wellington, hahaha.

It appears that there’s a universal consensus: Wellington is undeniably the windy city, where the gusts are as much a part of the landscape as its picturesque views.