The Great Disappointment

According to Lonely Planet, Taupo is the world capital of skydiving. This sounded like a good place to go, considering Lisa, Lori and I have been trying to plan a skydiving expedition for the past three years. One year Lisa did not have health insurance and for some reason she didn't want to go at that time. The next year, Lori had back problems, so that was not a good time to go. The year before that we were poor, so that stopped us as well. Now was our time! We were ecstatic that we were finally going skydiving, and in New Zealand of all places! However, there was one flaw to our plan-the weather. We were told there had to be no wind or rain in order for the pilot to fly. We hoped against hope that the big raincloud would disappear. But despite Lisa’s fervent prayers, we got to the airport only to find out they would not be flying that day. We were a very despondent group after that. But we went on with our lives and did some site seeing around Taupo. We saw Haka Falls, which is part of Waikato River, the longest one in New Zealand. Haka Falls is called “Hakanui” by the Maori, or “Great Body of Spray.”

Pilgrims Progress-

It was still drizzling by the time we got to the Craters of the Moon. This is another geothermal area with plenty of warning signs to stay on the designated path. At first this place reminded me of Jurassic Park, and I expected a T-Rex to come charging out of the foliage. But as we walked further on the wooden- made path, I started thinking about Pilgrim’s Progress. Names like the Pit of Despair and the Bridge of Despondency came to mind while we walked the narrow pathway. Not all of Taupo ended up being a disappointment. I guess we will have to go back there for our skydiving thrills.