I'm starting with this picture because we just came back from a part of the country that has a lot of Maori culture; but maybe I should have started with a picture of a geyser because of all the thermal activity in the central North island.  I'll start the narration with dropping off the dogs to board with Kelly.  We have a gem with this dog sitter.  Not only does she have a great house and yard, she does great pet care (www.cosycats.co.nz)  She leaves messages daily.  Here's a phone text from last night:
Hi mum and dad we have had a good day and have settled in well.  We have explored, rested, walked (encountered sheep cattle and horses so quite exciting but we kept it together) and ate:). We hope you are enjoying Rotorua.  Love officer K and Rx XXXX    An e-mail the next day read "Great to hear the meeting is going well!! Have you got used to the smell yet?  Rx & Kaylee fab. They were perfect last night & didn’t make a sound. Rx has a very ‘hearty’ appetite & almost vacuumed up his dinner last night!! They have had a walk today & been out investigating on the big front lawn area. Are inside now having a laze. Am off to do my PM feeds in a wee while, then we are going for a PM walk up in the bush that’s about a 5 min drive from here.
We drove up north and hit the Desert Road mid morning.  Not a true desert (it rains everywhere in NZ), but the area is kept arid by the free-draining blanket of volcanic ash and pumice.  The sun came out for us as Lake Taupo came into view.  Lake Taupo is the biggest lake in australasia.  It's known for its fantastic trout fishing.  We had lunch in the town, and then continued north stopping to visit Huka Falls, Craters of the Moon, and a bubbling mud pool.  In the evening, we went to a Maori cultural event.  At the hangi, we were seated next to someone that looked familiar.  It was one of the jazz musicians (and his mother) that we saw in PN at the concert last week.  Check out Theo Jackson on the web.  On Friday and Saturday, I attended the conference, while Rich walked around and checked out Rotorua.  The city does have a sulfur smell.  I had information overload going to lectures on general medical topics, as well as learning information specific to practicing in NZ.  The meeting was structured very much like the AAFP Annual Assembly.  The exhibits were like it used to be for us with drug rep treats and prizes.  The program was well run, and I learned a lot.  My favorite part was the dinner Saturday night where we met interesting and friendly docs from around the country.  There was also a presentation from a doc that went to Antarctica.  He had great pictures of penguins, sea lions, seals, and the albatross.  Great commentary as well.  Check out http://www.ourfarsouth.org/  As I wait for the pictures to download, I'll write some terms heard this week:  one off - one time,  query (eg pneumonia) - R/O, possible, biscuits are cookies, wait in a long queue, GTN - glyceryl tri nitrate - NTG, the lead maternity care giver (midwife in this case), operating theatre, my grandmother is very unwell, 2/52 (needs 2 weeks of supplementary O2), MEDA - med clearance form on Air NZ, PAX - passengers.  See all the weekend pictures at https://picasaweb.google.com/115133267095590644390/Rotorua?authuser=0&feat=directlink
We took a long winding way home, driving back on the west side of the lake and park; and we got to see some of the Tongariro National Park.  The Tongariro Alpine Crossing is one of the most popular of the major tramps in the region.   The ski areas open next week.  I didn't get good pictures of the sheep and cows and beautiful vistas.  It was either too overcast or rainy, or the road was too narrow and winding to stop.