I spent eight freaking hours on the bus today, getting from Wellington to Rotorua. That's eight hours. And this one didn't even have commentary or photo stops along the way. So it was eight hours of watching farmland and dinky little towns roll by. I underestimated the size of New Zealand and overestimated the speed of buses.
The good news is, I'll be in Rotorua for a day and a half, then in Auckland for 3 days, so my internal travels are almost done! Rotorua, on a Sunday night at 7pm, is a ghost town. The grocery store was open, as was a sushi restaurant, so I stocked up on food for the next couple of days and had some mediocre sushi tonight. The food in New Zealand has generally been quite good. They have a lot of baked goods that are flavorful and filling. So tonight's dinner was a bit of a letdown by comparison. No big deal. I might actually go so sleep early tonight so I can get an early start tomorrow, and see as much as possible.
Finally, I am staying in the smallest motel room I've ever seen. It is larger than those coffin hotel rooms in Japan, but just barely. There is a single bed, which stretches the entire length of the room, and a 24" wide expanse (lol "expanse") of carpet next to it, and a shelf above the bed. And that it it. The door does not even open all the way. Oh well, at $27 USD/night, I'll take it.
The good news is, I'll be in Rotorua for a day and a half, then in Auckland for 3 days, so my internal travels are almost done! Rotorua, on a Sunday night at 7pm, is a ghost town. The grocery store was open, as was a sushi restaurant, so I stocked up on food for the next couple of days and had some mediocre sushi tonight. The food in New Zealand has generally been quite good. They have a lot of baked goods that are flavorful and filling. So tonight's dinner was a bit of a letdown by comparison. No big deal. I might actually go so sleep early tonight so I can get an early start tomorrow, and see as much as possible.
Finally, I am staying in the smallest motel room I've ever seen. It is larger than those coffin hotel rooms in Japan, but just barely. There is a single bed, which stretches the entire length of the room, and a 24" wide expanse (lol "expanse") of carpet next to it, and a shelf above the bed. And that it it. The door does not even open all the way. Oh well, at $27 USD/night, I'll take it.
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| That's my room, seen from outside the window. |
Damn, that IS a small room. Is that usual? Just a function of the fact real estate is at a premium on an island, so they don't spend it on large hotel rooms? I suppose it does incentivize getting out and about.
ReplyDeleteshoooot I don't think i'd even pay 27 a night :P
ReplyDeleteThis is unusually small. The smallest I've stayed in anywhere. My previous smallest room was in London. It was like this but had a hallway and little bathroom attached.
ReplyDeleteAnd no, it's not for lack of space. Rotorua is a small town, mostly focused on tourism. Most rooms I've stayed in, both in NZ and elsewhere, are normal-sized, although they tend to be a little smaller in big cities and a bigger elsewhere.
I'd guess about 1/2 of my nights, I've slept in a room without a bathroom, to save money. That's not unusual in most countries, except the U.S.
So far my cheapest room was in Phnom Penh, for $16/night. It had a bathroom. My most expensive is coming up: One night in Tahiti will cost me $160. It damn well better have a bathroom.
I've stayed in one of those Japanese coffin hotel rooms. It wasn't that bad. But I had too much to drink, so that helped.
ReplyDelete