Rotorua
Is located in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island. I heard that one third of the population was Maori. Rotorua is well-known for its geothermal activity and the major tourist spot. There are lots of geysers, hot mud pools and hot springs in the city. So as soon as I went out the terminal building of Rotorua Airport, I smelt the sulfur!

Trecks backpackers / NZ$23 per person per night
I arrived at Treck backpackers, which was close to the middle of the town, at about 9:30a.m. Because it was an early arrival, I was misunderstood by the clerk as checking out not in! Even though there was still lots of time untill check-in, I could check in and get a room key. I could get my bed in the hostel much earlier than I had expected so I wasted little time washing my clothes!

I stayed in a femle shared room for 4 nights. There were only 4 beds, a few clothes hooks on the wall and a rubbish bin in the room. The room was very simple but everything was nice and clean.
The walls were thin and it was a small problem. During my stay, the people staying in a small group next door played music at ningt and it was noisy! However, I think that it is much better than some other accommodations I have stayed in before.

There was a large common area and a clean kitchen with kitchen facilities. There were always lots of people cooking up a quick meal. Everybody cooked mountains of food and finished everything on their plates! I fully understood from deep in my heart why every serving size in a restaurant always were so large....
By the way, I haven't cooked a meal yet. Because I never think that I want to do housework while traveling abroad , especially doing the dishes!