City's new nickname causes a stink

If you thought "Sulphur City" and "Rotovegas" were bad - how about Fartopolis?
That's the name given to the city in the latest New Zealand edition of the Lonely Planet travel guide.
Writers note Rotorua's thermal springs, dynamic geysers and bubbling mud pools, but there is also a warning - "hold your nose because the rich scent of sulphur has led some to call it Fartopolis".
It seems the nickname is news to many in Rotorua but it hasn't fazed those contacted by the Daily Post, most of whom responded with a chuckle.
And not all tourists think the name is justified, among them Melbourne's Meredith and Aisea Filihia.
"You can't have the wonders without the smell," Mrs Filihia said.
The couple took their two children Filipe, 3, and Fiona, 2, to Whakarewarewa yesterday and had no problem with the smell.
Although Mrs Filihea admitted Fiona did hold her nose when they visited a hot pool the night before, she said she and her husband did not notice the smell as much as when they visited eight years ago.
The general manager of one of the smelliest places in Rotorua, Hell's Gate Wai Ora Spa, Bryan Hughes, laughed when he heard Rotorua's new name.
"I think that's very good ... something a bit different, but there is something different in the air."
Rotorua's smells, he said, were what made the city unique.
Whakarewarewa - The Thermal Village's guiding supervisor Justin Te Hau said he preferred Rotovegas.
"Who wants to be known as a fart?"
Bike Vegas on Fenton St, near arguably the stinkiest corner in the central business district, has had customers complaining about the stench of "rotten eggs".
"But most come to expect a little bit of an odd smell from Rotorua," manager Alden Ardern said.
He thought the term Fartopolis was rather descriptive.
"It's quite funny. It's better than rotten eggs."
Rotorua mayor Kevin Winters also had a laugh about the new label. "I much prefer Rotorua ... [Fartopolis] doesn't bear any resemblance to our city. The sulphur is a quite a neat drawcard. It's our point of difference."