Kia Ora or Hello in Maori

You can smell Rotorua long before you can see it. Ah, sulfur (think rotten eggs on a hot day). That smell lets you know that geothermal beauty is close by. Fortunately, Jeff had the foresight to rent an apartment (with a hot tub) north of town protecting us from the stench.

Natalie fell in love with Marley, the owner's dog, who loved to play with her and wagged her tail whenever she saw Natalie. We used the kayaks and row boat at the house to explore Lake Rotorua and the local stream. Natalie manned a kayak on her own paddling in a Z formation, hitting the bank or wall on either side of the stream, but making progress nonetheless.

The highlight for me was our visit to Te Puia, a geothermal and Maori center. Rotorua has a rich Maori heritage that was on display at Te Puia. This former Maori settlement has a very active geyser that goes off twice an hour, bubbling mud pits, and many steam vents. Our tour guide told us how the haka (or war dance) prevented many battles. He also described how the thermal pools are still used for cooking (and heating much of the town) and the way of life his people established in this area after the long journey from Tahiti to settle there.

There is a national carving and weaving school on the property that had artisans at work that we could observe and talk with. The craftsmanship was astounding, with such intricate detail.

The meeting house required a tribal invitation (and a ticket) to enter. A chief was selected from the audience and the Maori performer presented him with a fern and performed the Karanga or welcoming ceremony. Upon being granted entry, we all headed inside for the performance. There was a lot of jockeying for position amongst the crowd, so we were relieved when kids were allowed to sit on the floor up front. The performance had a wide range of themes from: the music of star crossed lovers, the fun play and rhythm of the stick tossing game, the fierce haka dance with warriors tongues sticking out to ward enemies off, fighting displays, and the poi ball dancing. Natalie took Polynesian dance classes and had performed poi ball dancing herself. She was blown away when the dancers each had 4 poi balls flying through the air at once, since she works with 2. The tribal chants and informative commentary left us with a real sense of wonder and appreciation for the Maori people.

Pohutu Geyser

Karanga Ceremony

 

Clean up time. Can she carry it all?