Rotorua

Trip Start Feb 08, 2008

Trip End Mar 10, 2008

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Where I stayed

Heritage Hotel

(Rotorua hotels)

Flag of New Zealand Rotorua, New Zealand
Sunday, February 17, 2008

We arrive in Rotorua at 6:00 p.m., it is lovely and sunny and Rotorua is a much larger city then I was expecting. The city sprawls on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua and was originally developed as a European style spa . Before taking us to our hotels our driver gives us a quick look around downtown - our first chance to see geothermal activity happening right in people's yards, steam vents rising everywhere. The smell of sulpher is heavy in the air, but not as bad as I was expecting. We have wonderful accommodation at the Heritage Hotel, very close to the thermal reserve . From our balcony I can see great plumes of steam coming out of the ground. We quickly settle in as we are soon off to a Maori village to join in a hangi (Maori feast).

The festivities get underway when Mark picks us up for a quick drive to his tribal village (Tamaki) where we will be staying for about 4 hours

mauri

. We start off with a short film on the origins of the Maori (Polynesian), then back onto the shuttle while Marks picks one of the men on our bus to be the "chief" and participate in the welcoming ceremony (the Pohiri) . Mark teaches us the Maori greeting (Kia Ora). Mark proceeds to welcome us in 30 different languages (complete with hilarious accents), he is quite the linguist. We arrive at the village and no one is allowed to enter the village until a challenge has been given and a peace offering accepted. The challenge is quite intimidating, war calls, warriors, threatening gestures and weapons display. A fern leaf is offered and accepted then the women welcome the guests (not a war song but still pretty intimidating). When all the formalities are over we are allowed into the village and have about a half hour to explore different displays around the village. A conch shell is blown to announce the call to the entertainment area. We are treated to an amazing show, traditional songs and dances (Waiata) and war dances (the famous Haka). The Haka is intended to intimidate and it does. Facial and body tattoos, native dress, the sticking out of the tongue and rolling of the eyes, combined with fierce war cries and the brandishing of war clubs is very chilling. One cannot help but wonder what Captain Cook must have thought we he first encountered the Maori. The entire show is amazing and I was wishing that it would never end.

Dinner is next with a meal that has been prepared in fire pits in the ground

Maori Figure

. Chicken, lamb, sweet potato, mussels and prawns, salads and a wonderful dessert table (I am sure this part was not traditional). After dinner there are speeches and closing ceremonies and then more singing before heading back to our shuttles. Our driver Mark has been participating in the entertainment and he is still in the entertaining mood when we get back on the bus. He decides that each nationality on the bus must sing a song, and others can join in if they wish. Luckily there are several Canadians on the bus and soon we are singing "The good old hockey game", Stomping Tom would be proud. It was great fun! Then Mark kicks it up into high gear with everyone participating in "The Wheels on the Bus", complete with popping up and down (and this includes Mark). Next comes the traffic circle where Mark drives the bus around and around the traffic circle while we all sing "Around and around the Mulberry bush". Fortunately there is no other traffic at this time of night. Al comments that he had trouble just getting a car around the traffic circle never mind a bus going around and around! It has been quite the night and we are still laughing when we hop off the bus