Rotorua

This place absolutely whiffs of rotten eggs - you could fart to your heart's content here and no one would know (of course I don't do things like that).  People come here to visit areas of thermal activity (hence the sulphur-rich air).  Even in the heart of town there are lakes covered in smoke - which would look quite mystical and romantic if is weren't for the stench, bad enough to make you almost retch at times.

We visited 'Waiotapu ('thermal waters' in Maori) Thermal Wonderland', a compact area of cold and boiling pools of mud and water, steaming fumaroles (vents in the ground), smoking waterfalls and brightly coloured lakes.  All accompanied by the foul smell, of course.  All this is associated with volcanic activity that began 160,000 years ago.  The water can reach temperatures of up to 300 degrees centigrade.  Far off in the distance you can see the smoke coming from a geothermal power station, which just looks like another geyser.  Highlights are the boiling multi-hued 'Champagne Pool' and the Lady Knox Geyser that spouts punctually at 10.15 each morning, with the help of 300g of soap suds which acts as the catalyst.  The spurt of soapy water reaches heights of up to 20 metres and keeps going for about 10 minutes.  The fact that soap accelerates the geyser activity (pronounced guy-zer for anyone struggling to say it like I was) was discovered when prisoners in the prison that used to exist at this site tried to wash their clothes.

After 4 months of eating out pretty much all the time, we've had to put a stop to frivolous spending on food.  NZ is simply too expensive, particularly when you've been travelling for as long as we have (get your violins out) and when many activities here are adventure/experience-based and cost quite a bit.  Luckily, most hostels here have really good and clean kitchen facilities.  Some even have barbeques so we've been making the most of those.

Our evening excursion in Rotorua included food. Whoo-hoo!  We went to Mitai Maori Village.  Maori people have remained close to this sacred land around Rotorua and so it's a good spot to catch up on heritage.  I was excited because we would see more traditional dancing - I just love it (especially the haka war dance).  These tours are incredibly heavily commercialised (there were 300 people), but still highly recommended.  We were treated to a hangi - food cooked in a earth oven, made by digging a hole and steaming food in baskets over embers in the hole.  The food was unveiled to us outside - whole chickens, lamb legs and potatoes.  I doubt that the rest of the food - salads, garlic bread, dauphinous potatoes followed by desserts were strictly Maori, or even if this food we were shown was actually cooked in this hangi oven, but the food was delicious anyway.  It was a buffet and there was heaps of it.

A 'chief' had been selected from the group of tourists (I believe his wife put up his hand) to represent the 'nation of four winds' as we were all named.  When we all sat in front of a stage made up to look like a traditional Maori village we were treated to a welcoming ceremony by the tribe of costumed men and women.  Ceremony is very important to the Maori people and in their long long speeches much care is taken to praise ancestors.  Our 'chief' (poor bloke) had to deliver a speech to the Maori leader on stage introducing us and paying his respects and then press noses with the elder.  This is called haku, the sharing of life breath, and signifies acceptance.   We all sang, copying the Maori line for line. We were treated to a demonstration of weapons and musical instruments in action, exercises to prepare for battle, singing and dancing.  The men on stage were literally wearing g-sting loin cloths and little else but tattoos all over their thighs, bums and faces.  We were shown and told about the common tattoo designs.  For most of them in this 'show' the tattoos were just make-up, although the Maori playing the part of the elder told us that the ones on his legs and buttocks were genuine.  Originally these would have been created using bone chisels, a mallet and blue pigment.  Ouch.  The women traditionally just (!) had tattoos on their lips and chins.  From a distance it looks like they've been eating something bloody.

At the end we all stood and learnt some dance movements, including the elevated eyebrows, eyes wide open (so you can see whites all around) and tongue out move.  My favourite.