DAY 3 – ROTORUA
We had a full day in Rotorua to do whatever we wanted. Most of them had booked couple of activities to do, whereas I had planned to explore Rotorua by myself.
I had a relaxing morning since I had no reason to rush anywhere. For breakfast, I made a savory avocado and egg toast, and sweet banana and nuttela toast. Having a kitchen at your disposal when you travel is like godsend. I can finally make home cooked meals, at least for breakfast.
Later, I walked around town and came across the geothermal springs. Walking through the springs was like walking through a steam room with the aroma of rotten eggs. Because of geothermal activity in the ground, there are lot of spas in this town for various treatments.
Burto has recommended that I try the pies at Better Quality Pies, so for lunch, I got the Vegetarian Pie and the Christmas Pie, and headed to the lakefront to admire the view while enjoying my meal. Well, the Veggie pie filling was bland but the crust was delicious. And the Christmas Pie was definitely yummy. I suppose their non-veggie pies are delicious but I would never know. The seagulls were obnoxious but “hell no,” they were not going to eat my lunch.
As I was walking around the pier, I noticed two black birds in the lake from afar, when I came close, I realized that they were the black swans. I was excited with joy because I had never seen one before. They were so stunning with their bright red beak and black feathers.
This small town does have lots of restaurants, cafes and boutiques, but they do close much earlier, unless it’s a bar restaurant.
I always love to go to a local library when I travel. It’s a great way to checkout local books, staff recommendations as well as the decor. The Rotorua Library had modern decor and the staff was very friendly. In fact, they had a café in the library, which I think is clever. I picked up some books to learn more about the Maori culture and history.
It was time for me head back to the hostel to relax and get ready for the evening kayaking activity.
The guide from “Waimarino Kayak Tours,” picked us up from the hostel and took us to Lake Rotoiti where his partner was waiting for us with kayaks and other gear. I had done kayaking ages ago, so was excited to do it again in NZ. The tandem kayaks which I was on were much sturdier than the ones I had used before. I partnered with Burto, which was a great idea, since he has been an expert kayak instructor.
Kayaking through the stunning water ways of Lake Rotoiti was magical, surrounded by beautiful scenery and abundant birdlife at every corner.
Our first stop was at the stunning Manupirua Hot Pools, which are only accessible by water. Kayaking in the lake while the cool wind picks up is not pleasant but the hot pools were perfect to warm us up. We spent nearly 45 mins here and before we knew it, it was time to kayak to our next destination.
As the sun set, the sky turned dark and we paddled our way to the Glowworm caves. The entire cave was glowing like Christmas lights. It was a site I had never seen before – “pure magic.” The guides shared the myths and legends linked to the area, and especially, the bum poem was super funny. The more we laughed, the brighter was their glow. It was interesting to learn that it’s basically the larvae of the insect, which glows because of bioluminescence, which is a reaction between the chemicals given off by the worm and the oxygen in the air, to attract food and burn off its waste.
It had started to rain, which made it hard to see the twinkling stars but we did get glimpse of the moon here and there, which guided us toward shore. Kayaking through the choppy lake was no fun, but it surely was an adventure I’ll always remember.
Without anyone tipping the kayak over, we made it safe and sound back to the shore. After an hour drive from the lake, we were back at the YHA. I hopped into the hot shower to warm myself up before calling it a night.
DAY 4 – ROTORUA TO MURUPARA
“Rain rain go away, come back another day!” I still remember those rhymes from my kindergarten days, and today morning this rhyme was ringing in my ear, as I was awaken by the rain drops melodiously serenading the windows.
When you are on an adventure, you have to embrace the sunny days, stormy days and everything in between. The rain didn’t go away but we continued on our tour as planned.
After doing my morning stretching and yoga routine, I jumped in the shower, got ready, packed my bags and headed to the kitchen to make my usual breakfast. Since it was raining, I decided to make hot chocolate as a perfect breakfast addition.
Every morning over breakfast, Burto, would give us a good overview of what’s happening today and upcoming days. I greatly appreciated that he paid attention to these subtle details so that we were not left in the dark.
After we checked out of YHA, our next stop was “Te Puia,” which was just 15 minutes ride from Rotorua.
Te Puia – Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley Maori culture and heritage center –
The local Maori guide at Te Puia, which spans 70 hectares within the historic Whakarewarewa Geothermal Valley, treated us like whānau (family). “wh” is pronounced as “f” in Maori. Learned a lot about the Maori culture and their commitment to kaitiakitanga means that they will protect the rich natural and cultural taonga (treasures) at Te Puia and ensure that they thrive for generations to come.
Got to checkout the world famous Pōhutu geyser, mud pools, hot springs, native Kiwi bird and the national school of wood carving, weaving, stone and bone carving. It was definitely an authentic experience and to top it off we got to see the Haka performance.
Pōhutu geyser, Mud pools and Hot Springs –
Wood, stone and bone carving –
Flax Basket Weaving –
Haka performance –
Next stop – Marupara Town –
After an amazing time at Te Puia, we headed towards Murupara, which is a remote area where a certain Maori community lives.
On the way, we met the spunky, Ina. She greeted us with “Kia Ora Whānau,” which means Welcome Family. In spite of the rain, we got out of the bus and greeted Ina the Maori way.
Ina shared with us the history of the region and stories about her ancestors. It was very insightful to learn about Murupara – how the community is struggling to make ends meet and the epidemic of substance abuse.
While Murupara’s socio-economic area designation might be decile one but the local school has high aspirations for their students. In fact, Maori, Mandarin, Japanese as well as English are mandatory within their school curriculum.
We finally arrived at Kohu Tapu Lodges with deers, horses, pigs, and goats welcoming us near the entrance.
Nadine, one of the owners, greeted us and was so grateful that we had come all the way to be at the lodge and learn about the Maori culture and Murupara. They have partnered with the local Maori school so that young students can meet the visitors and learn from people all around the world. The lodge provides left over food to school students so they can have a good meal. They also had interns from different countries to stay at the lodge, learn the local culture and assist them.
The team at the lodge were very proud of their heritage and excited to share it with us. Got to see first hand, how they make Hangi, it’s a Maori method to cook food using heated rocks, buried in a pit oven, called an umu. In 2.5 hours, our food will be ready, just in time for dinner.
While the food was cooking in the underground pit, we learned to make bracelets from flax leaf.
Ina taught us the Haka. Haka means Breath of Fire (Ha – Breath, Ka – Fire). It’s a ceremonial dance usually done to incite fear among the enemies by vigorous movements and stamping of the feet, and was performed during battles by male warriors. Nowadays, it’s performed by both men and women to welcome guests or to acknowledge great achievements. We learned the song and movements to align with the rhythm. It surely was once in a lifetime “Haka” moment, you never know when I’ll have to put my Haka skill to use, especially in our current political climate.
Our “Kai,” which means food from the Hangi was ready and it was time for supper. They had prepared two kinds of salads, baked sweet potato, veggies, meats and yummy dessert pies. The staff and interns worked together to set our tables and serve us the meal. After having the yummy meal, we assisted in washing the dishes, cleaning the kitchen and packing all the left over food for school students. We later watched the video about what the lodge does for the local community and how the students were happy to meet visitors and have the delicious Hangi food.
Since tomorrow was the first day of school, we were not able to meet the students because of their busy schedule. At least the students will have the Hangi for lunch, so they made me feel good.
Instead of heading back to my room after dinner, I decided to hangout with others at the lounge. We shared our days high points and how grateful we were to be part of the Maori family for a day. I had come to NZ to admire the nature’s beauty and learn about the local culture but I am grateful to have received so much more than what I had envisioned.
With that note, it was time for me to go to bed but I couldn’t fall asleep immediately, because the pouring rain and thunderstorms were trying their best to distract me.
