Our next destination was Rotorua, a small town famous for its hot springs, geysers, fumaroles, and mud baths. We visited Whakarewarewa, still a living village of the Tuhourangi / Ngati Wahiao peoples, and a place used by their tribes as a tourist attraction for many generations. Among other famous visitors, Eleanor Roosevelt, as first lady, created a stir by touching noses with a Maori woman in the traditional greeting. As our guide pointed out, they had in-home heating and hot running water as well as thermal steam ovens and hot water cookers centuries before it was the norm. We enjoyed a traditionally cooked (steamed and boiled) dinner, walked around their geothermal landscape, and had a fantastic time watching the show of traditional Maori singing and dancing. Watching the Haka, the traditional dance and chant using the whole body, mind, and spirit, it is easy to see why New Zealand's sports teams are winners!
We haven't been lucky enough to see a kiwi (bird) in the wild, but did manage to see three of them in a sanctuary. We went into the enclosure at night and basically waited silently until they woke up and hoped they would walk toward us. Not quite as magical as the penguins in the wild, but still pretty fun. We ended our stay in Rotorua with a trip to Hell's Gate, a geothermal area with bubbling mud pots, a gorgeous hot water waterfall, and a mud bath. We also got to try our hands at some traditional wood carvings, and now have some authentically "Made in New Zealand" magnets depicting Maori symbols for our refrigerator. According to the guides, with our dip in the mud bath, we will look a good ten years younger... The soft, silicone-filled water feels so nice and leaves regular bubble baths jealous. Take me away!
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