Rotorua - Ziplines and Maori Culture

After visiting the glowworms in Waitomo, we drove 2 hours east to Rotorua. We would be here for several days. 

First up was a zipline adventure through an old growth forest. This was Lucy’s first time on a zipline and also the first time for the boys on something higher than Treetop Quest in Roanoke. The Rotorua Canopy tours “Original Tour” featured a zip that was 100 feet high and 620 feet long. There was a more advanced one, but this was exciting enough for me.

Ziplines make me nervous. Not the zipping part, but the stepping off the platform part. It also makes me nervous to see my kids step off platforms. I’m happier to just not zipline at all. However, my kids wanted to do this and being in a family means that sometimes we do things that make us uncomfortable. And, sometimes being a parent means we have to demonstrate what being uncomfortable actually looks like. 

Do you see the platform on the other side? No? Yeah, me either!

Lucy looking like she born in the trees.

completely at ease

Failing at looking comfortable.

Later in the afternoon, we met up at Te Pa Tu to join in a Maori cultural experience and dinner.

I LOVED every minute of this and believe it is a must do for anyone visiting the North Island. 

On the 20 minute bus ride from the center of Rotorua to the tribal meeting grounds, our tour guide appointed our “tribal chief.” He was Richard from Iowa. He explained to Chief Richard about the welcoming ceremony and his role in accepting the silver fern followed by a greeting with two nose touches, followed by saying “Kia Ora.” This means welcome, or more specifically, “blessing to you in all areas of life."

After we arrived at the tribal meeting place, which was in the middle of a charming forest, we gathered in the front area, where four men clad in little more than furs and loincloths came rushing into the clearing aggressively welding spears. 

It was the kids’ turn to feel uncomfortable. Lucy clung to me and said she “wasn’t going in there." 

Chief Richard from Iowa performed his part in the ceremony satisfactorily, and we were granted entrance. 

We walked through the woods past huts to a stone-seated open-air amphitheater. Our tour guide, along with seven others, who we found were all related to each other (cousins and siblings) performed a number of traditional songs, dances, chants and even games with sticks. 

I. LOVED. IT!

The songs, the passion these young people had for their culture, the joy for their family and being able to share it with their captivated audience. I was moved. 

For some reason, I didn’t take many pictures here. I think I must have been too intrigued to even think about my camera. I do have some video though.

2 min video of song and dance, chanting

one of the stick dances

Afterwards, they led us through various areas to learn some of what they had demonstrated. 

We learned this rope ball dance that reminded me a bit of swinging nun chucks. Then we learned a stick game that I nearly won, but Chief Richard from Iowa might be a cheater…

Tom and the boys learned a haka. I actually do have video of that, but Jimmy and Sammy made me swear I wouldn’t put it on the blog or Facebook. They did give me permission to show a still image.

Then we feasted. 

There were three courses, but like twenty dishes. We ate duck, lamb, beef, eel, tuna, abalone, shrimp, white bait, sweet potato cooked three different ways, roasted vegetables, salad, squash, bread with truffle butter. I know I’m missing something. 

Dessert included a special drink. I don’t actually know what it was, but it tasted sweet. There was chocolate and toffee on sticks followed by crème brûlée, pavlova and custard with passion fruit and berry compote. 

You could have rolled me out there with how “uncomfortably” full I was. Even “clean-plate” Tom couldn’t finish. 

As our bus took us back to Rotorua town center, Chief Richard from Iowa seemed to feel so universally connected that he led the whole bus of strangers (from 10 different countries) into signing Christmas songs.