Travel Notes – Rotorua (Waimangu), New Zealand

(The following article is adapted from my personal notes I wrote about my family’s trip to NZ in 2002.)

…..cont’d from last post Travel Notes – Rotorua (Waiotapu), New Zealand

After our visit at Waiotapu, we had a quick lunch and we drove to Waimangu, just a few km away.

Waimangu is a beautiful and scenic spot. It is a volcanic valley.

At Waimangu, you have a choice of three packages. A walking-only package, a boat-ride-only package and a combination of both. We spent a good deal of time at Waiotapu earlier that morning. And we still had another major even just before sunset. In Singapore, I planned for a combination tour. But that would mean overlapping the final event for the day. We still had the Traditional Hangi Concert. Hence, I decided that we take the boat-ride-only package.

The boat ride was actually a ride in the lake of Waimangu. Like Lake Roturua, this lake is in volcanic area. But unlike Lake Roturua, Waimangu is still active! Only about slightly over a hundred years ago, Waimangu erupted to such an extent that the crater’s size expanded! Spews of lava filled the air and caused spectacular skylines around the region thousands of kilometres away.

During the boat ride, we were given a commentary on the history of Waimangu. The climax of the boat ride was when we were treated to the sight of geysers erupting at the rocks near the edge of the lake. The boatman reversed the boat and we had a close up view of the event barely 30 metres away. Needless to say, we had it videotaped and took some spectacular pictures.

Image from taken from here – http://acatte.perso.neuf.fr/New-Zealand_Waimangu.htm

More pics here.

By the time we completed the Waimangu stuff, it was late afternoon. Boy, were we poofed! Drove my family back to the motel and got everyone to have a quick bath. Caught up about 15 minutes of rest and got ready for the final event of the day.

Yeah, it is the Traditional Maori Hangi Concert. If you happen to be in Rotorua, and you miss this event, you ain’t seen Rotorua!

You have to pre-book this concert. They will then put you on a bus to bring you to Tamaki Village. The landlady of the motel (Ann’s Volcanic) booked five tickets on our behalf.

This concert gives you a rare chance to learn and appreciate Maori culture from the Maoris themselves. There were five busloads of tourists that attended the concert that night.

A Maori member performing the welcoming ritual.
Pic taken from here – http://www.viator.com/photos/Rotorua-tours/Rotorua-Maori-Hangi-Dinner-and-Performance/985495

In true Maori tradition, we had to appoint a “chief” amongst us to be received by the Maori tribe. It was customary for the hosts to perform a war cry and war dance. The chief Maori would place a twig on the ground and expect the chief visitor to pick it up. If the chief visitor picks it up and retreats, that would be a sign that we have come in peace. If the chief visitor were to break the twig or drop it, it meant that we have come with war in our minds.

This custom was briefed to all visitors even before we stepped into the village. The appointed chief amongst us too was briefed carefully, as to what he should do and what are the implications if he did something wrong.

It was very obvious that the appointed chief amongst us was very nervous when he picked up the twig. At one stage, he nearly made a mistake by advancing towards his hosts after picking the twig, when he should have retreated. But that was quickly rectified, when one of our guides gently pulled him back from behind.

Once the ritual ceremony was over, we were invited to the village and the Maoris performed a concert for us.

Maori song and dance is beautiful. It is a refreshing change to the daily tunes we hear everyday. The concert lasted slightly over an hour. We were then treated to a feast, cooked by the Maoris themselves. Guess what? They have vegetarian food too! My family went vegetarian that night. I found that Maoris were excellent cooks. That feast was one of the best my family and I had in long time.

Recording of a Hangi Performance

A longer recording.

One of our guides explained the manner they cook their meals. They would heat volcanic rocks over a fire for over three hours. Then they use heat resistant baskets and place them over these rocks. The food would then placed in these baskets and more volcanic rocks and earth would be placed over the covered food, to retain heat. It would be kept this way for another three hours. Only volcanic rocks are used. Other rocks would disintegrate under the long sustained heat. Long arduous work to have your meals cooked, but well worth the effort and time. You know that when you taste the food!

As usual, my wife had to do her shopping after the meal. Yes, there are souvenirs that you can buy from the Tamaki Village. Authentic Maori stuff! My wife and children bought loads of souvenirs from there.

Around 10.00pm, the five buses arrived at the village to pick us up. As we returned to our respective motels, we had the chance reminisce the culture of a very unique people. A truly unforgettable experience.

Our family was the last to be dropped off. By the time we crept into our beds after showering, it was past midnight. Exhausted. There was to be another long day again the next day. According to the schedule I planned when we were in Singapore, we are to head for Hamilton the next afternoon.

to be continued…..

>Travel Notes – Rotorua (Waiotapu), New Zealand

>…cont’d from last “Travel Notes” post here…Travel Notes – Auckland, New Zealand

Those of you who do wish to visit Rotorua, I recommend Ann’s Volcanic.

(The following article is adapted from my personal notes I wrote about my family’s trip to NZ in 2002.)

Rotorua is about 200km south of Auckland. From Auckland, you will pass through Hamilton and Cambridge. The motorway that leaves south of Auckland ends after 50 km. From here, the road is a dual carriageway. Nevertheless, the traffic is reasonably light and motorists generally do not go over the maximum speed limits (unlike in Malaysia). This makes driving in the country even more pleasurable.

When we finally hit Rotorua’s town centre, one of the first things that my children noticed was white clouds coming up from behind some bushes. Initially they thought it was some low-lying clouds. But it was actually steam from some nearby hot geysers.

After a few roundabouts and turns in the city centre (due to me losing my way more than once in such a small town), we finally managed to find the motel I pre-booked, which was Ann’s Volcanic, of course. My youngest daughter screamed in excitement when she realised there was a private spa in our unit. Oh well, she decided to try out the spa, while I took a half-hour much needed nap after my drive from Auckland.

In the later part of the afternoon, we drove to Lake Rotorua. The lake is actually a huge crater of a dormant volcano. The lake is big enough to put a quarter of Singapore in it. But that is not the biggest volcano-crater lake in NZ. The biggest is Lake Taupo, 50km south of Rotorua. I believe the whole of Singapore could be placed in it! Lake Taupo also happens to be the largest crater-lake in the world.

It just so happened that it was raining when we were at Lake Rotorua that evening. So we stayed in the car to view the lake. The winds were quite strong and that created half-metre high waves that pounded against the platforms at the lake. Nevertheless, there were swans swimming in the lake, oblivious to the weather and enjoying swimming in a place, at a time when humans would rather stay indoors.

Sea gulls were aplenty and some landed on the car we were in. My children (they were of course very young then), who have been raised in Singapore, never had such close contact with wildlife before. Naturally, they were excited.

If you thought there are many things to do in Cosmopolitan Auckland, there are even more things to do in Rotorua. I planned for us to be in Rotorua for only two days and two nights. That was definitely not enough for us to cover everything that Rotorua has to offer. So I had to be selective what was to be done.

Rotorua is cold in spite of the summer. Nightlife is almost non-existent. Since we checked in late afternoon, there was really nothing much for us to do on our first day there, except perhaps just drive around town to familiarise the place. If you thought Aucklanders were easy-going drivers, you should see Rotoruans. A bullock cart would have taken top prize if there were to be a race!

Next morning, we decided to go to Lake Rotorua once again. The day before was raining and that prevented us from walking along the shore-line. So we took the opportunity this time, because the sky was clear.

This travel blog photo’s source is TravelPod page: Rotorua – Bubbling Mud, Lakes and Maori Life

That’s Lake Rotorua (a dormant volcano’s crater) greeting you when you pay a visit to Rotorua.

Later in the morning, we visited one of Rotorua’s many thermal areas. Waiotapu (pronounced as Wai oh ta pu), is one such area. This area is littered with geysers and boiling mud pools. In certain areas, you get to see hot water mixing with sulphur, giving very colourful and pretty patterns.

Lady Knox is a geyser that spouts everyday at 10.15am on the dot.

Lady Knox in action.

There are three walking routes in Waiotapu. Route 1 is the shortest, while Route 3 is the longest and takes anywhere from an hour and a half to more than two hours, depending on your pace. We took Route 3.

You need good walking shoes to cover those routes. Somewhere along Route 3, you have a choice to proceed to a steep slope. You may skip that or try it out. Those who do would be eventually rewarded with a spectacular view of a waterfall behind the hill. From atop, you will have a clear view of the waterfalls and the lake below.

One thing you will notice about Waiotapu is the presence of sulphur. It is everywhere.

One of the pretty scenes at Waiotapu. The yellowish stuff is sulphur, which gives a choking smell, as well as it brings tears to your eyes, just like tear gas. But I was used to it. At that time, I had been working in the process industry which emits sulphur 24/7, till I was immuned. Not that it is a healthy thing to inhale such vapour, though. (pic taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wai-o-tapu_panorama.jpg)

By the time we finished covering Waiotapu, it was way after mid noon. And we still had two more major events that I planned for the day. The next visit was Waimangu, then to be followed by the Traditional Hangi Concert.

More of that in my next post on Travel Notes (New Zealand).

>Travel Notes – Auckland, New Zealand

>I like travelling and meeting people. In 2002, I brought my family to New Zealand. One of the cities we visited was Auckland. Don’t be mistaken. That is not the capital of NZ. The capital is Wellington.

Auckland is a beauty. It has all the facilities and infrastructure of a first world country – minus the first world country stress! Whoowheee! How’s that for a working vacation?

For family vacations, you can find a host of motels outside Auckland. Rent a car from the airport and drive from there. The airport is not far from the City Centre.

Places of Interest

Those of you who appreciate parks, don’t miss Rose Garden. For cheap items, you can shop at Victoria Central Market. For a picturesque shot of Auckland Harbour at night, drive up to Devonport, across the bridge north of Auckland and have a view southwards towards the city. This is what it looks like.

Above pic taken from this site: http://www.dreamhomesdot.com/blog/?tag=auckland

Outside Auckland City

Nearby, there is One Tree Hill. It is on elevated ground that gives you a panoramic view of Auckland City on a clear day.

Similar to One Tree Hill is Mt Eden, another elevated spot. Mt Eden is actually a dormant volcano crater. For some unknown reason (to me at least), Mt Eden seems to be a more popular spot for visitors than One Tree Hill.

West of Auckland, about 45 min drive along a scenic road, you will find Piha Beach. A breathtaking scene awaits you.

Pic taken from here.

Next up on Travel Notes – Rotorua, a land surrounded by volcanoes.

Update – Travel Notes on Rotorua cont’d here.