I left Tauranga with a heavy heart but I was really glad that I made the decision to make a stopover at Rotorua to go for the Tamaki experience. It has always been on my list of NZ must-dos, I skipped it in the beginning of my trip as I thought it wasn't worth 100 dollars for that 3 hours experience..and not to mention that a dear friend told me to watch the Maori channel instead! But I have spent more money down South on activities that are not exactly worth every penny of mine, so I thought I should go for it this time ! And it is probably one of the greatest experience here!
The night started with a bus trip out to the Maori village, the bus ride itself played a big part as the driver prepares us for the whole cultural experience ahead of us. A chief was selected from the participants and we were all given a briefing on what's expected from us at the welcoming ceremony.
The night started with a welcome ceremony by the Chief at the village, followed by tour around the many school houses where we learned more about the Maori culture. A performance consisting of songs and dances followed through. My favourite was the famous love song, Pokarekare Ana and the Haka of course. A group of strong Maori man with tattooed faces , shouting and slapping their thighs? I likey!
We then come to the final part of the event, the hangi , traditional Maori meal where food is cooked with hot stones. It was yum! We had lamb and chicken that has been cooked for hours in the hangi, and among the side dishes were potatoes, carrots and kumara cooked the same way. For dessert, we had pavlova - a real kiwi icon, and steamed pudding with NZ's best custard and cream! What a treat.
After a few more songs and another round of Haka, the amazing night came to an end. We boarded our bus again, which was labelled Waka ( Maori word for canoe) - we had to 'row' it back to the Tamaki office. On the way home, everyone had to sing a song from their country, so I proudly belted out Rasa Sayang - being the shortest and simplest song I could rmb !
Got back to my hostel -Crash Palace at 10-ish, feeling so glad that I came here for this. I felt that it was a good way to round up my 6 months journey here in NZ.
The night started with a bus trip out to the Maori village, the bus ride itself played a big part as the driver prepares us for the whole cultural experience ahead of us. A chief was selected from the participants and we were all given a briefing on what's expected from us at the welcoming ceremony.
The night started with a welcome ceremony by the Chief at the village, followed by tour around the many school houses where we learned more about the Maori culture. A performance consisting of songs and dances followed through. My favourite was the famous love song, Pokarekare Ana and the Haka of course. A group of strong Maori man with tattooed faces , shouting and slapping their thighs? I likey!
We then come to the final part of the event, the hangi , traditional Maori meal where food is cooked with hot stones. It was yum! We had lamb and chicken that has been cooked for hours in the hangi, and among the side dishes were potatoes, carrots and kumara cooked the same way. For dessert, we had pavlova - a real kiwi icon, and steamed pudding with NZ's best custard and cream! What a treat.
After a few more songs and another round of Haka, the amazing night came to an end. We boarded our bus again, which was labelled Waka ( Maori word for canoe) - we had to 'row' it back to the Tamaki office. On the way home, everyone had to sing a song from their country, so I proudly belted out Rasa Sayang - being the shortest and simplest song I could rmb !
Got back to my hostel -Crash Palace at 10-ish, feeling so glad that I came here for this. I felt that it was a good way to round up my 6 months journey here in NZ.
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