Haka

The day started fairly early with a long run in the Redwood forest. I was fortunate enough to have two Kiwi International marathon runners to link up with - it was both nice to the have to company of two runners of a similar pace (rather than trying to hang onto the guys) and also not to have to worry about getting lost in the miles and miles of trails.

For the rest of the day we were given a number of activity options to choose from. Most of the group opted for the downhill luge (a sort of toboggan) but a few of the less thrill seeking types (Chris and myself included) decided to give it a miss in favour of the less adventurous but perhaps more of a New Zealand experience of visiting a Maori Thermal Village.

To begin with we watched a performance of the Haka which was entertaining if a little intimidating. We got a chance to try out the traditional Maori greeting of rubbing noses with the person next to us -- thank fully it was only each other! We then went on a walk around the many hot pools and saw plenty of smelly bubbly mud pools. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately!) we weren’t able to actually go in the pools though so had to be content with a number of photos. We also saw a Geyser which squirted about 30 metres up into the air and had a look in some of the little shops which sold Maori arts and crafts. It was an interesting and insightful look into Maori culture and we were pleased with our decision to visit the village - especially upon returning to the Motel and viewing the various injuries of the others on the Luge!


Scary haka


Geyser