Tairua to Rotorua

Mural in Katikati

 Woke in the night to the sound of heavy rain on the roof of our motel room. Still raining in the morning - the first rainy day we've had. Headed south (more hills), out of the Coromandel Peninsula and onto the Bay of Plenty. Stopped at Katikati, to view the many murals there. Apparently the settlers here originated from Ulster and perpetuated the tradition of street murals from their homeland. Had coffee in the quaintly named Katz Pyjamas Cafe.



Still raining, often quite heavily, so we pressed on to  Rotorua without stopping for lunch. (Well we did have large muffin/slice of cake in the Katz Pyjamas.) Checked in to our motel and got some suggestions on what to see and do. Phew, this is a smelly town. The air whiffs permanently of rotten eggs.

Rotorua Museum

Exhibit in Rotorua Museum

Welcome at Tamaki Maori Village

Spent the afternoon in the Museum. Housed in a splendid Victorian building that was built as a Spa, the museum tells the history if Rotorua as a Spa town, whose glory days were interrupted by an earthquake. One wing of the building has been preserved to show the spa baths, mud baths and other facilities. Even the piperwork in the basement has been preserved though, of course, nothing is in working order any more. One board gave the chemical  analysis of the waters for the 'benefit' of the bathers (the contents including sulphuric acid, carbonic acid, hydrogen sulphide and various solid minerals).   John would rather have bathed in rainwater. The other wing of the building housed an excellent display of Maori history and artifacts.

In the evening we went on a Maori culture experience. Taken by bus to the Tamaki Maori village we first went through the formal Maori greeting process (think All Blacks), then were given demonstrations of various Maori skills and games. This was followed by a concert in their Meeting House which was  surprisingly good. I had thought it might be a bit corny but combination of singing, dancing and story telling was excellent. Then we had dinner - chicken, lamb and vegetables cooked on hot stones in an underground pit. All in all, a fun experience.   Maori culture as described to us is heavily ancestor-based, from their facial decorations to the carvings throughout their buildings and villages.  Keeping this going in the 21st century is clearly a challenge.