Waimangu Valley, Te Puia Maori Arts and Crafts Institute

I made a mistake and mixed up the order of the last two posts. It should have been 

It is amazing that anyone lives here in Rotorua.  The place is like a verdant  mini Yellowstone with a much more damaging history. Some properties have steam vents coming up.   We drove up to the Waimangu Valley the site of several volcanic eruptions and which is still full of hot springs and vents. In the 1800’s it was a world destination for rich people to come to the hot pools and colourful pink and white silica hot waterfall terraces.  A volcano blew up in the middle of the night killing people and covering the an 18km area in ash.  The area was desolate for 20 years.  Rainfall slowly filled the volcanic hole, covered the pink cliffs and the lake is now 120 meters deep.  The volcano uplifted spores of ancient plants long extinct.  Wind and birds brought seed from the surrounding areas. Lots of rainfall and rich volcanic ash started 1^st generation growth. In 1917 another eruption blew a big hole in the side of the volcano and killed a family instantly. People continued to move back but the economy suffered, (an understatement). In the 60s the government began developing the area for tourism and today it is marketed as the number one adventure tourism site on the north Island and now every NZer wants to come here. 

Streams of hot acidic water feed several lakes that drain into the largest lake on which we took a tour.  There is no development on the lake.  Only one small boat is allowed there.  The lake is warm and a good environment for lots of different birds.  Being last on we got to sit right at the front of the boat and it was a beautiful ride.  When we got back we walked down one of the valleys, it was so lush and with the steaming vents like something out of Jurassic Park. 

The Valley has been completely regenerated by natural processes

The blast hold from the 1917 eruption

The gold colour is from algae that gets sunburnt

The steam coming out of the valley is hot and acidic enough to burn skin

For a complete change of pace we had lunch at the Princess Palace.  A beatutiful  victorian hotel next to even more beautiful gardens.  The lunch was delicious, elegant and with our good discussion I could have stayed there all afternoon.  

We did a walk in gardens then off to the Maori Cultural Centre.  It is a mixture of tourist education, history, training school for Maori artists and craftsmen and geothermal sites.  It was a hot afternoon and by the time we were finished everyone was tired and in need of a break before dinner.  We went back to the Centre for a traditional Maori feast cooked underground and semi educational/entertainment show.  A bit like a luau but I liked it better, there were fewer people, the food better and felt like it meant more to the entertainers. A really good end to a wonderful day.

The Ancestors grace the entrance to the Maori Cultural Institute

There are hundreds of applicants to the training school and only 5 are chosen for each area

Maori paddles are beautifully shaped

An example of a long house

There are geysers and mud pool on site

Before the dinner we had a welcoming ceremony

With displays of warrior fighting along with dancing and songs. 

Our all star volunteered to learn how to dance

Maori show of affection

Our fearless leader shows his tribe how to dance

A great ending

Jim, our guide says that Kiwi’s are crazy into extreme sports. They started bungie jumping, black river running riding rafts in caves with currents 30 km an hour, mountain biking and paddling solo canoe’s from Tasmania to NZ.  Personally, if I lived on the edge of disaster, knowing I could either be blown up by a volcano or crushed in an earthquake I would be out on the edge too.  Or else I would be moving to Canada. I will add pictures tomorrow when the upload will be faster.