Day 27 & 28– April 26 & 27, 2025 – Around Rotorua

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April 26, 2025 a walk around town.

Today we were supposed to take a helicopter ride to the top of a volcano then hike down. However, the weather intervened and there was no flying today. So we decided to just walk around the town, site see and maybe do some shopping.

We found the Government Gardens, a quiet charming area of flowers, plants and other amenities. Along with a band stand, various statues, we passed an area that is laid out for games, some for Bowls, some for Croquette.

As we continued our walk, we came upon several areas of boiling water bubbling up from the ground even in the middle of a sculpture garden.

We walked along the lake front before deciding to head back to our lodge.  Later that afternoon we texted our driver to take us to the National Kiwi Hatchery. Kiwi females lay an egg that is about 1/3 their own body size. Compared to human birth it would be like giving birth to a three-year-old. This is why, once laid, the egg becomes the responsibly of the male Kiwi.

At the Hatchery, they monitor Kiwis in the wild, then take the eggs from the nest to hatch them and raise the chick for about eight months and then return them to the wild. In this way they are protecting the eggs from various predators and helping to grow the Kiwi population. We did get to see some Kiwis and even one that was just a few weeks old.

April 27, 2025 - Maori experience

There is nothing on the agenda today until this evening. So, we decided to take a walk among the redwoods here in Rotorua.

Then we stopped at a new attraction, a 3-D light emersion experience. This is a light show in different rooms. In one room you can interact with the effects, in another it is a full immersion into an ocean and a seemingly story of the beginnings of life.

We then returned to our suite to get ready for our evening of Māori culture.  We were picked up by a van and taken to the meeting place where we boarded a bus to take us to the Māori village. On the way the guide introduced us to some of the Māori sayings and he appointed a “chief” for the evening. It was the Chief’s responsibility to interact with the village chief and accept the peace offering before we could enter the village.

Once in the village we were split into smaller groups and moved through four separate areas where we were instructed on various aspects of Māori culture and life.

We then moved into an amphitheater for a brief show of Māori song and dance before we moved to a dining hall for dinner. The food was served family style and was very good.

4 thoughts on “Day 27 & 28– April 26 & 27, 2025 – Around Rotorua”

  1. satil

    Maori culture is awesome — you’ll have to share some Maori sayings when you come back.

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