South and a little bit west of Auckland is the town of Rotorua. There is a whole area of the country here that is geothermal. The earth’s crust is very thin here and you can see geysers and mudpools and steam holes blubbering and steaming away. Es gluckert und blubbert. And it smells stinky. It’s the sulphur. Backyards have thermal pools and hotels have a variety of different possibilities from simple mineral pools to fancy spas. The Maori people have lived here and used the resources for many hundreds of years. Whakerewarewa is a community that still lives in the middle of the main thermal activity. They use the boiling lakes to cook their vegetables and steam holes to cook their meals. They bathe in the mineral pools and have steam holes in their front yards puffing away like mini volcanoes.
It was very interesting and beautiful to spend the day walking around this area and learning about the Maori culture. I would say that they’ve done the best job here in living together, the native peoples and the settlers. They seem to have a mutual respect for each other. The Maoris embraced British modernity and the British accepted a lot of the Maori culture too. Many city and town names are in Maori and some Maori terms have been incorporated into their language. And they learn it as a second language at school, though it isn’t mandatory. The Maori war dance and cry is used now in their sports games.
On a walk in Whakarewarewa on the footpaths over a thermal lake there was this bench between Germany and Canada. So I thought I'd sit down and rest between the two. I thought it was fun that these posts were both there. I couldn't figure out why. As I walked on there were other posts with other country names on them. I still couldn't figure out why.
Today I spent the day on the bus to Wellington. It was a beautiful drive, through a national park and wonderful green lush farming country with many sheep and cows grazing. And around the beautiful Lake Taupo with snow-capped peaks in the background. The bus driver was great. He tour-guided along the way. It was obvious that he enjoys his job. So I’ve arrived here in the capital. I will explore tomorrow and then continue on my way to the South Island.
2 comments:
It continues to look like an amazing trip! We find it wonderful that you know all these people in places around the world with whom you can visit. Keep safe and keep enjoying!
Hi Karin,
You look very 'cool' sitting on that bench! I want to come with you on the next 4 over 5! You are hardly inadequate - the adventures you have had and how you have managed over the past year is truly amazing. You could probably lead a group tour of the blogger faithful!
I was at the Knox Convocation on Wed night - one of the graduates was Courtney Morris - she got her MDiv!
lots of love,
Anne
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