Day 3 - Hobbiton, Matamata & Rotorua

Today was a later wake up call which was lucky coz man was I tired. I went to retrieve our forgotten wash load from the dryer that had been there all night, while Kamal slept in a little longer. 

We then headed out to relive some of yesterday's caving best bits with a 30min forrest walk. 

Then it was off to Hobbiton, which is part of the Alexander farm which has 13,000 sheep! That's a lot of sheep! We then got to stroll around the Shire, admire tiny hobbit houses, tiny hobbit jackets, tiny hobbit everything!! 

We even met up with the friend of the local landlord back in London. Don from the Green Dragon pub at the Shire!!!

Where we shared a massive pork pie the size of my face and a hobbit cider brewed onsite. 

Couldn't resist one last picture...

Then, once I had enough posing with Gandalf we grabbed a bus back to town, and explored Rotorua's volcanic thermal activity.

And went for a walk around Sulphur bay overlooking the 334 acre volcanic dome of Mokoia Island.

Our evening was spent with the Maori people, in the village down the road.  Full of songs, games and hakas, we had a great time learning about their culture. We learned about their games, their textile skills, the hakas, the story behind their tattoos and how they store and cook their food. The tattoos on the face from the nose up, are to do with status, only those with stature have tattoos in the forehead. The left is your mother's family history and the right, your father's family history. Wish I could have stayed there longer though, I wanted to know more!

We also learned of the correct way to win Maori respect. When ships arrived at shore they were greeted by a Maori haka (a fearsome demonstration of male power and ferocity) where the custom is to be completely calm and await acceptance. There are three tests, and if you remain calm and not scared, the chief will lay down an offering which you then take. Finally you touch noses twice which is a symbol of peace and understanding.

This is exactly where Abel Tasman went wrong. When he arrived at shore he thought he was being greeted by entertainment. He proceeded to react to the haka by ordering his men to dance. Thinking they had a mutual understanding, Tasman actually continued to infuriate the Maori who assumed that they were being challenged. The Maori sent out their war party on ships, Tasman continued to believe that they were sending out a welcoming party. It wasn't until they climbed aboard and started slaughtering crew members that suddenly Tasman realised... Perhaps they weren't friends after all. He turned his ship around and sailed away, never setting foot upon NZ shores.

The famous Captain Cook on the other hand did what he was supposed to. He remained calm and collected, with the help of people he had met on his travels that spoke a similar language to the Maori. He came ashore and passed the test. So if you're ever faced with the haka, you now know what to do!

We were even treated to a Maori feast where they cook the food underground and it comes out with a smoky taste. And when I say feast, I mean feast. Roast dinner, 

We had a great evening and tonight was an early bed for me!