Caves, Hangis and Chiefdom
Travel Location: Rotorua,New-Zealand
First stop Rotorua…
Waitomo Cave Tubing Put on a wet suit and a hard hat, grab an innertube and descend into the caves. The tour was pretty cool and you get see plenty of glow worms. They are worms that live in the caves and their ass glow blue. In total darkness it looks like the night sky, which is the point. Potential food that floats down the river into the caves is supposed to think, ‘Hey its night time I will fly away.’ And then Wham! right into the waiting tenticles of the glow worms.
Maori Hangi – Thanksgiving day The evening consisted of a Maori Hangi or feast. Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand. Hangi is the word for feast. From each of the five bus loads of people that participate a chief is chosen, I was chosen from our bus for my dashingly good looks and charming wit. Representation of you those in your canoe, or bus in this case, is considered an honorable task in Maoridom.
Before anyone can enter the village the welcoming tribe must send out a peace challenge. A warrior goes through a series of threatening movements and aggressive chants before placing a peace offering before the visiting chiefs. During the chants and movements the warrior selects the most bad-ass chief to accept the offering. He does this by directing his chants and spear thrusts at that particular chief. Its no surprise that I was chosen to accept the peace offering 
Then everyone was allowed inside for a show and then a feast.
The show was of tradition Maori songs tradition and history. The feast consisted of chicken, stuffing, cranberry, sweet potatos and some other goodies. Later I received a pendant for being a chief, which reminded me of that voodoo trinket Greg Brady found in Hawaii. None the less I accepted it.
I also got to keep the peace offering, a small branch from a tree. All in all a pretty good thanksgiving, though it lacked Pumpkin pie.
Tramp I went on a tramp to see a waterfall that comes out the side of a mountain as opposed to over the edge. Created by lava, it was pretty cool. (see below)
Hells Gate Hot Springs, bubbling mud and the smell of sulfur. In fact the smell of sulfur permeates the town of Rotorua, very charming. Hot springs in the rain, that evil rain, are just muddy steamy pools.
Side stop in Taupo for The Ropes Course Climb to the top of a large telephone pole about 3 stories up then jump across to a trapeeze that is about 2 meters away. That was fun, the hardest part was standing on the pole. Then they have this big swing, again at about 3 stories, so it really is big.
Skydiving at 12000 ft Ok its really tandem skydiving, but a cool ride none the less.
