Canucks → Kiwis: Tewhakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao

Our days in this region are coming to an end, so we made one last trip to Rotorua to finish up all the things we wanted to do there! Unfortunately our day started with an overheating engine when we arrived in town :( We had gotten the radiator tuned up the week before, but apparently something new had gone wrong! Luckily it didn't impact our day too much (except for having to walk home later...), and Dexter got a nice walk while we waited for the car to cool down.

Poor Binney :(

Anyway, we made it to Whakarewarewa in the early afternoon. The full name of the village is Te Whakarewarewatanga O Te Ope Taua A Wahiao which means "The uprising of the warriors of Wahiao". We had a tour of the Maori village and got to see how the people use the geothermal advantages of the area for cooking and bathing. We saw a cultural presentation of singing and dancing, including Pokarekare Ana which is a popular traditional New Zealand love song. There was also a haka, which is a traditional war dance. You may have seen the All Blacks perform a haka at the World Cup :)

We also did a nice walk through the thermal area, and saw some geysers erupting!