VOTED TOP 10 EXPERIENCE IN THE WORLD
I saw this behind one of the buses for the event. I didn't know this was such a big deal. I paid a lot for this experience, but I didn't know I was really in for 'an experience.'
Arriving at the village
When I went to Rotorua, New Zealand early this year to attend the 10th International Conference on Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, the conference organizers recommended visiting the popular tourist attractions in Rotorua. I took up their offer and decided to go to Skyline Rotorua and the Tū Te Rā - Summer Harvest Celebration. You can read about my adventures in Skyline Rotorua in my previous post. I also visited their famous Redwood Forest and Government Gardens.
On my second day in NZ, I was scheduled to join the Tū Te Rā - Summer Harvest Celebration. A quick Google search told me it was going to be a Māori Cultural Tour. This trip was in February which is summer in New Zealand. I considered this chance to go to NZ as one of a lifetime, so I made sure to make the most out of it. Even though this tour was quite expensive, I decided to go for it.
The information on the website of Te Pā Tū, the company that operates the tour, told me that the experience was going to be hours long where we would enter a Māori Village and learn about their culture firsthand, eat some of their local food, see a performance, and have a multi-course dinner. It sounded like a lot and I was really excited.
I was picked up by a bus and I saw that most of the tourists were old white people. It was almost 6 PM when we started our journey towards the village. We had a guide with us in the bus and she was explaining what was going to happen when we arrived. She asked us to choose a chief and a man sitting near the front volunteered. She gave instructions on what he would do when we met the Māori people in the village. It involved our chief picking up a fern and all of us being serious during the welcome of the Māori people.
We arrived and the harsh afternoon sunlight welcomed us before the Māori people. We waited outside the entrance for a few minutes with another guide refreshing the chiefs of the two groups of tourists on what they would do. A man wearing traditional Māori clothes came out and dropped a fern leaf. Our chief picked it up the right way and we were all led inside. We were received with performers seeing quite strongly. The men did a vigorous dance called Haka before their chief addressed us in English.
A game of sticks
We were led further inside and they served us with Manuka honey tea and some Canapes. There was an actual bonfire and we were all surrounded by trees and wooden houses. I felt like I was in a movie set.
We were led to a small house with a group of Māori women. One of them addressed us and told us one of the activities that the Māori people did to spend their time. She explained a game where we would pass a wooden stick to the person next to you. A person would be eliminated if they couldn't catch the wood. The Māori lady gave the Māori words for left and right, and we were all given wooden sticks to play the game. One after the other, we were all eliminated until only one was left as the winner. It was a fun way to start our tour.
I saw a young-looking guy and decided to talk to him. Turns out, he was in NZ to attend the conference as well. He was from Germany and he was going to present his research on Hydrogen production. I was so glad to be able to meet someone closer to my age and also go to the conference. We talked for a bit while we were led to the next part of the tour. We arrived near another small wooden house and there were some young Māori men waiting for us. They explained to us the purpose of the different wooden houses and the symbolism of their architectural features. They also pointed to some plants that the Māori people used in their cooking and in their medicines. They were a goofy bunch and we were all amused as they shared some jokes with us.
Doing the Haka and Poi
Then, they led us to another part of the village. They called out our chief and they asked him to do the Haka. They explained the purpose of the passionate dance. They showed us the steps including the facial expressions and when to put out your tongue and open your eyes wide. Our chief was quite confident and he did the Haka in front of us. I panicked a bit when the young Māori men told us that the rest of the guys should also do it. But we were all tourists and there was no use being shy. We lined up in front of the women and the haka a couple of times. We were all fired up after it.
We moved to the next part of the village and we were greeted again by the Māori women. They were holding some balls connected by a cord. I learned that it was called poi which was also the name of the performance usually done by women and using those balls. They showed us the dance steps of the poi. This time, it was the ladies' turn to perform. They were given each a poi. They circled around and the Māori women sang a short verse of a song while the tourists tried their best to follow the rhythm.
A show and a hearty dinner
That ended our tour of the village and we were told to proceed to their Wharenui or a large house where Māori people would come together as a community. During the walk to the large hall, an Asian lady approached and smiled at me. "So you're from the Philippines?" she asked me. At the beginning of the tour, we were all asked to introduce ourselves and where we were from. "Yes. Are you also Filipino?" I responded to her.
She told me that her parents were Filipinos who had migrated to the US. She was born and raised in the US but she had visited the Philippines a couple of times. It felt reassuring knowing there was another Filipino in the crowd. We talked for a bit before we reached the hall. There, all the Māori men and women earlier were on stage. They performed for us and I was amazed at how talented they were. They were singing, dancing, and playing instruments. I really enjoyed their performances. I only took a few videos because I really wanted to enjoy the show. It was almost 8 PM when the show was done. We were told to proceed to their restaurant for our dinner.
It was still strange for me to see sunlight at 8 PM. When I went out of the hall, I was taken aback by how cold it was outside. I only had one layer of clothing and I realized that it wouldn't be enough to keep me warm from the evening cold. I was hugging myself while walking to the restaurant and I made a sigh of relief when entered because it was warm inside.
I was seated with Kai, the German who was also a conference participant. There was another person sitting with us. He too was joining the conference. He was from Romania but was originally from Germany. He and Kai talked for a bit while I checked the menu. We were going to have a 5-course dinner. One by one, the food came and they were all so good. I'll make another post about it.
After our dinner, the performances were still not done. The performers put on regular clothes and one of them serenaded us while we enjoyed our food. She then told us that she wanted to sing songs from countries where the tourists came from. She asked us to shout out our countries. One person said USA and she sang a popular American song. Another one said Canada, and she also did a Canadian song. The tourists shouted out their countries and she was able to sing verses of songs from those countries. The tourists sang along with her.
The singer continued to ask for more countries. The Filipino lady looked at me as if telling me to shout the Philippines. I decided to go for it. The singer said she knew a Filipino song but she wasn't sure if I knew it. She proceeded to sing Harana, a popular song by a Filipino band. The only thing to do was to sing with her. So there I was, having a duet with the singer, trying my best to stay in tune. After we were done, I was filled with such joy and pride. I felt seen and recognized. The Filipino lady beamed at me afterward.
We were done by around 10 in the evening. It was finally dark and even colder. They gave us a heartwarming parting message before we got back on our bus. During the journey home, the daughter of our guide sang us a cute Māori song. It was the perfect way to end the night. I got off the bus at my drop-off point and my friend picked me up. I told her I had such a wonderful experience. I knew why it was voted Top 10 Experience in the World.
It's true that the things that give us happiness are not material things but experiences. I consider myself so lucky to have been able to go on that cultural tour, taste their food, and watch their amazing performances.
That's it for this post. See you on the next one. Cheers!
