March 12 Maori Hangi

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We've been out in the wop wop's (the boonies) and internet service was not available. So, I'm starting to journal 2 nights ago. We were in Rotorua and attended a Maori Hangi (feast cooked in the ground). A bus transfer took us just outside town to a forest with tall pines. A mock Maori village was set up - huts and fires randomly set about the forest. Each hut was a station, so to speak, in which a Maori man or women would teach about their culture - games, tattooing, cooking, fashion, Haka (warrior dance and performed by the All Blacks prior to a game) and warrior training. Interactive and fun. We were entertained with a show of traditional Maori songs and dances. The dinner followed. Cooked in the ground over hot stones we feasted on chichen, pork , sweet potatoes, corn and white potatoes. We had the national dessert - Pavlova and fresh fruits with cream. Met Kiwi's vacationing and some Australians. Our bus ride home must be mentioned. We sang songs from each country represented on the bus - Russia, New Zealand, Australia, USA, and China. We sang "She'll be coming round the Mountain..." while in a round-a-bout and the driver drove around the circle about 5 times - silly and fun!

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