We arrived in Rotorua around midday and went to a campsite, which was run by probably the most friendly kiwi women ever. We decided not to waste the nice afternoon so we went Zorbing. The place we went to was where Zorbing was created, thus why we wanted to make sure we did the activity there. Me and Kim decided to go all out and do all three of the different types of Zorbing. The first type involves you being harnessed in a seat in the middle of the Zorb while it rolls down the hill at about 50 mile an hour, which means when you get out you find it extremely difficult to walk in a straight line. In the second type of Zorbing we weren't strapped in, but they filled the middle of the Zorb, where we were, with water. While undergoing the second type of Zorbing it is impossible to control your body as the water throws you everywhere. The third and final type of of Zorbing which we did involved both me and Kim being in the Zorb with the water at the same time. Throughout the whole of the third ride we were flung into each other which made for a few giggles and bruises. We dried off back at the hostel where Si made friends with the owner who was a fellow Hurricanes supporter. Simon was soon receiving abuse for abandoning a game being shown on TV in favour of a Maori cultural night.
The next day we went to a Maori village. It is a little village in Rotorua which has been opened to the public so people can see the traditional way of life. We arrived early and walked around the village by ourselves. At 11 o'clock we watched a cultural performance. There were three women and four men dressed in traditional clothes who demonstrated various aspects of Maori life such as females using the poi and males doing the Hakka (Maori war dance). The poi are two balls used on strings swung about to imitate wildlife such as birds in flight. they also demonstrated games with sticks which reminded us slightly of morris dancers!
After the show we waited by the entrance for a guided tour of the village and were told a little about the Maori alphabet and the pronunciation. Togehter we attempted to pronounce the name of the village! We walked into the village and were told about the penny divers who used to help tourists enter. We were first shown the type of houses Maori used when they first settled in the area which were made of fern trees. They were really small and only used for sleeping. We were then shown the 'kitchen' which was an outdoor thermal pool surrounded by many holes in the ground that were covered by lids. People in the village put their food in a muslin cloth and drop it into the ground and leave it for a few hours to cook. We were also shown how the graves in the cemetery have to be buried above ground in cement due to the geothermic activity beneath.
The guide then took us to the meeting house where he explained the significance of he carvings and colours used. he explained the colours represented life, death and life after death. Finally he did a demonstration on how to make the grass skirts.
Our tour finished at the spurting geysers. We were stood in New Zealand fault line and listened to our guide sing a blessing and say goodbye. The geysers were spurting water and creating plenty of steam. We had such an awesome day!

That night we had a few drinks at the hostel and got a lift into town from the bar staff to see the night market. After a short wonder we agreed it was too cold to walk around and decided to go to the pub. It was a quiet night and after a few pubs we headed home in the cold!!

The next day we did chores and played pool in the morning before getting picked up for the Maori night. We arrived at Matai village and, when everyone had arrived, we chose a chief to represent us. The chiefs main role was to introduce the tourists to the villagers. We saw the Maori warriors arrive on their warrior boat chanting and pulling their scary faces. They then ran off into the village where we followed to watch their presentation. They explained and demonstrated all aspects of Maori life such as tattoos, war, hunting and ceremonies. We then enjoyed a buffet meal that was cooked in a hangi.