Our early start today was foiled by some sort of fan belt-related issue, and it was only thanks to the presence of an aussie-rules football, a set of uno cards and some very creative imaginations that we didn't go mnad waiting for a replacement bus to get to us. The upshot of this was that we missed our trek in Karangahake Scenic Reserve, but on the bright side we still got to see Paeroa (where the 'P' in L&P comes from; L&P is an endemic soft drink, said to be 'world famous in New Zealand' and my new favourite) and Matamata (AKA Hobbiton).

When we did finally get to Rotorua we hada short introduction to some Maori culture in preparation for this evening, before getting down to the real business of the afternoon -luging. Essentially, this involves sitting on a wheeled plastic tray and guiding it down a concrete track at as high a speed as you can. It is great fun, made even more fun for the over-6-footers among us because their long legs meant they couldn't operate the brakes. Cue hilarity and, surprisingly, no injuries.

In the evening we drove out to Tamaki village for the continuation of the Maori theme, with a driver who explained the meaning of 'kia ora' in no fewer than 56 languages. We weere greeted at the village in the traditional manner - with a few heavily-armed maori dancing and grimacing in a way that says 'I'm going to eat your liver with some fava beans and a fine chianti.' Fortunately, it turns out they were happy to show us around their village, and put on dancing, weapons displays and a sort of historic re-enactment for us.

All this was pre-dinner entertainment, and the hangi that was served lived up to its reputation. A hangi is, essentially, a meal of meats, fish and vegetables cooked slowly underground on white-hot rocks, and it was delicious (and very plentiful). Accompanied by a nice red and followed by kiwi pavlova (not quite such a maori tradition) it was a good end to the day.