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Te Whakarewarewatanga O Te Ope Taua A Wahiao… Say that 3x fast!

Location: Rotorua, Bay of Plenty North Island, New Zealand New Zealand’s first inhabitants were the Maori, seafarers from the eastern Polynesian islands.  These indigenous tribes arrived around 1300 and their culture persists today.  15% of the New Zealand population is Maori; in Rotorua, 40% of the population is Maori.  Hence, it is considered one of the Read More

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Rotorua, you smell….

Location: Rotorua, Bay of Plenty North Island, New Zealand After Auckland, I started my trek south and stopped in Rotorua.  Rotorua is aptly named.  It smells….rotten.  The city is known for its geothermal activity.  Geysers, bubbling mud pools, sulphuric lakes.  You name it, it’s here.  The city is built around the Rotorua caldera (created post Read More

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Cyclone Gita: Mother Nature’s Spa!

Location: Waiheke Island, North Island, New Zealand With one last day in Auckland, I chose to visit a nearby island (because being on one island wasn’t enough).  Waiheke Island sit just to the north ( I think) of Auckland in the Hauraki Gulf.  Although small, clocking in at 92 km2 , it still boasts a population of almost Read More