Mitai Maori Village Visit - Kia Ora

We wanted to learn more about the culture of Māori people and so we visited Mitai Māori Village where we were treated to a wonderful dinner and experienced different cultural aspects of the ancient Māori culture. We also had the opportunity to take an evening walk through their Fairy Springs and got to see glow worms! It was really a wonderful experience and we highly recommend it for any visit here.

The Māori people came to New Zealand around 1000 years ago from various Polynesian islands, such as Tahiti, Hawaii and the Cook Islands. Here is one link to learn more about the Māori people. Kia ora is a greeting that can mean hello, goodbye, or even show appreciation.

During our visit, we were introduced to Māori history, spiritual beliefs, how they prepared for war and other aspects of this ancient culture. We also enjoyed a wonderful meal that included food prepared in a traditional hangi - a pit that is heated with stones. Our lovely host explained how things were done traditionally and how modern amenities are now used to be able to produce enough food for these large crowds that come to learn about Māori culture. At dinner we sat with an extended family that was from the Wellington area and cousins visiting from Australia. They were all very wonderful to talk to and we got some great recommendations for visiting Wellington.

The Hangi

Reenactment of warriors heading to battle

Demonstration of different weaponry

Haka - ceremonial dance

This is a New Zealand beer named for a local bird that we are hearing everywhere. They sound almost mechanical at times. George also enjoyed the beer.

The springs as seen on the walk at night. It did feel magical here.

Glow Worms! This is not a great picture, but it was really cool to see these glow worms! There are caves that you can visit that are filled with them and you can see them around different places at night.