Different Aspect of New Zealand: Maori Culture and Kiwis

Once you visit New Zealand the first thing you will notice there is the Maori culture. Majority of the places names you will hear or visit are of Maori origin. The names are very confusing and the visitors might get puzzled by the names and its pronunciation at first.

Unlike English, Maori language has logical structure and rules that should be followed while pronouncing the names, which is difficult to explain now. It is said that Maori migrated from Polynesia in wooden boats in tenth century but the origin of the Maori is New Zealand. The population of the Maori people is more than fifteen percent, and their language and culture has great impact on New Zealand’s life.

Sure, there are many things for excursion in north New Zealand but for distraction you should participate in Maori performance known as Haka. Its traditional Maori dance which can be seen in Mitai Maori village. There are organized tours to see this traditional form of dance which is performed by the tribe people where you will be having meal, performance and night time tour at animal sanctuary.

At night if you get to see the show of their traditional war dance and merry making, you will enjoy it very much. The whole environment; wooden setting, dim light of torch lighted around, just compliment and makes the whole event so exuberant. The event starts with some chants and slowly the tribe joins in shouting aloud. Followed by tribal dance and ritual war dance. Be careful while crossing these warriors or else you will be in trouble! Some find will find the dance and music little weird but it’s a memorable experience.

While being carried away with the dancing and singing ceremonies you will start humming or even pick up few words to sing along. Which you won’t have any idea about its meaning? You will just sing along! When girls come in and dance the style and costume will somewhat remind you of Las Vegas cabaret. The whole dance looks like a gig arranged to perform and entertain the tourists but it’s actually a traditional form of Maori dance.

The Hangi dishes are very famous in New Zealand. The food is cooked in traditional way, without using modern techniques like gas, or steel utensils. Oven is made by digging ground and putting basket filled by raw food and then covering it with burning coals. The food has great aromas of the spices used with mixture of burning wood and coals, the aroma will pull you towards it. The food cooked has tempting aroma. The non-veg cooked is another specialty in Hangi feast, it’s very delicious and succulent!

The night tour into Rainbow Spring is mesmerizing! All the plants and ferns in Rainbow Spring were lit up by the different glowing lights. Even the fishes in the ponds you will see as they have been wired with colorful micro lights. It’s just fantastic to see all the ferns and fishes and the whole forest colorful like some kind of jungle is on!

The national animal of New Zealand, Kiwi, cannot be found anywhere else. This flightless bird can only be found in this country. They belong to ostrich/Emu family. Though the bird has bad vision and no tail, it has great sense of smell. And it’s the only bird that has nostril at the end of its beak.

In thirteen century, kiwis’ population was seventy million and now it has come down to seventy thousand. As the population of kiwi is decreasing, Kiwi conservation programs have been established by the government.