Mauri Country: The Bay of Islands. Waitangi, New Zealand

Our first look at the Bay of Islands in Waitange. This is our first destination in New Zealand.

As will be the case in many of our stops, we have one full day to explore this beautiful part of New Zealand. After a total of 15 days at sea, we were excited to continue visiting lands we’ve yet to see.

Just a few of the many Islands that dot this Bay. The weather could not have been better.

We decided to take two excursions. One in the morning and one after lunch. The early adventure was highlighted by a trip through beautiful KerriKerri Park. New Zealand has many extraordinary green belts and parks. KerriKerri was no exception.

We hiked up to a beautiful lake and a lovely Tea House.

Rainbow Falls is one of KerriKerri Park’s highlights.

After the falls we headed back to our bus. A quick lunch on the ship, followed by a drive to our second excursion of the day…A paddle on a traditional Mauri Waka canoe.

We were greeted by a family Mauri tribe and a rousing traditional Haka. The Haka is a Mauri chant that is loud, aggressive and intimidating. The facial expressions and gestures had this crowd of 70-something seniors in shock and awe. You could almost hear the collective gasps when it was revealed that the Haka is the Mauri way to “welcome" honored guests. The tribe’s Chief stepped up to introduced himself…an imposing figure.

The Wakas were large, holding 40 paddlers, the chief and two assistants. For the next 45 minutes the Chief set the pace with his gentle and soothing voice. No one dared stop paddling! He was amazing. He kept this up the whole trip along with regaling us with his people’s fascinating history and Mauri Myths and Fables.

The river couldn’t have been more beautiful.

The Mauri traditional dress is spectacular. The chief’s second in command points the way.

The stunning Mauri Falls.

A trip highlight was the spontaneous cheers that erupted when the Chief announced we were running a bit late and asked if it was OK to motor home.

Note the gentleman behind us. I think he’s alive…hoping its just a quick nap. Perhaps that’s why the chief turned on the engine.

It was a weary but happy crew that made our way back to shore and a final ride to The Neptune.

This adventure is everything we hoped it would be.

Tomorrow we are off to Auckland.

Thanks for sharing it with us.