Rotorua

There is a tendency to believe that landscapes remain unchanged. Trees and vegetation might grown or recede, to obscure or reveal, but the essential features of the landscape are permanent and unchanging. People take comfort in visiting national parks or great monuments believing that as they age the scenic beauty that they hold so dear will not. It is a comforting thought that long after we are gone, such places of natural beauty will live on. 

Nowhere is the fact that the earth and landscape is undergoing constant change more evident than in New Zealand. It is a land where seismic changes shape and reshape the landscape constantly. While there are great seismic activities elsewhere, the direct result is more obvious in New Zealand. The Bay of Plenty region is a fantastic place to observe the changing earth. Captain James Cook named the area when he came ashore to reprovision his ship and saw how well the Māori were living and his stores following his visits. 

It is a little disconcerting to see warning signs around the lake and nature paths advising walkers that the area is a thermal area and the approximate temperatures of geysers and water is near boiling. As the local say, the crust of the earth around Rotorua is very thin. Sometimes referred to as Sulphur City, there is a smell that emanates from the lake that is difficult to describe, which is produced from hydrogen sulphide. While sulphur is often unpleasant, the smell in Rotorua is not. Every once in a while, one catches a strong whiff of sulfur; however, most of the time, the smell has a distinctive earthy tone to it and is not unpleasant. 

Rotorua Museum

Artifact found in the basement of the
building following the closure of
Tudor Towers

This aspect of the local terrain has been put to good use by the New Zealand government and the local inhabitants. What is now the Rotorua Museum is a beautiful ornate Edwardian building, done in a Tudor style,  that was originally contained a bath house where one could “take the cure.” Opened in 1908, the building and area were developed as a tourist destination for people suffering from afflictions and maladies. The tour is a fascinating glimpse into tourism of a century ago. After the initial tourist phase, the baths were used by the government for wounded soldiers returning from the First World War. As medical understandings grew, and changing taste in tourism developed, the popularity of the spa declined. The plumbing in the building was ill-suited for the movement of the sediment-laden water and constant repair was needed. The building housed a famous restaurant and nightclub, the Tudor Towers, from the 1960s to the 1980s. Apparently, there are a number of stories to be told from that era. Today the museum, featuring both the history of the bath house and local Māori culture, is a welcomed introduction to both the tourist era and the indigenous population.  

Hot Lake at Whakarewarewa 

Vintage Post card of the White Terraces 

Normally I would abjure such activities, but I decided to take walk to the Māori village of Whakarewarewa, approximately three kilometers out of town. I am concerned that such shows are faux cultural tourism that minimize the actual culture of the local population. Despite this, I was intrigued by the existence of a human settlement situation in and among the thermal activity of the area. This area of New Zealand has long been a tourist destination. Famously, the area around Mount Tarawera, where 19th century European tourist came to bath in the thermal waters, was destroyed by  an eruption in 1886. The eruption, which was felt as far away as Auckland, destroyed the famous Pink and White Terraces, a favorite place of European bathers and a natural history wonder. The beauty and interests are legendary. Several surviving members of the Māori community, including early guides, came to live in the area afterwards. The tradition of Māori guides, typically females, introducing the natural beauty and customs of the area has been typical throughout the last 150 years and is still used in Whakarewarewa. Viewing several carvings, pre-contact huts and the walks through thermal areas was a day unlike many.