Evening with the Mitai

This part of the North Island (The Bay of Plenty) has a heavy Maori presence. This is largely due to the volcanic and thermal aspects of this part of the country. Early Maori settlers believed the area to be sacred and felt their ancestors resided in the many mountains and volcanoes. To this day they will not sell the land, but rather lease it to European interests.

In Rotorua there are several tribes that conduct tourist ventures around presenting Maori culture. Tourists are invited to a traditional “hangi” feast, which includes a cultural performance of singing and dancing. We chose the Mitai family’s hangi as we heard it was the least touristy and most intimate and went on Wednesday night.

The first task was to choose a chief to represent our “tribe of many nations.” A Scotsman (Chief Mark) volunteered for the job, which included accepting a peace offering from the Maori chief and making a little speech thanking the tribe for having us. Mark’s kids were quite stressed about this but everything turned out just fine.

The Mitai family then treated us to quite a performance. They demonstrated various chants, war dances, and storytelling songs. They were extremely good about interacting with us, rather than just performing and gave detailed explanations about the origins and methods behind their traditional customs. Below are some photos from this segment of the evening (starting with a canoe greeting) and a video of one of the dances.




After the performance it was dinnertime! The “hangi” describes the method for cooking in traditional Maori culture. A “hangi” is essentially an earth oven. Hot coals are placed on the bottom of a deep hole and water poured over them. Baskets of food are then placed on top, with meat on the bottom and vegetables on top. The hole is then covered and the warmth of the ground combined with steam and pressure cooks the food in about 3 hours. We were impressed and a little skeptical, but the food was amazing and to Steve’s delight, all you can eat. Below is a photo of dinner coming out of the “hangi.”


After dinner they showed us around their property, taking us to a sacred spring where glowworms could be seen.