Susan,
Hobbiton is located in Matamata which is on the way to Rotorua, the focal point for the preservation of Maori culture. In Rotorua, there is Te Puia, a Maori Cultural Center and Geothermal Site. At Puia, perhaps because I am tall, brown, reasonably fit and look the most like them, the Maori selected me to be the honorary chief of the visitors for the day. That distinction allowed me to join the Maori for the traditional Haka dance celebration. Doing the Haka is a lot harder than it seems. You really have to slap your body hard. By the end of the dance, my thighs and chest were red and I was out of breath. But it was a wonderful experience ... just as wonderful as the night the week before when the dance troupe on Bora Bora invited me to join them for a dance and gave me a ceremonial palm branch hat for being that night's "Lord of the Dance". Sadly, the New Zealand officials confiscated that hat. It was a beautiful hat.
As for the Maori, as evidenced by the Haka dance, their history is one steeped in ferociousness. They are a formidable people and, in contrast to the French Polynesians, appear to have been quite resistant to European domination even to this day. The fact that some of the best and most ferocious rugby players are Maori tells you quite a bit about the Maori of today. The fact that in not so ancient times, they practiced eating their defeated foes tells you a little more.
By the way, the Maori control and run Te Puia, again evidencing their "independence" from European domination.
Thanks for asking about the Maori, I will tell more a little later.
Peace,
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
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Hi Skip,
Did you meet or chat with any of the Maouri while you were there ? One of my graduate school friends, in plant pathology, used to tell me that I looked just like his grandmother (minus a number of years). When he brought me a picture of her one day she could have been one of my relatives – he was right.
Something to think about along with Hobbiton,
Best,
Susan
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Oops!
The correct preferred Hobbiton link is
Sorry about that.
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
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The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King was on TBS this past weekend and, being a hooked fan, I was compelled to watch it once again. This time around when the movie came to its near conclusion with the return of the Hobbits to Hobbiton, I found myself being very nostalgic about my recent trip to New Zealand and my visit to Shire. A flood of memories of the wondrous Hobbiton movie set came to mind and prompted me to see what videos might exist of the Hobbiton that I now know. Here is the best that I found:
After watching the video, you too may desire to visit the Shire and relive memories of adventures of yore. For those who are able and so inclined, I can testify that it is a journey well worth taking.
However, in my travels in New Zealand, I was actually surprised to discover another Hobbit like town on the Southern Island that was not the product of fiction but of fact. On the way to Queenstown, we rode through the quaint mining town of Arrowtown. I read about there being a Chinese mining settlement in Arrowtown and became intrigued so the next day we went back to find a history of a somewhat diminutive people who quiet literally spent a great part of their lives living in holes on the side of the mountains. You can read a bit about Arrowtown at
and see a bit more at
In my memories of New Zealand, both settlements left indelible images and both were inspiring. However, whereas today there are no Hobbits in Hobbiton, there are thousands of Chinese who managed to come out of their mountain holes and create a community and a legacy that endures to this day. They were able to do so not so much based on their mining skills but based on their culinary culture which relied upon the raising of copious amounts of fruits and vegetables which the Chinese miners soon began to sell to their Caucasian neighbors. Quite remarkable.
Peace,
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
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