Merchandising is probably the most obvious characteristics of Disneyization to spot in New Zealand due to the All Blacks; they have a large range of merchandise ranging from clothes to bags. Their merchandises are sold all over New Zealand, even Singapore have some of their merchandises. All the merchandises have the same silver fern logo that are made under license Last but not least, the Tamaki Maori Village in Rotorua. I visited the place once and I viewed the Maori traditional performances and villages. The Maori people there have to perform a minimum of three shows each day for visitors. The important Haka dance and poi dance that are frequently performed seem to have lost their meanings during these performances. The Haka dance which is meant to be a war dance is merely a performance when it is brought to the frontline. Though, they maintained their facial expressions and body language during the performance, but one can easily tell that they are not really feeling the essence of their dance; unlike when the dance is use at an appropriate moment, like the All Blacks rugby match where they challenge their opponents. This illustrates performative labour as the Maori people culture is actually part of service work and their culture is seen as a performance rather than a lifestyle now.

Indigenous group
The Maori are largely recognizable all over the world, due to their unique face tattoos, costumes, traditions and culture. Most of tourists who travel to tourism would definitely make their way up to Rotorua in order to view the traditional dance and items of the Maori people. Also, due to the fact that New Zealand has a cultural blend, it shows clearly in the New Zealand culture, the influence of Maori.

All Blacks
The sports industry is growing and is one of the important revenue generators in the world. Sports events are becoming regular and highly commercialized. The All Blacks is the New Zealand rugby team, New Zealand is known for the All Blacks because they are the only rugby team that actually does the traditional haka dance before every match they play. Due to the fact that they are being marketed very well, their merchandises a widely sold and are very popular, they are becoming like a way of branding New Zealand; the ‘faces’ of New Zealand. For example, even though I am not a rugby fan but, I do own a shoe bag by the All Blacks because they are famous. In actual fact, I don’t know anything in depth about them.

Icons of New Zealand
The three icons that represents New Zealand are the kiwi, silver fern and tuatara(lizard). New Zealand is famous for their icons as it gives them the identity and it is unique to their country. New Zealanders are even called Kiwis due to the fact that their national icon is the kiwi.


Geothermal activities
Due to the fact that New Zealand has a lot of volcanoes, geothermal activities are common. In Rotorua, a tourist site called Wai-O- Tapu allows tourists to be up close and in the area of geothermal activity. Tourists get to see the different wonders caused by volcanoes.

Another event would be the Rhapsody Rotorua Festival, which is international schools music event. It is the first international schools music event to be held in New Zealand. The event aims to let student gain exposure, an opportunity to rehearse, and play with famous bands. Apart from performances, amateur musicians like the students can also attend workshops available during the event days.

From my research, I found that most of the events or festivals held at Rotorua are very much culture oriented as it contains areas like the arts. For example the two events mentioned above are both music art festivals. This shows the upcoming importance of promoting culture.

Activities
Rotorua offers several unique activities for pure enjoyment purposes. Some examples include:

Agrojet- It is the fastest jet boat ride in New Zealand, the activity is held through a watercourse at a very high speed

Rotorua Bungy – This is basically a bungee jump that gives people an adrenaline rush

Freefall Xtreme – It is an activity that gives you the feeling like you are skydiving but however in a safer environment



Shweeb – It is an activity whereby a person has to pedal within the Shweeb pod around a 600m long course. Races can be held against one another

Rotorua have a lot of activities for visitors due to the space available and that it is also one of the largest tourist areas, whereby most of the activities are catered specially for tourists. There are several companies that hold activities at Rotorua, different companies offer different play activities.

The above 4 activities are from a company called Agroventures, there are other companies such as the ZORB that offers the ZORB ball and River Rats Rafting Adventures that offer river rafting activities. Therefore, a wide range of activities is available at Rotorua it just depends on personal preferences as to which activity a person would like to do.

Ta Moko
The Ta Moko is a traditional Maori tattoo that is often done on the face, it is regarded as a taonga (treasure) to the Maori people and its application can be consider sacred. Each and every Moko contains messages that tell a story of the wearer’s ancestral or tribal roots, it also contains a value. The value indicates the wearer’s standing in the social class. Initially, Ta Moko was a declining art form in the 20th century. However, after realizing its importance as a cultural pride to the Maori it is an art form being revived over the years. The Ta Moko is not a fashion trend, it is an indication of who the Maori people are and it has enabled them to keep and retain their unique identity over the years. For females, the moko is generally only done at the chin, whereas for men it is done on the whole face and sometimes other parts of the body

The above three traditions are mostly applicable to the Maori and not the Pakeha as it is part of their unique way of life. The following tradition would apply to New Zealand as a whole in general, as the Maori has actually influenced the Pakeha in this area.


Kapa Haka
The term Kapa Haka derives its meaning from two words, Kapa and Haka. Kapa means to stand in rows and Haka refers to the Maori dance. In general, Kapa Haka describe the performing arts of the Maori, it consists of different elements, the poi(dance that is practice only by women), haka, waiata a ringa (action songs) and waiata tawhito(chants). These elements are often used to record history, convey meanings, and tell stories, to celebrate and other meanings. However, I would only be focusing on the area of the Haka dance due to its wide influence.

Haka dance

Poi dance

Haka dance

All Blacks

From what I have observed in my research, the Haka originated from the Maori people but, now even the Pakeha are using it as part of their tradition. For example, the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team is famous for doing the Haka before their matches; most members of the All Blacks are not of Maori origin but are of Pakeha origin. The word ‘Haka’ actually means dance in general, however the Haka dance is also known as a war dance; a fearsome challenge to the opponents as traditionally it was performed before charging into a battle. The facial expressions such as sticking out the tongue and body language such as feet stamping of the Haka dance is often used to instill fear into the opponents. The Haka dance has become an important part of cultural identity for New Zealand as the image of the Haka dance is being disseminate all over the world through sports meets, where it is most commonly seen. An example for the Haka dance in the sports arena is in one of the All Blacks rugby match, where they use the Haka as a challenge throw down against the opponents. This can be seen in the YouTube video below.