All Blacks Make Haka Hot

As you know, I've been doing my due diligence and Googling for info on New Zealand to prep for a potential vacay there. I'm still undecided whether I want to backpack it on my own or join a small-group tour that's a cross between adventure and budget. I'm leaning toward the tour, even though this vacay is supposed to simulate what it'd be like to be on the road alone.

Most of the tours I'm looking at treat you to a traditional Maori dinner and the videos I've seen of these things look like the Maori version of a luau. Instead of doing hula, they do the haka. My YouTubing research quickly led from these tours to haka done by various sports teams. The majority of the videos are of the All Blacks, a Kiwi rugby team. I don't know if they're the only team that does the haka or even if they're the only team in NZ. I don't know anything about rugby, but once I started watching the videos I couldn't stop.

There seems to be a variety of different haka, but the most common is the one that starts off, "Ka mate, Ka mate, Ka ora Ka ora." This is the one with which I'm familiar (and I assume most other people are as well). It bothered me that I didn't know the words beyond those first few lines. I think it's mostly because the chants are shouted and the words are never distinct enough to understand. Even after watching several videos, I still couldn't get the words down. I finally had to Wikipedia them and read the words while listening to YouTube. Who knows if Wikipedia is even accurate though.



Watching the various videos of the All Blacks, I noticed that these rugby guys are pretty hot . . . even with the ugly, macho-man faces they're making (or is it because of that?). The guys, of course, are all fit and muscular and they're yelling at the top of their lungs as I imagine the cavemen of old used to. And yet, despite all the movement and progress gained through women's lib, I still find their behavior oddly sexy. I mean, there's something to be said about the masculinity, agility and dare I say virility that these guys exude while doing this haka. Their intensity and focus is both intimidating and alluring. It's kinda like looking into the eyes of a wildcat.



And just so you know, I still can't get the words to the haka right. But I'm going to keep trying . . . you know, for educational and cultural exchange purposes and all! LOL!