New Zealand - Waitomo Caves - Māori Concert Party performing in the Cathedral area of the Waitomo Caves, Auckland Province - 1973 - R. Anderson photo Waitomo - A rural community in the Waikato region - It includes Waitomo Caves, a solutional cave system and popular local tourist attraction - The word Waitomo comes from the Māori language - Wai meaning water and tomo meaning a doline or sinkhole - It can be translated to be water passing through a hole. - The caves are formed in Oligocene limestone. - Waitomo Caves Hotel is located in the Waitomo township Waitomo Caves - The limestone landscape of the Waitomo District area - The centre of increasingly popular commercial caving tourism from as early as 1900 - Initially mostly consisting of impromptu trips guided by local Māori - Large sections of cave near Waitomo Caves were later taken over by the Crown and managed as a tourism attraction from 1904 onwards - A 1915 guide said, "It is reached by railway to Hangatiki, thence 6 miles by coach along a good road" Reference: Wikipedia --------------------- Image source: Waitomo Caves, R. Anderson, 1973 Archives New Zealand reference: AAQT 6539 W3537 137 / B3904 Material from Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga https://www.flickr.com/photos/archivesnz/40010835073