TIRAU !

Tirau is Maori for "place of many cabbage trees." In the past the Maori used to come here at night and catch the kereru (local pigeons) as they roosted for the night in the trees. there aren't any left, but the cabbage tree is still the symbol of the town as you enter it.



We pass through whenever we visit Rotorua and it makes a good stopping place, lots of little boutique shops and cafes and some of the most playful building designs!



This 'Woolshed' is a souvenir shop and the tourist office resmbles a giant dog - we could make the connection between the sheep and all the wool products for sale - but a dog and tourists - I'm not sure?



Perhaps it has something to do with the giant shepherd who is standing just out of the frame, at the side?



Tirau has a huge population of 800 - so when you drive through it, it doesn't take long!
It's a quirky little place, it seems every town has to have a speciality - whether it's their public toilets, apples, murals or pies - in this case it's the corrugated iron signage! The town has used discarded corrugated pieces to advertise their shops along the way and it has become almost an art form!



This is definitely the haven for all things corrugated! It used to be a flag station on the railway. Now, the street is lined with speciality shops - a clock shop, teddy bear shop, flower shop, honey shop, even a toy collection museum - the same type is never repeated.

If the cafe is called 'Poppy's' as in this case, then there will be a giant bunch of corrugated iron poppies on the roof..



I wonder if you can guess what this shop sells?



And where would we be without a corrugated iron pukekho?