All it takes is a simple greeting and Neil Rogers knows he's home.
After leaving Rotorua at 17 to study for a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Auckland, the 44-year-old's return in 2004 has made him realise there's no place like home.
"When Iwas living and studying in Auckland I'd say 'kia ora' to someone on the street and they'd give me a funny look and often just say nothing," Mr Rogers says.
He doesn't get that in Rotorua.
It's this blending of two cultures that makes Mr Rogers of Ngati Pikiao and Ngati Whakaue descent feel proud to call Rotorua home. "I love it here but I'm not sure I even see it as bi-cultural, I don't see them [Maori and Pakeha cultures] as separate," he says.
"They have lived side by side for years. I think this is what [author] Michael King might be talking [about], the emergence of a new New Zealand culture where Pakeha aren't frightened of it."
After his most recent job teaching at Te Rakaumanga, a full immersion Maori language speaking school in Huntly where he taught mathematics and science, Mr Rogers is now the head of the adult Tertiary Teaching programme at Te Wananga o Aotearoa in Rotorua.
"Culture is just a word but there is a new thought around called matauranga Maori [Maori knowledge]," he says.
"It is still here, if you want that knowledge you can go to Te Puia or Waiariki. Maori knowledge is accessible here and so is Western knowledge. That's just another of the great things I'm finding being back in Rotorua."
