First Week In New Zealand!

So our first week here in New Zealand was great! I'm at the point now where I wake up in the morning and I don't really think, "oh my gosh, I'm in New Zealand".. Now its more along the lines of "...Another beautiful morning in this place I love...". It's really starting to feel like home. I haven't had a bad day yet.

Last Saturday we went our first day-long hike... the forest here was totally different from the one back home. There were some breaks of pasture in it, just like at home, but in the actual forest, the plant life was so much more dense. There were ferns everywhere! Our field leaders claimed that we were climbing hills, but trust me, these were MOUNTAINS. Haha. I guess I'm biased being from the flat plains of the midwest... but we did a LOT of climbing and maneuvering down hill. It was about a 12 km hike, and there were some pretty intense climbing moments, but the views were GORGEOUS.

The next day we got to relax a little bit more... We actually went to a regional park and had class on a white sand beach. It was really our first day that was mostly cloudy and we had a few spots of rain, but it was really quite calming. We didn't really do any swimming, but our class was mostly about self-reflection and getting to know one another on a more personal level, so it was truly a relaxing time. Not to mention the fact that we climbed over some gorgeous rock formations to get to the beach. So that was another great day!

We had Monday off, which I took to relax and catch up with things a little bit.. We did some local stuff, some bike riding and walking along the beach. Sunday night our whole group of 25 had gone in to town together to sing karaoke(!) so getting to sleep in Monday was a treat. We've been getting up around 7am most days.. funnily enough though, I never really wake up tired.

And finally, yesterday, we took an unexpected field trip that turned out to be really awesome. We were planning to go Wednesday or Thursday to the local Marae (sacred/gathering place of the Maori), but they unexpectedly needed to plant a tangi (funeral) over these days. In Maori culture, a funeral ceremony lasts three days, with the main ceremony and burial on the third and final day. The first two days, the body of the deceased remains in the Marae and is always guarded/accompanied by atleast two others. We did not find out about the tangi until Tuesday morning (the second day of the funeral), but the community leader at the Marae agreed to let us come to the Marae that day to do our powhiri (official welcoming ceremony) and learn more about the culture and the funeral proceedings. We originally were supposed to go Wednesday, which would have been the day of the main ceremony, but by going a day earlier, we were able to pay our respects to the man who had died and really learn about their culture first hand.
There were no shows, no intimidating men dressed as warriors or challenges--this was real life for the Maori... what they experience day to day, and the memories and culture they still carry with them.

However, there was a catch. During the powhiri, the visitors that are entering the Marae traditionally sing a waiata (a song that is sung as sign of respect, thanks, and warm feelings to the Maori). A waiata CAN be sung in English... if it is, it is traditionally a song that represents one's home culture and ancestry that the guest is bringing onto the Marae... something like our national anthem, or This Land Is My Land. But the waiata can also be a traditional Maori song... we decided this would be much cooler both for us and the Maori. So we learned two in about two hours! And trust me, this was no easy feat! Haha.
Here are the words to one:

E harra i te mea
No nainei te aroha
No nga tupuna
Tuku iho tuku iho

It really is a beautiful language.. but really hard to articulate at first.. it takes some getting used to. But the welcome ceremony was really nice.. the local Marae was actually fairly small. We've been spending a lot of time learning about the history of the Maori this first week, along with the traditions and cultural rules. We are fortunate to be with Ecoquest, because this organization's leaders and the program in general has a very good relationship with the local sub-tribes, and they were so willing to open their doors to us, even in a time of mourning, to teach us.

It was extremely touching to know their willingness to welcome us, and you could certainly feel the spirituality of the culture. I think that is one of the most attractive things to me about the Maori culture... the prominence of spirituality and the deep connections they have to their roots and especially their ancestry. They have these magnificent carvings incorporated into the structure and decor of the building that honor their ancestors... and they were just beautiful. Some of them were quite huge, and all of them were so intricately done. I wish I could have taken some pictures, but there was certainly no way I would have brought a camera onto or into the Marae. It was a great experience though.

So this weekend we'll be heading to Auckland! Its our first full weekend off, and we can do whatever we want really.. so a group of 8 of us are going to the Waitangi day festival, which honors the treaty that was first formed between the Maori and the pakeha (white men).. there are still mixed sentiments about this treaty, but its sure to be a pretty cultural event.. there's actually going to be a live debate about the treaty I think. Not to mention lots of music, crafts, foods, and other events... it should be fun. We're going into the actualy city of Auckland Saturday night and staying at a hostel, and Sunday morning we're going to visit one of the islands that's off of the city of Auckland. Auckland's on the water--its known as the city of sails actually.
One of the islands actually has a former volcano, which you can climb (!) and the other has a wildlife/bird sanctuary which is supposed to be awesome. So we get to explore the city, get the great views from the ferry ride, and then get to do some hiking and nature walking... we've got the best of all worlds! Should be fun!

Until next time, don't miss me too much! :)