Maori Kite Day

Ahhhh! Vacation! I am currently sitting with my feet up in front of the lake enjoying the start of my week off. Some of my friends are feeling a little worse for wear this morning after our vacation kick off last night, but I surprisingly fared quite well. I am looking forward to having the week off, taking some day trips around and having time off to relax. I will keep you updated on any interesting things that I do this week. For now I will tell you about my super great experience at the Maori kite festival.

Yesterday was one of the coolest experiences I have had since coming to New Zealand. Since coming to NZ I have been interested in the Maori culture. It is a prominent culture in the North Island and from what I noticed the Maori people are still very traditional and unlike other indigenous people have maintained many aspects of their culture. I am quite eager to learn more about the culture and traditions but I have been wanting to learn from the people themselves, hear of the customs from the people that practice them. The city of Auckland does a pretty good job of marketing the culture and turning it into a novelty so the nice white people can feel cultured. That isn't what I wanted, I want to learn first hand. So I have been going to some of the events around the city for the month long Matariki festival despite that they are put on my the city. It was the best way for me to learn more seeing as I didn't know any Maori people. Well not anymore!

Some of you may recall a photo that I posted on facebook of a fella doing a traditional moko tattoo at the Kapa Haka Super 12 last weekend. That fella's name is Graham and he is now my Maori connection. I had chit chatted with him at the cloud and took his business card because I am wanting a moko too. Later in the week he invited me to go to the kite festival on the Saturday being held at a Marae. A marae is is a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes. I was planning on attending the kite festival anyway but Graham invited me to the official opening before the public festival kicked off. I am so grateful to him because it really was an amazing experience to be able to attend that. We arrived at the marae and I was introduced to many many people, to many to remember all their names. Family is a very big part of the culture and they have very close and large families. I had told Graham about my list and how I have to hug 10 Kiwis, he just laughed and said that I would fill that there at the kite festival. It is a traditional greeting to hug and kiss on one cheek. So I was a little uncomfortable at first but got over it pretty soon actually. So Graham was performing in the Kapa Haka group and couldn't join me for the welcoming ceremony. He asked his friend to look after me, because there are certain areas of the marae that I wouldn't be allowed on and a specific order of the ceremony. She gladly said I could stick close to her until he was done and could show me around. I don't know how to express the way it felt to be there with Grahams family. It was amazing the way that each of them gladly welcomed me with open arms, hearts and minds and they were all so lovely and nice and that in itself was an experience.

So we were assembled at the entry to the meeting house and given instructions as to how to position ourselves and what the steps would be upon entering the meeting house. We assembled in a group, the women were at the front, the children in the middle and the men in the back. A woman started singing to signal the start of it and the Kapa Haka group started their singing as well. We walked as a group to the doorway of the meeting house, removed our shoes and entered to an area with some seats. I would try to describe what the inside of the meeting house looked like but there is no way with words you could understand. I have posted pictures before of some of the carvings and artwork in there but it really is beautiful. We all sat and several people did some speaking. The kapa haka group and several important members sat in one area and the rest of us in another. Of course I hadn't the foggiest clue what they were saying because the whole ceremony was done in Maori. Although I couldn't understand what they were saying it was great because it was exactly what I wanted. An authentic Maori experience, not just a show for the people. This was the real deal so I just sat in awe of the whole thing while the speeches were done in Maori. I did understand one thing though, when Graham was speaking he said, "maori maori maori, Canada." And pointed at me. I assume he was telling them all that I was visiting from Canada. The speaking was about 20-25 minutes and then we all got up and they formed kind of like a receiving line. The people that were chosen to speak, the kapa haka group and several other of the more important people stood in a line and all of us spectators were to travel down the line and greet each of them before exiting the meeting house. The greeting we did with each of them is called  hongi. Hongi is not for people with personal space issues, that is for sure. The hongi is when you shake hands and press your nose and forehead together with the other person at the same time. It symbolizes the breath of life. So when you and the other person press your forehead and nose together you are breathing the same breath. This isn't just used in a ceremony or formal setting. Maori men often use this as a greeting in everyday life. So in order to fully experience this I set aside my personal space issues and did this with each and every of the about 20 people in the line.

After everything was said and done the public event kicked off and all of the people I just met split up and went to their designated areas and were busy doing jobs and things. Graham showed me around the meeting house and pictures of his ancestors and family. I was so pleased that I was able to come and learn and experience the culture. Outside there were huge kites flying in the air on the hill overlooking the harbour. It was a spectacular site to be seen! The kites were huge and colorful and there was a lot of wind so they were sailing high. There was music in the air, food stalls, and hand made goods. Graham took me around and showed me the marae and was so good to me. Then I got to sit and watch their kapa haka group perform and it was so good. I will post pictures and videos of their performance.

I couldn't thank him enough for letting me experience that and thank his family for being so open and welcoming. He also is teaching all the good Maori slang ;) Also he is teaching me how to properly say things. Like you actually pronounce Maori like moldy, without emphasis on the 'd'. So, that was my first real authentic Maori interaction and although I have written about the things I did it could never describe what that meant to me and what it was like.