First Weekend Update

I'm back, after a very long weekend and a busy first few days of classes! More details on the important academic stuff later – for now I'm gonna bore regale you with wonderful stories and images from my weekend.

Just for the record, here is the front of the lovely abode in which we currently
reside, along with a bunch of other awesome international students.

We woke up bright and early on Saturday morning to be greeted at 9:00 AM sharp by three women who would serve as our tour guides for the rest of the day. After a formal Māori greeting, we piled into two big vans and headed to Maungakiekie (a.k.a. 'One Tree Hill') for the terrific views and the fascinating backstory. 
First thing we noticed: sheep! Their farmer is allowed to let them roam freely, but they mostly shy away from curious tourists. I've seen sheep on farms before, but I haven't experienced their capacity for meandering.

Casually grazing on the hillsides. 

Come back, sheep! We just want to feel your fleeciness.

Revenons à nos moutons. (I have been waiting for years to say that in this context.) Our tour guide B told us about the long history of Maungakiekie, including its past as a prominent pā, or fortified settlement, in times of war. This legacy remains in its terraced hillsides, around which large wooden palisades would be erected to deter invaders.

One of the hill's sides, with the obelisk monument at the summit.

After a few stops along the way for picturesque photos that millions of tourists before us have taken, we arrived at the summit, where we beheld marvelous views of the surrounding city, as well as this towering monument commemorating the anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi:

Note the bronze statue of a Māori chief. In front of the monument is
the grave of Sir John Campbell, an important local political figure.

After telling us about the natural history of the surrounding landscape (interesting discussion about whenua, or 'afterbirth'), our tour guides explained the hill's colonial history through the trees that used to live atop the hill. While the Māori were the majority in the area, there used to live two pohutukawa (or totara) trees at the hill's summit...until some drunken white sailors chopped them down. Despite Sir John Campbell's attempts to replace the trees with another seedling by protecting the baby tree with a wall of pines, the poor tree and most of its barrier died soon after being planted, leaving a single pine tree standing. Hence, 'One Tree Hill.' However, sometime in the 1980s a Māori activist (who we later learned was the father of one of the tour guides) attacked and fatally damaged (injured?) the tree to bring attention to injustice done to his tribe. Since then, there has been no end of debate over the possibility of replacement trees, and very little decision. Therefore, though its official name remains 'One Tree Hill,' locals have taken to calling it 'None Tree Hill.' I found it interesting that such a prominent location (which was once used for self-orienting among those lost in Auckland) now serves as a pointed reminder of colonialism's legacy.

After a few obligatory vista shots (when else am I gonna be this high up in the city?), we descended the hill, stopped for morning tea (hmm quite), then headed off to our next destination: the Auckland War Memorial Museum.

View of the water

I forget the name of that far-off mountain, but I think it might have been named
something like 'Sky Blood' in honor of its violent volcanic birth.

Note the stump (I think) and the Sky Tower, ever present in the city skyline.

When we arrived at the museum, rather than looking at the World War-related exhibits, our tour guides steered us to the exhibits dedicated to Māori culture and history. Here, we encountered such relics as this old war canoe:

It took months and months to build by brilliant craftsmen and carvers, but was sunk by the British
to discourage warfare...and eventually dredged from the bottom of the harbor.

Our tour guide told us stories of warfare and violence, as well as her own memories of traditions and family. For instance, although much damage and bloodshed was inflicted by the weapons below...

Note the impressive pendants and mere (clubs) made of pounamu (greenstone).

...there was always much to be celebrated and remembered in any Māori community. Many ceremonies (weddings, funerals, rites of passage) would be conducted within a marae, which, as a sacred space, we students were extremely privileged to enter.

It's huge! You could fit a hundred people inside, easily.

Our tour guides explained some of the different components of the marae to us. Since the building can be seen as the body of a particular ancestor, the two pillars supporting it are known as the liver and the heart, two very important organs in Māori culture. The main pole running down the middle of the marae is the spine, and the poles spreading to the outside are the ribs. Meanwhile, the walls are decorated with intricate wooden sculptures of other ancestors of the tribe, which were made by the men, that alternate with fabric woven into more abstract patterns by the women. Overall, it's clear that we could spend months absorbing the rich history in the marae and still come away with much to learn about Māori culture.

Once we exited the marae, we looked at some fantastic portraits of 19th-century Māori elders with tattoos, discussed the importance of said tattoos in representing one's identity and history, and saw a few more things before leaving, like this model of a pā:

It reminded me of Age of Empires.

One thing that stuck with me throughout the tour was the theme of carving. Though Māori didn't have an official alphabet until British missionaries arrived in the 19th century, their tradition of carving is as old as they are. In particular, Māori tribes throughout the centuries have carved wood to keep track of their extensive whakapapa (geneology), in addition to many other uses like magically imbuing a canoe with speed. Interestingly, our tour guides compared the carving of wood to the Māori tradition of facial tattoos, which many native people wear proudly to indicate whakapapa as well as their trade and life journey. Though this tradition encountered difficulty during the punk/rebellious age of the '70s and '80s, when such tattoos carried negative connotations, they seem to be returning to their former respected status. The connection between the traditions of physical carving and the body 'carvings' of tattooing leads to questions of permanence and continuity that I'm way too tired to fully hash out right now. But just know that it's a cool connection.

A few stops by a local beach (semi-warm and beautiful water for swimming) and Devenport (a cool little artsy suburb), and then we were done. I wish we'd had time to experience a little more Māori history, and especially had more time to just chat with the tour guides about their own thoughts on Māori culture today (we did have a short discussion about the importance of the language in their lives), but I suppose that will come later in the trip.

For now, though, ka kite anō (see you later)!