Tauranga

I arrived in Tauranga about a week and a half ago and will be leaving on Tuesday. So, I'm back in the Bay of Plenty but west of where I stayed when I first arrived in New Zealand. This place is absolutely gorgeous and much more of the coastal city/town/summer pad that I was hoping to find.

Below a little video of my first evening in Tauranga. A view of the bay/port from the roof/balcony of the Harbourside Backpackers. Not too shabby, eh?

There are tons of bars, cafes and restaurants on the Strand (what seems to be the common name in many coastal towns, for the street that's closest to the water, like the boardwalk). There are quite a few nightclubs too which is pretty cool after the one nightclub I had to contend with in Hastings for 2 1/2 months. Cafes also close later and the place that I'm sending this entry from is called Chaos, a definitive rock/metal head cafe which has the wonderful advantage of providing free internet if you purchase something as cheap as a coke. You can stay here for hours afterwards and no one bothers you. Definitely beats the $4/hour you find in other places! Only problem is, wireless is not as reliable as the cable internet...can't have it all, huh?

On my first weekend here, there was an international hydroplane competition literally across the street from the backpackers, so we had a bird's eye view of the show, and for free!!! But imagine, what it sounds like when a motorcycle is roaring down the street at 2am on a week night. These boats are 10 times louder than those damned motorcycles!

hydroplane being airlifted into the water
"showgrounds" with cranes and boats waiting for the race

Last Friday, I was sitting at a table and chairs next to the port minding my own business, having a coffee and a group of men in kilts were playing bagpipes. It was kind of strange, but cool at the same time. Thought you'd like to hear them practicing. (warning: I did say Irish bagpipes. I am aware of it now. I apologize. Wasn't thinking straight!)

Later on, some young Maori boys came up to me to ask for a cigarette. There were six of them. Two pairs of them were brothers and they were all first cousins, the sons of sisters. It was great to meet local boys, see what the modern Maori lifestyle is like. They were all born and raised in Tauranga and their ages ranged from 17 to 24. So once again, I'm the oldest in the group. I should be used to this by now! So a simple request for a cigarette turned into about 45 minutes of discussion and educational epiphanies. I learned a lot of new words from them.

Here they are:

loot: money

servo: service station, or gas station as we would say in North America

heiner: pretty girl (a compliment, not an insult)

smuck/darri: to smoke

Other words or expressions I've learned since I got to New Zealand:

sweet as: cool

push and play: exercise

dairy: convenience store/corner store

tea toatler(not sure of the spelling of this word): going around dry, without the influence of alcohol

Shout you a drink: treat you to a drink/offer you a drink; you can shout someone anything


Below, one of the boys, doing a modern-day haka for us. It was fun!

This is what traveling is all about!

Napier

I had been to Napier once before, when I went to the Gypsy fair a couple of months ago. I wanted to stay there a few days before traveling on to the northern part of the North Island. Napier's an interesting city because it was nothing really special until the 1931 earthquake that completely leveled the city.

After that tragedy, it was reborn and is today known as the Art Deco capital of New Zealand. So the buildings are quite attractive and slightly reminiscent of South Beach in Miami (though less pretentious). Don't have much to say about the city. I've been quite ill with a lung infection and so haven't gone on long walks or done anything too physically taxing. As a result, there were many things I would have wanted to do, but instead I deferred to the bed and rest and a walk around the block.

Attractive city though! Check it out.

Jogging path stretching from Napier to Clive, about a 10 minute drive.

Dentist's office. What a pretty office to work in and do awful things to scared people!
Pania, the local legend; below the story

Art Deco fountain
Shops on Emerson Street

This is where I stayed and had a glass of wine on the balcony while watching a beautiful sunset
Hotel
Marine Parade Street and Garden with outdoor theater
Architecture on Marine Parade

Cape Kidnappers

Cape Kidnappers is a place known for its colony of Gannets, birds with really beautiful eye make-up. Though the locals don't think anything of them, I find them quite beautiful, at least, the few pictures I've seen of them.

So, I decided that I wanted to see them for myself and headed off one day with Dean, a cool Maori dude who is studying massage therapy in order to help his people heal. We met at the end of a Maori festival and he gave me a foot massage.

We became friends and he took me out for a ride. I wanted to go to Cape Kidnappers, the location where a group of Maori's tried to kidnap Captain Cook's servant, so we drove out there one afternoon.

Below are some pictures of the walk along the shore to see the gannets.

Gotta love how resilient trees are


Around the tip of that piece of land, is way more land to walk before getting to the colony

Interesting look at how wood can be squeezed between rock and turn into a kind of charcoal
Erosion's work
Close-up of rock formations
Dean walking along the shore

Alas, we were not able to get to the gannets. We arrived as the tide was coming in and you can't walk along the shore, the tide goes up too high. So we had to leave without seeing those darned birds. I was pretty disappointed and hoped that I would get a chance to go back there before leaving Hawke's Bay.

About a week and a half later, Shani took me out there. We went several hours earlier, hoping that this would be the perfect day.

Shani taking a dip in the ocean

It's still so far away!

A guardian overlooking the bay

Love this picture! A lot of the "stone" is actually clay. As we walked along the shore, some of the rocks we stepped on were moist and the color was coming off. Clay! The most beautiful colors too...greens and blues...
The rippled effect

Striations in the rock
The only bird I did get to see, though it's not a gannet


Alas, the tide came up fast and strong and we were yet again forced to turn back. It seems that I was not meant to see the gannets. Two strikes and I had no more time. So we left. The walk was beautiful though, and the day bright and hot. That was something!

Below a little video of the bay. To clarify, from right to left: Mahia Peninsula, Wairoa, and Napier.

Shani Te Aho

I met Shani through a lucky break. I had met her friend, Karrine, at a nightclub in Hastings (the only nightclub!). After more than a month, I finally got in touch with her and met Shani in the process. I'm grateful for the encounter. Though we've only known each other for about 2 weeks, we connected right away and she was incredibly open and willing to impart her knowledge of her heritage, legends and cultural traditions. It made spending so much time in Hastings, completely worthwhile.

Shani

We talked about everything, melding two or more of our own cultures into everyday topics and discovering how differently we grew up and how differently we see the world. And yet, there was a strange understanding and acceptance in each of our different ways of viewing the world. No conflict, just continuous learning. I wish I could have recorded so many of our conversations about Maori history and culture because I learned so much, and I know that there is no way I will remember everything she's told me. I will cherish the conversations we had, though, and the generosity pouring out of her and her family.

On Christmas day, she came over with a huge plate of food her father had cooked, typical Maori kai(food), much like the hangi I had at the Maori village. It was delicious. In New Zealand, among the Maori, it is the men that traditionally do the cooking. About a week later, after returning from fishing, Shani's father gave me a fish for cooking. Here I was, once again, adopted by families who thought I needed to be fed. And I haven't even met them! I'm blessed and her presence in my life for the past few weeks has been a blessing.

Along with the food, Shani made me a puti puti, a flower made from flax. It symbolizes growth. It's amazing how quickly you can connect with someone in such a short period of time. She understands completely that this is my mission here in New Zealand and the puti puti is proof of that.

Puti Puti
Puti Puti close up

Other things she taught me... how to open a beer bottle with a lighter. That's the thing here. In Haiti, we used hard edges of surfaces, here, it's all a question of angles. Here's a video of her doing it.

I have so many stories to tell you, but I will do it all in time. Next time I'll explain the story of how New Zealand came about, again, a story told by Shani.

Last night we were having drinks in Napier and she told me that if I needed anything, I could call her. We're whanau now, we're family.

Around Town and Te Mata Peak

Below is the view of Hastings, Napier and the Pacific Ocean from Te Mata Peak.

The legend of this mountain goes as follows:

Two chiefs from different Iwis (tribes) betrothed their son and daughter as children. When they were old enough to get married, the father of the girl told her that the man, Mata, was a tyrant and a bad person and that he didn't want her marrying him anymore. So she set off to try to deter him from marrying her by asking him impossible feats.

First she asked him: "Shape-shift into a bug smaller than an ant."

And he did, before her eyes.

Next she asked him: "Get me the biggest piece of greenstone that you can find within an hour."

Now greenstone is not readily found in the North Island, so he ran to the South Island and came back to her within the allotted time with the biggest and most beautiful greenstone.

She was impressed, but asked him yet another request before she would agree to marry him.

She asked him: "Make me the finest coat of koutuku(a legendary bird that was considered sacred because it was known to never set foot on the ground) within one hour."

He did as she asked and presented her with the most sublime of coats made by the most beautiful feathers. By then she had fallen in love with him, however, remembering what her father had said, she told him to do one last thing. She told him to turn into a giant and so he did. And she asked him to eat a piece of the mountain as if it were cake. As he did so, she cast a sleeping spell on him and he fell asleep on the mountain where he remains today.

If you look closely, you can see the head to the right of center and then see the body laid out from right to left. (I didn't take this picture, this is off the net Photograph by Basil Keane)

(This legend was told to me by Shani, I thank her for her knowledge.)


Below, some images of things in and around Hastings.

Showed you the microwave mailbox previously, here's a refrigerator mailbox!


fridge mailbox


flower bush

close-up of flower

These flowers remind me of the mimi flowers in Haiti. There used to be a huge tree of red ones at the old campus of Union School. Used to love that tree...

My Apartment in Hastings

I stayed at Rotten Apple Backpackers for a total of three weeks. I was foaming at the mouth by then and needed my own place. And since I had a job and could afford to move out, I did.

I was lucky enough to find a furnished studio on the edge of town, close to the Farmer's market, which sold fresh produce every Sunday. I loved to go there and buy fresh ingredients and support the local farmers. My boss had a stand there also, so I got to say hello and would get the occasional free fruit (cherries, Mmm....)

I paid $190 per week, which is not cheap, but given the fact that I paid $130 per week at the backpackers, this was a gift! I had my own TV, bathroom and kitchen and little patio as well as a pool to share with the other residents in the complex.

Below is a little tour of where I spent the last 2 months. Sorry, kept putting it off until the day I moved out, so it looks a bit bare, but you'll get the gist of it. I was happy here. And at peace from the hustle and bustle of the backpackers.

A little glimpse of the pool and some fun little visitors.

I left Hastings on January 9th. I'm now in Napier, but will be leaving tomorrow. I'm done with the sedentary life and back on the road; my wallet a hell of a lot lighter, but my energy high and my mind ready for new adventure. I'll keep you updated!

Mystery Article # 2

We had a costume/beach party on one of the last nights I was still at the backpackers. Guess who won the costume contest?

The winner will get a souvenir from New Zealand. Previous winners cannot win again.

Sorry, gotta draw the line somewhere!

Lydia

Andy and Pedro (wearing my bikini top!)

Vanessa

Jiri

Oliver

Matthias