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Published: September 19th 2005
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Maori performance
At the Auckland Museum (Ke Ora = hello and excellent) Greetings from Sydney!! I have been traveling for a week now, spending the first half in Auckland, New Zealand and the latter half in Sydney. Both are beautiful port cities that also do a spectacular job of maintaining green space within the cities.
I visited the Auckland Museum, which houses a great Maori exhibit and has performances of Maori dances. It's interesting to see how another country handles a minority community displaced by colonization. Most Maori children attend regular public schools, but a quarter of them remain in traditional Maori schools and begin to learn English at a later age (12 or 13). I also noticed the New Zealand government has an allotted number of parliamentary seats for Maori representation. NZ has a number of special rights for the indigenous culture (see below).
In reading the local paper and walking around Auckland, it struck me how some things are the same wherever you are. Due to rising oil prices, Aucklanders are evaluating incentives for commuters to bike to work (mainly a safety issue in a country that enjoys the outdoors). New Zealand just held its election for prime minister, so there were campaign flyers everywhere. I stayed near the
From the Auckland Museum
Slightly overcast - it rains no less than six times a day here, but for no more than five minutes at a time. University of Auckland, where the primary electoral issue was the Labour Party's promise to continue no-interest student loans. There were posters and balloons . . . and the ever-popular chalking of sidewalks around campus. Labour Party's Helen Clark won re-election by claiming 50 seats . . . the opposing National party won 49. (There are 122 total seats.) The National party candidate ran on a platform of cutting affirmative action and welfare programs for the Maori . . .and cutting the number of parliamentary seats reserved for them. (Oh, and all political scandals are dubbed -gate after Watergate . . .there was Doongate and Paintergate.)
I thought that by leaving America I would be detached from Hollywood gossip. No such luck. New Zealand newspapers and magazines carried full reports of the arrival of Britney's baby, Oprah's latest diet, and Jen's breakup with Vince. My Scottish roommates at the hostel here in Sydney were just as obsessed, proclaiming Brad Pitt a "love rat" (cheater).
Of course, there's more to Auckland than age-old politics and trashy celeb gossip. There are groups here collecting funds for victims of Hurricane Katrina. There's also a much larger Asian population here than I anticipated.
Political activity at the local university
In the midst of the student center, students campain for the Labour Party. According to the Auckland Museum, at least 35% of the NZ population is from other cultures, mostly Asian. It also noted that Indian immigration, particularly from the state of Gujarat, started as far back as 1890. I saw a comedic Indian play at the University that described the immigrant experience in NZ, which is quite similar to the experience in America . . . except the derogatory term in NZ is "curry muncher".
Sydney is an entirely different story. I could probably see most of Auckland in a few days. I have an entire week in Sydney and won't get to see everything I'd like. I've been to Darling Harbour, Sydney Harbour, the Harbour Bridge, and the Opera House (I'll be seeing La Boheme there later this week!), all of which are amazing. The city is simply well designed. But what I find most impressive, what I absolutely cannot get over and would return to every day of my life if it were possible is the Royal Botanical Gardens. Perhaps it is less well-known because it cannot be captured in a single image, but it is stunning. There are so many flowers and birds (and bats!) that I have
Asians are everywhere!
It's Moon Festival here in Sydney - I passed by this in one of the local malls. never seen before! I went for a run and saw cockatoos! And the best thing about the place is that the park's management invites you to hug the trees and talk to the birds (literally, that's what the sign says) . . America breeds trepidation of walking on well-maintained grass. At lunchtime the Gardens are filled with runners (lots of attractive male ones!), walkers, picnickers, exercise boot camps, and other recreational groups (including a small band of frisbee players).
All of this still seems somewhat surreal, and everyday I have moments of silent revelry that I was able to make this happen. Should I ever forget, though, I am reminded by my scenic visits to the Auckland Harbour and Darling Harbour . . . because who else would have such prime real estate with its name branded across the top of the building but PricewaterhouseCoopers (see pic below).
At the end of the week, I travel to Cairns (up the east coast from Sydney) to trade in culture for sand and surf. I'll be learning to scuba dive - I'll let you know how that goes! Hope all is well where you are!
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