Visiting Murihiku

A few weeks ago, I flew down to Invercargill to interview one of the kaumatua at Murihiku Marae.

It was a perfect day and the marae looked a picture, perched on its rise, overlooking the surrounding countryside on the outskirts of Invercargill city.

For a long time, there was no marae here, but in 1983, local Maori were delighted to open their new Whare Kai, Hine o te Iwi. A few years later, in 1990, they opened their new Wharenui, Te Rakitauneke, which features beautiful carvings inside and out.

The marae sits on ten acres of land.