East Cape Church

It was late afternoon when I finally drove into the tiny East Cape settlement of Raukokore. The sun was shifting seaward and the wind was blowing a gale. But I was determined to stop at this cute little historic church - the well known Raukokore Anglican Church that has become something of a landmark on the Cape.

I had seen the church a decade before but had not been able to get inside. Unfortunately that was the case on last year's trip too. It was solidly locked. The church sits on a small elbow of land that juts out into Papatea Bay, just up from the shore on a grassy rise; and if it wasn't for its somewhat remote location, it would probably be one of the most photographed churches in New Zealand. It's just across the road from the Catholic Church, which was once marked by a huge whalebone arch - a relic of the old whaling days, which saw much of this area settled. The whalebone arch is now housed for safe-keeping in Whakatane Museum.

Visiting the Cape

One of the great pleasures for me as a New Zealand travel guide writer, is the ability it affords me to travel the length and breadth of my own country, discovering many out of the way places that many New Zealanders never get to see. The remote East Cape of the North Island is a case in point. This stunning coastal landscape (against a backdrop of often forbidding native bush) is a Maori stronghold from start to finish; and even though it has become somewhat refined in terms of sealed roads etc over the last decade, it is still a seldom-visited place with a thriving, 'living' Maori culture.

Last year, I took two days to travel the cape from Opotiki to Gisborne. I thought that would be enough. It wasn't. While I managed to get hundreds of photographs of stunning, carved marae, like this one at the tiny settlement of Raukokore, 99km from Opotiki, it was rushed and I could happily have taken a week to do the same trip. Raukokore is perhaps best known for its historic church - which I will feature here tomorrow - but it is also to home to sandy beaches, a school, a second (Catholic) Church and this marae - where, I might add, I was ever-so-slightly unnerved by the fact that the carvings seemed to be watching me. I had a very strong sense of 'a presence' here, that I never felt anywhere else. This especially from the carving on top of the wharenui, 'Hinemahuru.'

An Eye on the Detail

Viewed from afar, these carvings, at the entrance to Whakarewarewa Thermal Village in Rotorua have an undeniable strength and power; up close, they exude and even greater sense of history, spirit and character. They are some of my favourite examples of traditional carving and I photographed them from every angle, focussing in on the detail of carving technique, the symbols and the patterns. I'm a little disappointed my collage has reduced down to such a small size, but it will hopefully give you an idea of the beautiful craftsmanship involved in these works. www.whakarewarewa.com

Maori Place Names - 57

Omaha Marae,

Leigh, Warkworth Area,

Northland

April 2009, Ajr

A Portrait - 8

At the Opening

Te Hokinga Mai

Canterbury Museum, Christchurch

February 2010.Ajr

Pounamu - An Endless Choice

Wherever you travel within New Zealand, you're seldom short of an opportunity to buy a pounamu (greenstone) souvenir. The choice is endless. It does pay to be aware though, that not all pounamu souvenirs are handcrafted in New Zealand by Maori craftsmen; a good number of the cheaper works are mass produced in places like China and Taiwan. So if you're after an authentic Maori carving, make sure you check its source - and be prepared to pay a decent sum of money for a collectors piece and a potential family heirloom.

One Marae, Many Carvings

During my travels around New Zealand last year (while researching the 6th edition of the travel guide Frommers New Zealand), I must have visited at least 250 marae. One that left a lasting impression on me, for its beautiful carvings, was Papawai Marae in Greytown, in the Wairarapa, north of Wellington. I've written about the history of the marae more fully previously (click on Papawai Marae in the label line below); and of the my personal connection to it. It must have been at least thirty years since I had last visited the marae and much has been done to restore it to its former glory. I spent many minutes there, leaning over the fence in the warm morning sun, reminiscing and thinking about the past, the history, the present. A lovely interlude on my day trip from Napier to Wellington.

A Photographic Moment

One of my favourite recent photographs

Tokotoko - Walking Stick

A Proud Prop in a Local Conversation

From the Kete Files

One Kete

Hanging on a Wall
Ajr 2009

A Portrait - 7

Small Boy

Investigating at Tuahiwi Marae

Canterbury

2009. Ajr

Maori Place Names - 56

Ohinemutu

Rotorua, North island

May 2009, Ajr

More From Mo Tatou

Te Hokinga Mai: Featuring Mo Tatou: The Ngai Tahu Whanui Exhibition from Te Papa and Mo Ka Uri: Taonga from Canterbury Museum, is a stunning show of artefacts and Maori treasures now showing at Canterbury Museum. Mo Tatou opened at Te Papa in Wellington in June 2006 and closed August 2009. It has been reworked to tour three South Island venues - in Christchurch, Dunedin and Southland.
A feature of the exhibition is the juxtaposition between the ancient and the new, the customary and the cutting edge; and many of the works from the Canterbury Museum collection featured in the Mo Ka Uri section of the exhibition, have never previously been exhibited. It includes a beautiful display of exquisitely crafted baskets and cloaks, and ancient carvings, rock art fragments and statues that ooze history and mystique. www.ngaitahu.iwi.nz www.canterburymuseum.com

A Poi Collage

I've been playing about with assorted photo-shopping programmes to see which one will produce the best collages and panoramas. This is one result - poi dancers performing at Whakarewarewa Thermal Village when I visited Rotorua last year. There is room for improvement though, so expect to see a few more experiments in the coming weeks. In the meantime, if you'd like to know more about Whakarewarewa, either click on their name in the label line below this post for other things I've written, or check their website: www.whakarewarewa.com

Contemporary Carving

I photographed this contemporary carving last year at Hokonui Marae in Gore in the South Island. I was visiting the marae to research one of the traditional kai features for Ngai Tahu's TE KARAKA magazine and in between courses, I ambled about the marae grounds photographing points of interest. I made the mistake of not finding out who the carver was but I'm featuring it here regardless because it highlights contemporary carving expression and technique. www.tekaraka.co.nz www.ngaitahu.iwi.nz

Crossing the Hokianga

It was a perfect, still, blue-skied, Far North day when I crossed the Hokianga Harbour from Kohukohu to Rawene on May 2 last year. (Approaching Rawene Wharf above).
I caught the ferry in the knick of time - I had been dawdling outside Tauteihiihi Marae at Kohukohu, taking photographs - and as I leapt aboard, I couldn't help noticing the eerie tumble of clouds perfectly reflected in the millpond waters of the harbour.

My experience of Hokianga Harbour and the surrounding landscapes is limited - basically just two trips across on the ferry. But the area is riddled with Maori history and interesting Maori settlements and one day, I hope to spend several weeks in the area, following remote side roads to discover the inner workings of the place. On last year's trip (while researching the 6th edition of Frommers New Zealand), I did manage to see a lot more but I seldom had the time to linger long, or to go too far off the main highway. Like Eastland's Tuhoe country, it's one of the few areas of New Zealand I don't know like the back of my hand and I hanker after the time to them both justice.

Maori Place Names - 55

Turangawaewae Marae,

Ngaruawahia, Near Hamilton

Central North Island

April 2009, Ajr

A Portrait - 6

Singing Along

At Ngai Tahu Hui-a-Tau

Takutai o te Titi Marae, Colac Bay

November 2009, Ajr

A Look at the Details

As someone a little obsessed with the small details of life, this image should not come as any surprise. It's a close-up view of the carving detail on a beautiful piece at Waitangi's Te Tii Marae in the Far North's Bay of Islands.

Whakarewarewa - Two Sides

Rotorua's Whakarewarewa Thermal Village is one of New Zealand's iconic tourism attractions. In addition to its natural geothermal activity, the village is home to the Ngati Wahiao people, who have resided here for over 300 years, tapping into the geothermal resources for cooking and washing practices. If you visit, you'll get an insight into both their traditional and contemporary way of life. The above carving is a detail from the wharenui (meeting house) of Wahiao Marae - one of dozens of traditional carvings that give Whakarewarewa so much character.

But you don't have to go far to see that the seventy or so people (in 25 families) living in the village live ordinary lives that involve doing things like the daily washing. Some may be employed as your tour guide, some may be weavers, carvers or tattoists, but at the end of the day they are simply New Zealanders going about everyday life - privileged if you ask me, to live in a unique place so riddled with history and mystery. www.whakarewarewa.com

Maori Place Names - 54

Parapara, Near Taipa

Far North, North Island

April 2009. Ajr