Hello Everybody from down under, as they say it here :) Let me bring you a different perspective today, as a food for thought on how many ways we can see things. Even from a scientific point of view :)
Well, if you look at the map and check where is New Zealand on it, you will figure out right away what I mean. Hold on, wait a second... are you sure???
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Towers. Tall, narrow structures reaching graciously towards the sky. Lonely, yet never alone. Outstanding, in every sense. Icons. Landmarks. Points of orientation. A souvenir. And a welcome home.
Two beauties of their kind stole my heart. Having lived in Paris for a couple of years, no question, my top favourite is the one and only iron lady, the Eiffel Tower. It had accompanied every single step of mine through the cobblestoned streets of the City of Lights, posing for so many pictures. Now, living in the City of Sails, Auckland, our new home - actually it could be as well called the City of Beautiful Skies, too... anyways, it was kind of obvious right from my first visit to New Zealand. Yes, Sky Tower, you are the one who has conquered my heart... New Zealand celebrated the Māori Language Week between 27 July and 2 August this year. It is a tradition ever since 1975 - and 2015 marks the 40th Anniversary! The celebration is a nice initiative to conserve and promote linguistic diversity and encourage the daily use of more Māori words. The main topic is "Whāngaihia te reo Māori ki ngā mātua" - helping parents to pass te reo (the language) on to their children. :) Although most of the speakers are ethnic Māoris, many New Zealanders use Māori words and expressions mixed within the English language, like “Kia ora” - Hello. Some history: The first Māori settlers came by canoes from the Eastern Polynesian islands and villages - the mythic homeland “Hawaiki” - around 1280. Māori developed in isolation until the 19th century. It was the dominant language in New Zealand, yet not a written one until the arrival of European Missionaries who attempted to write it down first in 1814. Despite the fact that Te reo Māori - the Māori language became protected under the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, signed by the British Crown and Māori chiefs, the increasing use of English and politics put the state of the Māori language at risk - at one point, it was even suppressed and forbidden in schools to facilitate faster assimilation of the Māoris. In the middle of the 20th century, there were fears that Māori was actually dying out! The recognition of the danger of loosing the language led to recovery and revitalisation. The Māori language became an official language of New Zealand only in 1987 with the passing of the Māori Language Act. Some quick facts:
Some useful words to know when you are in New Zealand:
It was actually very interesting to see that many parenting resources f.ex., such as brochures on early childhood development and education used a mixture of both languages. Here is an extract of one of them: If you would like to know more about the Māori language, here are some nice links to start with:
So, 1 week has passed since our arrival to NZ and I gathered some funny, interesting or inspirational observations for you :) And also just for the record, as I still have the fresh perspective when everything is new and sometimes different :) 1. HEY THERE! This is how people say hi here. :) Or Kia Ora - meaning "be well/healthy” in Maori language. Beautiful, isn’t it? 2. It is winter. Winter meaning 10-15 degrees and mostly sunny - in Auckland at least. Sometimes some rain. BUT! The houses don’t really have radiators. At least not the regular, built in ones as we have back home. They are rather heaters. Which means their capacity to heat is pretty limited and it can get really cold at night. :( Luckily, there is a great invention, the electric bed heating blanket :) You just switch it on and in some minutes, you are all warmed up and cozy in your bed :))) AMAZING!!! 3. Kiwis are just tough cookies! Many of them wear flip-flops - aka jandals - even in winter! Ok, around the beach areas. And shorts! Even more, surfers just cruise around barefoot, even in the rain. And little kids on the playground - barefoot!!! Grrr I got goosebumps and respect! 4. I simply love the restroom signs here. They speak for themselves, the way they see things and what is important in their life! 5. Amazed by the surfing spirit and the love for waves and beaches. The quote of the day came from a guy in surfers’ paradise Raglan when I asked him naively if he surfed - “One doesn’t really have a choice if he grows up here…” :) I love it! 6. I learned that tides get more intense at full moon. The difference between low and high tide is somehow bigger. Surprise surprise, you can download an App to check out the tide schedules not to get soaked up in water. How cool is that! :D 7. Keep left! Yes, you drive on the left side. Pretty confusing especially when you have a jet lag, too :S Obviously, the bus stops on the other side of the street, too. 8. The sockets look like this. And there is a security button where you cut off the electricity. Pretty useful. The red dot indicates that it is in use. 9. It’s winter so we have winter sales :) I wish you a happy happy happy July! :))) 10. And last but not least > the Kiwi "accint". Hard to describe, but pretty "spicial". Check out these videos :) Enjoy!
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AboutSharing my passion for photography, New Zealand, nature, and a journey within.
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