I take it all back…

The morning after writing the last blog, our B & B host, Robert MacGregor, talked about how inconsiderate the NZ driver is, especially in contrast to American (!) drivers. Really. Apparently, he and we have had different experiences. We stand by our view, that Kiwis will pull over if they are holding up traffic, will let you in to merge “like a zip” and are overall, considerate. They are not great with pedestrians, though; it is every man for himself, even in marked cross-walks.

Robert MacGregor (owner of this view) was the visionary behind the Napier Art Deco weekend, to which the revival of the city is given credit. He is self-effacing (Ed. note: Perhaps a bit overly done?) in this matter, however, and insists that there were a group of people who started a trust 25 years ago to preserve the Art Deco buildings and make Napier a destination for aficionados around the world. We took the 2 hour walking tour and learned a whole lot about the history of Napier: in 1931, there was a massive earthquake in the city. Not only did vast numbers of brick buildings fall, fire razed most of the remaining ones made of wood. More significantly, the ground under a huge lagoon raised 2 meters, causing the lagoon to drain into the sea. One day the lagoon was swarming with sailboats and people enjoying a regatta; the next, it was dry land. Quite amazing and hard to fathom. Anyway, the city fathers decided that they needed to rebuild Napier, even though they were feeling the pinch of the worldwide depression. They built in the style of the day: art deco.

In the mid 80’s, the counsel began to permit the destruction of some of these buildings. A man from the British Museum was in town and mentioned to Robert that they were crazy to destroy them, thus planting the seed of the idea to convince the town’s people to preserve their heritage and make money by doing it, through tourism. It has been a huge success; this year was the 24th year of the Art Deco weekend. Think Gatsby, costumes, classic cars from the era, picnics, dances, seeing and being seen. Apparently, if you don’t get into costume, you stand out like a sore thumb, and the costume rental business has become big. Learning all of this would have been more fun if it wasn’t blowing about 50 mph and raining sideways! I was so cold I could hardly stand it!

We went for a wine tasting at the wine tasting centre. You start with a tour of the aroma room - there are 54 different aromas - in each of the red and white rooms. (You choose one or the either). After that you watch a video which has 6 winemakers talking about their wine and as they talk you have a sample of the wine. All this for $29.00 a person - and you don't have to drive from winery to winery. There is an amazing story about these doors in the centre - ask us about it when we get back!

More about Robert…which is mostly what he liked. He asked us not one question about us, not one. The first morning over breakfast, I still thought that a conversation was under way. As one might, when there was a pause, I opened my mouth to add something and he lifted his index finger, pointed it at me, and continued talking. Repeatedly. I soon learned that I was not truly a participant, as did Geoff. We got to throw out a question or two but after that, we listened. It was okay but we wouldn’t want a steady diet of it—come on, it’s us! We had a few things to share, too! Ah well.

We are getting closer to the end of our trip and as usual when we are this close to going home, we get restless and a little tired of travel. Hit the road and drove to Tauranga, a destination chosen because someone told us it is spectacular in this part of the country. The scenery was, as usual, spectacular but we have to say that the town is a little down-in-the-heels and a touch depressing. We decided to eat in our motel room (Ed. note: Dinner - Wine, Roast chicken and antipasto) and head out in the morning. Next stop: Coromandel Peninsula. We’re going to golf the next two days, then stay in Thames, an hour drive to the airport on Wednesday.

I’ve been thinking about the Maoris this whole trip, trying to understand where they fit in to this society and if their situation is much different than that of our First Nations people, if the Kiwis had somehow better managed the situation. It appears not, although there is less poverty. The Treaty of Waitangi was signed by the various tribal chiefs in 1841, when the Brits began to colonize the country. The arrangement was that Maoris would get the protection of the British and access to the goods they provided, and be allowed to keep their own lands. However, the Brits were to have the first opportunity to purchase any land, should a native wish to sell. In actual practice, land was never sold, so they didn’t see a threat to their life style, and probably had no idea how many white men might arrive and encroach on their territory and lifestyle. A major problem was that the treaty was written in a rush and had to be translated overnight. There are major differences between the two, not the least of which is the proviso that the Brits could take land as needed by the crown. Needless to say, there is some bitterness!

FYI, the term Maori did not exist prior to the Brits arriving. They were a country of tribes, often warring with each other, sometimes cannabalizing each other. They had no written language, but the missionaries helped produce one — a long story that we learned about in Russell in the north of the country. There were no mammals here prior to the white men bringing them, so the native diet was pretty bland: lots of kumara (yams) and birds and fish.

(Ed. note: It appears that the blogger is running out of steam about our daily activities and is becoming more philosophical about things. I offer my apologies for this. I have thought of offering to do some of the writing, but the I think the blogger would feel that her contributions are more appropriate and interesting.)