Satellite
Show on map
  • Day 95

    Māori new year

    July 16, 2023 in New Zealand ⋅ 🌧 8 °C

    Deutsche Version in den Kommentaren
    Version française en commentaire
    Hi guys ! We spent last weekend in Christchurch and rented a Tiny House there. Normally we have Sundays and Mondays off and our plan was to head to Christchurch after work on Saturday. As we were working on Saturday it started to rain, quite hard, so we were told to finish work early and we left around noon. When we arrived in Christchurch we did some errands and when we could go to the Tiny House we got ready and went to a whiskey bar in the evening. The next day we were able to sleep in and then spent the day each to our own. Lucas enjoyed being in a house again and relaxed there, enjoying the peace and quiet. Emily went out and about, exploring Christchurch and shopping. On Sunday night we went to a rooftop bar and had a beautiful view over the city. On Monday we did our weekly shopping and went to our favourite restaurant in Christchurch, an Indian-Nepalese restaurant. The two men who work there already know us and just asked "as usual?" - "as usual!" we said, looking forward to Dal Bhat, which reminds us of our good times in Nepal. Sitting there waiting for the food, we are already planning our next trip to this special country. But now we are still in New Zealand and we haven't seen much yet, so we quit our jobs on Wednesday. Next week will be our last and so seven weeks of cutting vines will be over.
    Friday was a national public holiday, for matariki. Matariki is the name of a cluster of stars that appears in the sky in New Zealand during the winter. This apparition marks the beginning of the Māori new year. We took advantage of this extra day off and the good weather to go on a little hike and climb up mount Cass. It was a lovely 3 hours hike in the fields, surrounded by sheep and beautiful scenery. We got a bit frightened when we had to cross a field full of bulls, but they turned out to be friendly. In the evening, we went to a nearby town called Kaiapoi, where there was some matariki celebration happening, with live music and food stands, and even fireworks. We were hopping to try out hāngī, which is a traditional Māori dish cooked in a hole dug in the ground with heated rocks. Unfortunately, it was sold out when we arrived. We'll find some other place to try it out, and let you know how it tastes !
    Read more