After our first week back in Wellington getting settled into our new digs, Jody attended a week long orientation session with the Ian Axford Foundation. It was held at the local Fulbright Foundation in downtown Wellington as Fulbright administers the Ian Axford Fellowship. Fulbrught actually encouraged the spouses to attend the orientation - what a wonderful invite and experience for me as it introduced me to the local culture and issues in NZ, particularly regarding refugees, government functioning, and the various cultures in NZ. Our first main event was an overnight visit to a Maori settlement just outside Wellington. I will not go into detail at this point regarding the Maori. Suffice to say, their situation in NZ history is analogous in some ways to the American Indian. When British settlers arrived in NZ, it did not take them long to basically screw the Maoris out of their land, an issue of reparation that still exists to today. The Treaty of Waitangi put an end to major violence between the British colonists and the Maori, but effectively took much of their land from them. For a more detailed history, just Google New Zealand history or go to this website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C4%81ori_people. Jody and I have discussed this issue at length and it appears that the Maori are much more integrated into NZ then American Indians are in the US. American Indians have indeed been royally screwed by the US over the centuries and relegated to reservations that remain intact to this day. In contrasts, the Maori have a major say in government and are fully participatory, while at the same time retaining their cultural roots and actually reclaiming cultural landmarks that were taken from them. I'll give a more detailed example later. Following are pictures of our overnight stay at the Maori settlement
There were at least 25 of us participants and we slept on cots around the meeting hall.
The Maori are major fishermen and carve extremely ornate fishing vessels.
Jody couldn't help herself in calling attention to the Maori God who had multiple women. Hmmmm!
The two-day experience with the Maori was very significant. We were treated like royalty and had an opportunity to learn about their culture, traditions, song, dance, literature, and current state within New Zealand society. As I become more familiar with them I will share more of significance.
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