Our Introduction to Auckland
The summit of Auckland's highest point, Mt. Eden, was about 1.7 miles from our bed and breakfast so we wandered over and traipsed up to see its view of Auckland - and its volcanic crater (Te Ipu-a-Mataaho - “The Bowl of Mataaho”). It's a simple bowl covered by grass, a part of which is seen here from a high point on its rim.
Auckland dwarfs the US Pacific Northwest (in numbers, not at all in height). Auckland has between 49 and 53 volcanoes in its immediate area!!! Whereas in the northwest many are spectacular - high glaciated peaks, the ones around Auckland are much more mundane - many are barely noticeable and many have been quarried into oblivion. One of the differences between the two areas: in the Northwest the most likely next eruptions will come from one of the existing peaks likely after warning by rumbling quake series, whereas in Auckland the most likely next eruptions will come from a new location without much warning See about Auckland volcanoes here
One day we spent many hours in the Auckland War Memorial Museum - a bit of a misnomer ... it's a great collection of Maori, cultural, and natural history, amongst other things. And it has a series of exhibits on volcanism, earthquakes, and the pacific rim ... wow, I had known the area of New Zealand was very active, but had not understood how very geologically active it was. A good article on Auckland's volcanoes is by the Ministry of Civil Defence here.
Amidst the displays was a section describing the volcanic (and earthquake) risk in Auckland and the rest of New Zealand. It also described the extensive planning that the government of New Zealand has instituted and the insurance for both earthquake and volcanoes that the government provides. It puts to shame Seattle's lack of planning, and the paucity of reasonably affordable disaster insurance available in the US. Imagine: a nation that plans ahead of time to take care of its populace! New Zealand.
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Maori
Here's a model in the museum picturing a prototypical Maori Pa. The Maori were competitive and warlike, with tribes fighting tribes and building pa's - fortified settlements for protection. Mt. Eden in present-day Auckland was once a terraced and fortified pa.
The Maori were quite the opposite of the aboriginals in the Australian outback who were peaceable.Perhaps when people are faced with a harsh environment in which survival is difficult, they are more humane and understanding of others' needs to endure and survive, than when they are in a fortunate environment that is plentiful, where they can afford the luxury of competition and greed.
Maybe that's why many people undergoing hardship tend to be so willing to help their neighbors and others.
For the most successful of the Maori's they could afford large storehouses like the one (from a fairly late vintage) in the museum.
Te Ara is an excellent site for New Zealand's history, culture, and politics including that of the Maori's, at https://teara.govt.nz/en You could (should) get lost for months exploring it in much more depth than I could ever manage.
Maori masks, carved in wood or soapstone, were used to honor the dead; they reproduced the ta moko - the markings - that had adorned the ancestors.
For a fascinating read see the story of Whakairo - Maori carving here.
And for an even more fascinating read, see the story of Ta Moko, Maori "tattooing" here. The word "tattooing" is a bit of a misnomer. The technique used was not at all like a modern day tattoo, nor did it feel as gentle as tattooing when it was applied. The grooves were chiseled into the skin using chisels producing deep incisions in the skin rather than the pinpricks of modern-day tattoos. I wonder how popular tattoos would be today if the same methods were used.
If (when?) I ever get a tattoo I'd pick a Maori design, at least as close to one as Maori traditions allow. But I certainly would not want it done the Maori way.
Other fascinating articles about Maori culture are about Maori kites here (yes, they flew kites), and their religion here, and what some Victorians would prudishly call their morals here (the latter being very apropos to same sex marriage that the people of Australia just voted 61.6% to 38.4% to allow.)
The museum also contains exhibits of polynesia and the Pacific Islands, to which New Zealand is bound both geographically, historically, and culturally.
New Zealand's population as of 2013 was 74% European, 14.9% Maori, 11.8% Asian, and 7.4% Pacific Islanders. (per Wikipedia)
And with that, we're off to an island.
Train to Waiheke Island
Early one morning it took us only a little over 10 minutes to walk from our B&B in the Mount Eden neighborhood, past Eden Park (Auckland's major stadium where the All Blacks play - that rugby team is New Zealand's pride - their stuff is sold everywhere in NZ, just simply everywhere, you can't escape it) to the nearby Kingsland rail station. There are convenient, new, clean, fast trains roughly every 20 to 30 minutes to Britomart, the major downtown rail station at the harbor.
Like in Sydney, a massive rail terminal and pedestrian precinct was under construction along the harbour. Somehow we found our way through the construction (the wayfinding sucked in comparison to Sydney) to the old but classic brick Ferry Terminal building.
From there we caught Fuller's ferry for its 40 minute trip to Waiheke Island. It gave us a good view of downtown Auckland and its ferry terminal - a scaled down version of Sydney's Circular Quay.
(map from Open Street Map under its open license)
Our destination was to visit a close friend who lives on the far east side of Waiheke Island in her family's home, which the family had first built in about 1900. At that time it was exceedingly remote - the only way to the home was by boat or horseback (or trekking) from the western end of the island .
Waiheke Island is undergoing a quick change - our journey the length of the island was a journey through that change. The ferry docks near the western end of the island. That end seems a bit like Sausalito or Tiburon on the north shore of San Francisco bay - manicured, pleasant, with any property likely costing a fortune. Taking the road eastward one passes a mix of exurban sprawl - remaining older homes and stores, many seeming from the 50's and 60's when lots of young people were living cheap away from the city, amidst many new and obviously expensive houses and condos.
As the road proceeds west it becomes a bit more rural, with several wineries set amongst their vineyards - a favorite Auckland destination for a day of sipping wine. Eventually the main road comes to Onetangi Beach. From there smaller roads continue east to a mix of parks with popular day hikes and various rural properties, both old and new.
Throughout the island there are frequent views over the multi-fingered coastline and its inlets and bays.
The view from our friend's yard's gate. The house was down a path about 50 yards from the end of her shared rough drive, which required a 4 wheel drive steeply wind its way up to the road.
