I’m all in favour of our remembering that Captain Cook and his crew arrived here in 1769, provided we also remember that Maori had been here for at least 700 years before him, and had developed a complex culture using and protecting the resources of the land and sea, and dealing with misbehaviour among themselves. […]
Rēkohu
December 18, 2017 by 2 Comments
In the midst of our house sorting and packing process, Tanya woke up one morning with a dream of escaping to the Chatham Islands for Christmas. After a little research, she found that although there were no touism activities over Christmas, there were two places left on a small group “Forget-Me-Not” tour for a week […]
Orua Bay
December 18, 2017 by Leave a Comment
After venturing onto the eastern-most island of Aotearoa – Rekohu – with its unfamiliar landscapes and communities, it’s very comforting to drop back into our favourite seaside cottage- Lupin Lodge, at Orua Bay on the northern tip of the Awhitu Peninsula. We’ve been coming here together for short breaks for thirty years, beginning when we […]
Happy Solstice Greetings…
December 18, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Whether you are experiencing summer, as here, or your winter, in the North…wherever you are, we hope you enjoy a festive season with family and friends, and a fine new year to come. And we rejoice in the belief that at last we have a government in Aotearoa which, in the words of our Treaty […]
On the move..
November 19, 2017 by 4 Comments
Outside our house we’ve been delighting in summer weather and shades of purple in the garden. Inside, we’re surrounded by bags and boxes and more boxes, and bits and pieces still to be shed, as we enter the last ten days of our preparations for moving. One of the good features of this process […]
Koia Mārika
November 19, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Tāmati Kruger, chair of Tūhoe’s tribal body Tūhoe Te Uru Taumatua, gave the 2017 Bruce Jesson Lecture, Koia Mārika (So It Will Be), on 31 October at the University of Auckland. No summary can do justice to this very profound speech. Every word of Tāmati Kruger’s speech is measured, and to be treasured. We […]
Welcome back, Lema!
November 19, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Lema Shamamba: educator and film-maker We have mentioned Lema Shamamba and her family before in our newsletter- they are good friends of ours – and Lema has become a community leader in Ranui, with support from Ranui Action Project staff. Lema decided this year to return to the DR Congo to visit her family, whom […]
Congratulations, Rock and Ryan!
November 19, 2017 by Leave a Comment
It’s been a while since we’ve had an all-day festival for lesbians, especially one focused on issues like lesbian visibility and social justice. So we were delighted to take a day off on Saturday 4 November, at Toi Tu in Ponsonby, for the Auckland Lesbian Festival 2017, organised by Cissy Rock and Violet Ryan, […]
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