A local journey..

  For Tanya’s birthday on 16 August, we went on a voyage of discovery to Onekiritea/Hobsonville . We caught an early morning Richmond Road bus to the city,   walked  to Pier 4 near the downtown Ferry Buildings and  caught the 9.00am commuter launch on its return to Hobsonville  in the upper Waitemata Harbour (plenty of […]

See No Evil…

This collective of Maori and Pacific women, Oceania Interrupted, is demonstrating solidarity with the people of West Papua…  How much do we know about the actions of our governments in the Pacific over the last 60 years? Most of us, very little, especially about those things which should concern us deeply. Take the story of […]

Women’s Suffrage Celebrations

Are We There Yet?        Many events  are planned to celebrate the 125th year since women were granted voting rights in New Zealand         On 19 September 1893 the governor, Lord Glasgow, signed a new Electoral Act into law. As a result of this landmark legislation, New Zealand became the […]

There’s Nothing Like a Dame

And we can’t write about women’s issues without noticing that this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours list pays tribute to women in an unexpected way…for the first time ever, there are more Dames than Knights at the top of the list- and what an interesting group, and we all know “there’s nothing like a dame!”…. …except two […]

Matariki

    At last in Aotearoa we have our own  unique Matariki Festival for mid winter. In Tamaki Makaurau events include dawn karakia, lights on Sky Tower and the Harbour Bridge, kite days, kapa haka groups, jazz concerts, plays, story-telling, films, feasts, street parties…a month to reflect on the past year and celebrate spring and the […]

Delighting in Diversity

We really appreciate the wealth of cultural activities available in Auckland.  The Auckland Writers’ Festival and Film  Festivals , and the Auckland Photography Festival, have provided  an extraordinary range of events in May, June and July.  And then there are live theatre shows, art galleries and community activities as well.  Of course our choices from […]

Ngā Maunga o Tāmaki Mākaurau

After two months in our apartment we feel settled, and are increasingly appreciating the environment around us.  Tāmaki Mākaurau is a city of fifty volcanoes, nestled between two harbours.  The rooftop deck of our apartment building offers amazing 36o degree views of volcanoes, harbours and  islands.   Tanya has captured views of some of the […]

Closer to home…

Closer to home… The rooftop  provides other interesting views… …and then there are the birds, of course, announcing themselves from steeples and other high perches To our surprise, the most obtrusive birds on our rooftop are not the expected urban pigeons and mynahs, but our  loud friends from the paddocks at Awhitu- the gurgling magpies and screeching spur-winged […]