Culture day

Since it rained we thought it would be good to spend the day indoors. Pity it started raining before we got to where we were going. Whoever put in the polished marble floor in the foyer didn't think about how slippery it would be when wet. The staff were directing people to put their wet umbrellas into plastic bags. There was even a specialized dispenser, for two sizes of umbrella. That was a first for me.

This morning I knew essentially nothing of the Māori, and I'm not sure how much I know now. My brain melted down just before the museum closed. Much of the afternoon was spent in complete amazement.

Not going to give you all 4 dozen or so photos from today all at once. I'll spread them out, unless I change my mind or something. We start with an elaborately carved 25 m long war canoe. That's 82 feet long, and carved from one tree. Plus the prow and tail. I liked the lounging man in the tail carving.

 I was completely blown away by the meeting room. I have lots more photos of this. Each of the carved panels is different. I'm not completely sure I've got the colour balance right, this seems a little more yellow than I remember.

The museum is also a war memorial, commemorating New Zealand's dead from over a century of warfare, much of it in support of Imperial England. It includes these two famous aircraft, a mark VI Spitfire and a Zero, which is the first time I'd seen them on the third floor of a building.

All in all, it was a fabulous day, well worth the visit.