 |
| Long Bay Beach |
I didn’t walk on Sunday, but North Shore Nordic Walkers still met for a local walk and went down to the beach at Long Bay.
They could hear the sound of a Haka above the noise of the waves as they approached the beach and when they arrived they were surprised to see a group of people in traditional Maori dress being filmed by Maori TV. One of our walkers had a chat with a lady dressed in costume during a break in the filming and was told that it was for a production that would be used for TV during the Rugby World Club.
They must have looked quite a sight down at the beach as it was a glorious morning and they were by the water in full voice.
The Haka is a symbolic traditional Maori dance and is performed for special events, and despite myths they are not specifically war dances and not exclusively performed by men, although originally the dances were performed by warriors before a battle as a show of strength and also to intimidate the opposition.
 |
| Haka by the beach |
I’ve witnessed a few Haka performances whilst living in New Zealand and I can tell you that it’s really quite something to watch, the first time my kids saw one performed it was in Rotorua and they were terrified!
The pictures that you see were taken at Long Bay beach and one of my walkers Pam was so thrilled to see them, she dashed back home to fetch her camera!
The lady that you see in the traditional Maori garments actually works for Maori TV.
The dress above is still worn on special occasions, coming from a warm climate the Maori had to adapt their clothing to suit the more temperate climate of New Zealand. The people had to use materials for clothing that they could find; flax, animal fur and feathers were used traditionally to decorate the clothes.
 |
| Maori traditional dress |
The Piu Piu is the Maori skirt or kilt, originally made from flax, the leaves would have had the pattern scraped into them before they were dried. The men wore patterned belts around the waistbands and the women wore plain bands. Cloaks were made from feathers, flax or fur and decorated. The women wore fine woven tops in traditional red, white or black. Headbands were worn and decorated using feathers.
Tikis are also worn, they are usually made from Greenstone or bone and hung around the neck, the women made earrings from Shark’s teeth. Greenstone (similar to Jade) was also used in many weapons.
The Maori people love to sing and the women sing whilst using Poi, now my daughter drives me daft using one of these. They are balls attached to a length of string or twine that they swing in rhythm to the music. They are very addictive and I regularly see girls coming out of school chanting to themselves and swinging Poi.
The Poi was originally used to keep the womens hands flexible for weaving and men used them to train for battle, apparently it’s great for coordination. It’s not so great for swinging around in the house at frightening speed only to end up shattering one of mum’s favourite ornaments!
I'm sorry I didn't walk last Sunday and missed the performance at the beach, but I'm looking forward to Nordic Walking as usual this Sunday.
Information & Resources:
Pictures courtesy of Pam Foster - thanks Pam.
No comments:
Post a Comment