HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 2015-06-03, Page 7Wednesday, June 3, 2015 • Lucknow Sentinel 7
The New Zealand Experience - Part 2
Travel Series
Maureen Matchett
The city of Auckland, New
Zealand, has a lot to offer,
both in its downtown city
centre as well as in the sur-
rounding communities and
islands. We visited two of
several nearby island com-
munities during our visit:
Waiheke Island and
Devonport.
Waiheke Island (8300 pop-
ulation) was once much more
difficult to reach, and was a
remote place inhabited by
hippies, hermits, writers, and
pot growers, but once reliable
and frequent ferry services
started, the retirees and multi-
millionaires moved in along-
side the hippies. People on
the island are very eco -con-
scious and tend to move on
"Waiheke time" (including
some of the bus drivers). We
had some truly awesome fish
and chips at tiny Palm Beach,
then later went to Onetangi
Beach where we hiked up the
hillside to Obsidian Vineyard
(the island has about 12 win-
eries) for a tasting and a bottle
of wine, then enjoyed sun-
shine and some NZ beer by
the beach.
Devonport has a very dif-
ferent vibe compared to the
laid-back, rural Waiheke.
It's closer by ferry to Auck-
land than Waiheke, and its
population grew much
faster because of its impor-
tant role in the shipping
industry. Devonport had
three volcano cones, but
now there are only two:
Mount Victoria and North
Head, both of which we vis-
ited. The third, Mount Cam-
bria, was quarried away to
fill in much of one side of
the island to connect it with
the mainland. The locals
also built a racetrack on top
of the fill, but eventually
closed it because it tended
to get water -sodden, which
made racing dangerous for
both horses and jockeys.
Because most of the Euro-
pean settlers in Devonport
were of British background,
there are many well-pre-
served Victorian and
Edwardian buildings plus
lots of cafes and shops, giv-
ing the place a pleasant sea-
side village atmosphere.
Auckland city recently re-
developed its waterfront
area, adding and upgrading
seaside parks, marinas,
shops, and restaurants, mak-
ing it a really attractive place
to hang out, especially on
sunny days. But the whole
city is a pleasant place to
visit, with lots of green
spaces, pedestrian areas,
and memorial parks. For the
cool, cloudy, and rainy days,
Auckland has plenty of
indoor attractions, and the
Auckland Museum is worth
a visit. It is located in a huge
park area (a "domain") with
gardens and sports fields.
The building itself has a dis-
tinctive glass and copper
dome and it is also the city's
War Memorial, with a ceno-
taph for ANZAC (Australia
New Zealand Army Corps)
ceremonies. No surprise,
then, that the third floor is
dedicated to New Zealand's
military activities, and
includes a documents room
which people use to research
their family history. One of
New Zealand's first military
actions of the First World
War was the takeover of
Samoa, a German posses-
sion. The 60 German officials
on the island didn't resist,
and spent the war in an iso-
lated area of NZ. Two WW2
planes are on display: a Spit-
fire, in part because ANZAC
pilots participated in the
Battle of Britain (some were
trained in Canada); and a
Zero, a Japanese plane
which dominated the Pacific
until about 1943, when
Japan lost air superiority to
the Americans.
The Museum had other
really interesting exhibits.
The second floor outlined
everything you could possi-
bly want to know about vol-
canoes (Auckland is sur-
rounded by 60+ volcanic
cones, only some of which
are dormant!), and included
a little house that mimicked
what a volcanic eruption in
Auckland would feel like...
well, aside from the walls
bursting into flames of
course! The first floor is dedi-
cated to Maori carvings and
traditions, plus early Polyne-
sian history. The Maori
arrived in NZ about 800
years ago from other Polyne-
sian islands, and hunted the
large flightless moa bird (3m
tall from toe to beak) to
extinction because they had
no fear of humans. Their dis-
appearance also led to the
extinction of the world's
largest eagle, the Haast
Eagle, which no longer had
the gigantic moa as prey.
We also visited the Auck-
land Zoo, located in the
Western Springs suburb of
Submitted by Maureen Matchet
New Zealand's women received the right to vote in 1893, 25 years before Canadian women. The
outdoor area beside Auckland's Art Gallery commemorates this achievement, and women who were
involved in the suffrage campaign.
A view from atop Mount Victoria on the island of Devonport. With its expansive view of the sea, it
was a key part of New Zealand's shipping industry.
Auckland. It is very spacious
and well -laid out, and we
were able to give it a good
visit in about 2 hours. New
Zealand lacks the large ani-
mals that we're used to in
Canada, so many of the zoo
animals come from other
countries: lions, tigers, seals,
orangutans, herons, eels,
zebras, ostriches, emu,
giraffes, hippos, monkeys,
and many other animals
large and small.
We could have spent
another few days in
Keaton, Liam and Felix Shaw would like tg—�.
announce the arrival of their twin brothe s: * i
Nixon Graham Cooper Shaw and Finley M4k
Richard Shaw born at 3:01 pm and 3:12 p
on April 28th 2015 weighing 5 lbs 11 oz., and
6 lbs 9 oz. Parents are Mark and Jessie Shaw of
Amberley, and Proud Grandparents
Ked vin and
of
Cathy Cook of Amberley,
Jim Wingham, the late Lorraine Hall from ll from R Palmerston, eerston,
and Great -Grandma Mary Cook
Auckland, but it was time to
explore other parts of New
Zealand. Time to get to
South Island while there was
still some warm summer
weather left!
Next article: Christchurch
city and South Island
Free outdoor
movie night
in Wingham
Huron Health
Unit and
Muskrat Festival
Families are invited to a
free outdoor movie night at
the Wingham Splash Pad,
Friday June 12, 2015.
The Huron County
Health Unit, in partner-
ship with the Muskrat Fes-
tival, will present "Big
Hero 6" as part of a
tobacco -free event. Activi-
ties promoting tobacco -
free living, such as button
making and a trivia wheel,
begin at 7 pm. The movie
begins at dusk. Please
bring lawn chairs and
blankets to sit on.
This tobacco -free, family-
oriented event brings
attention to the role of
media messaging and
tobacco use.
"Since most movies with
smoking are rated for kids
and teens they can have a
big influence on kids to start
smoking," says Public Health
Promoter Samantha
Docherty. "This helps the
tobacco industry recruit a
new generation of
customers."
As a fundraising activity,
refreshments will be availa-
ble for purchase at the out-
door movie event. Youth
volunteers will gather pub-
lic support in addressing the
issue of smoking in movies
rated for children and
youth.
The free movie will take
place rain or shine. The
rain location is the Wing -
ham Legion at 183 Victoria
St. W.
ii
c/
/4py, 3Pitliefrty-
to 2vOkr
If you were born in 1965, come
celebrate your 50th Birthday
with us.
Saturday June 6th
at the
Lucknow Legion, Wing Night.
See you there, Sarah Kuik and Ken Irwin
* Donations accepted at door.