Welsh team paddle a traditional waka on the Waikato river in Hamilton.
I knocked-off work early this afternoon and travelled down to Hamilton with a lady from Tourism NZ to join the Wales squad on their day off in Hamilton. Through my contacts in Tourism NZ I had arranged for the squad to paddle a waka (Māori war canoes) down the Waikato river before heading to a Marae (Māori meeting hall) for a traditional greeting and dinner. This is the first time that a touring rugby side has paddled a waka which has significant cultural significance for Māori.
Maori challenge at a the Marae.
At the Marae there was a formal challenge and welcoming ceremony, which I was lucky enough to face alongside the squad and management. It was pretty full-on and I have no doubt that if the protocols had not been followed correctly there would have been a physical confrontation. This was not a tourist performance. Having received the challenge we were invited into the Marae where the two groups (us and our Māori hosts) sat at opposite sides of the Marae staring at each other for a good five minutes (which is a long time when the room is silent and two groups of people are staring unwelcomingly at each other). Eventually a tribal elder stood up and made a speech in Māori. Robbie MacBryde responded in Welsh and there was a further Māori speech and songs. Robbie responded with a Welsh poem and then provided an English translation. A genuine warmth seemed to develop between both groups in a ceremony that went on for perhaps 30mins.
At the end of the ceremony each of the two parties greet one another individually with a hongi, the traditional Māori greeting which involves the pressing of one’s nose and forehead (at the same time) to another person at an encounter. Wikipedia states ‘in the hongi, the ha (or breath of life), is exchanged and intermingled. The breath of life can also be interpreted as the sharing of both party’s souls. Through the exchange of this physical greeting, one is no longer considered manuhiri (visitor) but rather tangata whenua, one of the people of the land. For the remainder of one’s stay one is obliged to share in all the duties and responsibilities of the home people’
Craig Mitchell exchanges looks with one of the Kapa Haka group.
We were then treated to a hangi – a Maori meal cooked in underground ovens using hot stones and entertained by one the NZ’s best Kapa Haka groups (Maori singing / traditional dance groups).
Bradley Davies attempts to keep time with the Haka
An unforgettable experience !! I arrived back in Auckland at about 9pm showed my face at my boss’s leaving dinner before heading for home.
NewZealandly 