"A distant land, cloud capped, with plenty of moisture and a sweet scented soil." Kupe

A Unique, Lost World: Biogeography of NZ

New Zealand became isolated abut 80 million years ago, when it separated from the ancient super continent Gondwana. This became known as the Rangitata land mass.

By 60 mya, the Tasman Sea, separating from Australia and NZ arrived at its full width.

By 26 million years ago, there were two main features which dominated the New Zealand land mass area : the Challenger Rift system off the western coast, and which had begun forming around 60 million years ago, and the plate boundary running along the line of the Alpine Fault and the Hikurangi Trench, off the lower North Island and upper South Island coastal areas.

It wasn't until about 5 mya, that the shape of the 2 main islands began to form. With mountain uplift an increase in water out of the atmosphere occurred. The relief created by new hills and mountains lead to an increase in aquatic habitats.

7000 years ago, most of New Zealand was covered in rain forest, and within the protection of surrounding seas, many flightless land birds evolved. The most famous and now extinct was the Moa.

Kiwi also adapted well to the New Zealand environment, there are 4 species- all of which are protected today.

Reflections of the Dreaming

My next few posts will be various reflections and essays that I have been working on over the past little while. Even though I've been back for a few weeks, I just now feel like my body clock is finally adjusting!

Aboriginal Dreaming was a subject of particular interest to me....

Kinship means everything to the Aboriginals. It provides the networks that determine who controls dreaming knowledge- which is the main indicator of status in Aboriginal Society. The Dreaming also dominates all aspects of spiritual and physical life in the Aboriginal culture. It is complex in nature, with origins derived from creation stories. In the Dreamtime, spiritual beings shaped the land, the first people were brought into being and set in their proper territories, and laws and rituals were established. Belief in a creative spirit in the form of a huge snake, the Rainbow Serpent, occurs over much of Aboriginal Australia, usually associated with waterholes, rain, and thunder. It is the protector of the land, its people, and the source of all life.



However, the Rainbow Serpent can also be a destructive force if it is not properly respected. Rituals are enacted each year at particular sites, in order to maintain the integrity of the land, and pay respect to spiritual ancestors. In essence, the Dreaming comes from the land. In Aboriginal society, people did not own the land- it was part of them and it was part of their duty to respect it and all creatures in it.

For Aboriginals, Dreamtime is not only used to represent the past, but all time that is and is to come. This is difficult for many Westerners to understand, as we come from a system of linear logic v. the circular logic of not only Aboriginals, but many indigenous peoples. Time, after all,is a human construct. An Aboriginal man most accurately explained this concept.

" The creator spirits are not earth-bound or materially based, and as such are not time limited. Therefore the creation of souls is/was/will be simultaneously. My soul comes from a story place of my ancestors. It will go back there. It has always been there and always will be. Dreaming stories and songs are the way we continue creation, which is still happening now... It was, and it is. The rainbow snake is still pushing up the mountains. This is a circular thing, and has no time. In this way, entropy through western linear concepts of time is thwarted, and my people and land endure."

Modes of thought and speech are approached in a circular way by Aboriginals, including kinship systems. More often than not grandson and grandfather are the same word, soon and recent are interchangeable. Western exploration into quantum physics ( Chaos theory, relativity, time-space continuum) is now becoming quite relevant, but Aboriginals have long understood these concepts.

The end is nigh...

Ello Mates-
Can't believe I've been away for over 2 months, it seems like yesterday I was hopping off the plane into New Zealand. This entire experience has been amazing. It's going to take a while for me to process all that's occurred. Lady Elliott was incredible. Studied a lot about Great Barrier Reefs. Went snorkeling in clear blue waters with fish of all sorts of colors and many venomous and poisonous creatures. Saw a shark, a sting ray, lots of turtles and so much more. Earth hour occurred while we were on the island, which started in Sydney a few years ago ands has spread to thousands of places since. All power is turned off for an hour to raise awareness about the am mount of electricity we all use. During earth hour we went out to the beach and watched freshly hatched sea turtles make their way into the ocean- then sat in the candlelit old island bar listening to Billy Joel ( there was a generator running in that one place). The birds were crazy at Lady Elliott, there can be over 170,000 of them at one time on the little island- let's just say good sleep was not to be had- these birds cried like baby monkeys the whole night through. It's necessary though, as most of the coral gets it's nutrients from their waste ( a few of us got a few nutrients on our clothes as well...)An interesting concept we've discussed has been that of shifting baselines...or the failure to notice change as it occurs slowly over time. For example, I wasn't disappointed by going to the GBR and seeing 1 shark and lots of turtles. But if I had known how many more their used to be I might have been. I recommend everyone checking out the website . Pretty amazing info that we could all take something from.
I'm sad to be leaving soon, as I could stay here happily for a while longer, but so thankful for the experiences I've had. I'll be updating more as I continue to have time to reflect!

Cheers

OZ!!!

Sorry I have not been able to update my blog properly. I will most likely further expound on my travels oncve I have a spare moment to really sit and reflect Have spent many a days in the bush! Just got back from Binna Burra/Lamington National Park. It's surrounded by rain forests with lots of little pademelons hopping around at night.
A lot of the trees there are over 2000 years old., and they've got over 200 species of birds in this one area. Went for a long hike through the forest and got to see some Blue Lamington crayfish, which are rare and endangered.
One of the best parts about Australia is the wildlife. We've seen snakes, so many different kinds of lizards, spiders, marsupials etc. Off to Hervey Bay tomrrow and then to Lady Elliott Island!

Motueka

Sitting in a Holiday Park in Motueka- a short drive away from Nelson way up North on the South island. It's a cute little town. Homestays were a treat. It was wonderful to be in one place for a little while as we've been moving around so much. I'm really going to miss Christchurch as it has become our home away from home. Spent last night at an Alpine lodge in St. Amaud via Lewis Pass. Nothing there but a convenience store and a lake filled with eels. We sat on the beach last night and as soon as we shone a light into the water they all swam up.
Tomorrow we'll be "slumming" it, camping at the beach in Abel Tasman and going kayaking. Time's up-, will write more when I can !

Cheers!

homestays

After driving across the country (can't do that in one day in America) from Fox Glacier to Christchurch yesterday evening, we met up with our host family for the next week or so. Me and Megan are staying with Sue and Ross Vesey and their kids who are 18 and 22. Sue owns a uniform shop and Ross works for the city council managing rivers and he also rebuilds old Brittish cars in his spare time.They have a beautiful home, with a garden full of wonderful produce. They've treated us to a delicious tea with things from the garden the past few nights. It's so nice to be in one place for a while and finally get some good rest as we've been moving locations every day or two for the past few weeks. They've got 2 rescued cats and 3 adorable dogs. Having "heaps" of fun as they say.

Started our International Affairs comparitive politics class today and will be finished within a weeks time. Lots of work to do so I gotta get to it.

The last few weeks...

G'day!!
Can't believe I've been in this country almost 2 weeks. Loving every second, but time is flying by! We've been going going going everyday and all day, leaving me little time to catch y'all up, so I will try my best now to recap! Access to Internet has been spotty and it seems to be easier to upload my pics to my face book account than picasa at the moment.

On Jan 29th, we went to the Tamaki Heritage experience near Christchurch. The Chronicles of Uitara, a powerful story of the Maori culture and of New Zealand, was told across many generations of a single family – the warrior line of Uitara. The story was called Lost in Our Own Land. Basically it was an amazing reenactment of how the Maori people dealt with British colonization of their land. We were lead by a storyteller through over 100 years of Maori history.

Jan 30th- ( Happy Birthday Brother!)

We departed early in the morning ( as we have every morning) to go for a day hike at the Hinewai Reserve with a stop along the way at Lake Ellesmere. It was beautiful. The land manager, Hugh Wilson, talked to us about the various aspects of managing invasive species in the area- as that is the main problem with most wilderness areas here. The Europeans brought stoats, possums, rabbits and others that have changed the eco-systems and landscapes forever.

The biggest problem is the many species of land birds that have been affected, as there were no mammals ( except bats and seals)in New Zealand before the Europeans brought them. Thus, they had evolved to not have to fly away from predators and were really vulnerable to them once they were here.

On the 31st we dwepqarted Christchurch and headed out to Mt. Cook and Twizel, stopping at some canals along the way to talk about hydropower and water issues. We then headed off to Ben Ohau at Lake Tekapo. Absolutely beautiful! At Ben Ohau we talked to a high country land owner about some various legal land management practices in NZ. We also saw the land where the scene from the battle of Pellanor was filmed in return of the King.

For the next few nights we stayed in bunks at Glentanner Park. The most beautiful view and lake you could imagine. Every place we've been has been so outstanding it's really hard to describe with words.

On the 1st, we went for a hike on the Hooker Valley trail on Mt. Cook. Stopped at a glacial area fro lunch. Again, some amazing scenery. We visited the Dept of Conservation center that day as well.

Feb 2nd
We departed Glentanner and headed out to Te Anau. It's a cute little town on the way to Milford Sound. The next day, we headed to Milford sound and took a boat cruise. More amazing sights. I will be adding pics ASAP!!

Feb 4th we went to a wildlife park and stopped at lake Manapouri inroute to Queenstown. And Yesterday we hiked 20 Kilometers ( roughly 13-14 miles) up the Routeburn Trail on Mt. Aspiring, I'm hurtin a lil bit today :).

That was short and sweet, but I'm being charged by the min so I must say Adieu. Will post pics soon as I can and try and share some more details!!!


Cheers!

WOW

Have been so busy, it's been hard to find the spare time to write! I'm really loving this town. We've got a heavy workload so that's been taking up lots of time, but we've gotten to see some pretty amazing places. The water here tastes AMAZING. The weather is most interesting. It can go from hot and humid to rainy and windy in minutes. Since the ozone here is really thin, you can really feel the sunlight, regardless of clouds. Overall, it's just really energizing to be here.

Went to Riccarton House and Bush yesterday: http://www.riccartonhouse.co.nz
It's one of few remaining untouched bush areas in NZ. They're also working on raising the Kiwi population within the bush, as many non-native species have become predators to the little guys.

Went to the botanical Gardens today and had dinner on the grass. Wonderful.

Have been having our anthropology lectures every day this week, our first final exam is on Friday so I have a lot of work to do! We depart on Sunday morning for Mt. Cook, the tallest mountain in New Zealand. Will update as often as possible.

Cheers.

I'm finally here!!!

Kia ora!!! That's the traditional Maori greeting here. I'm just sitting in the hotel lobby taking a break from all the running around and exploring.

After over 30 hours of being awake and in the airport and/or plane, we finally made it to Hotel So in the early evening yesterday (which was the 23rd here). This place is awesome. All the walls are white, and it's very futuristic. To use any lights you have to insert your room key ( and leave it there) into a little slot, making it very difficult to EVER accidentally leave any lights on. I had the best sleep of my life last night, after being awake for almost 2 days ( I have a really hard time sleeping sitting up on a plane.) Everyone in the group seems really awesome. There's 8 girls and 7 guys so it's a good dynamic.

While still delirious, but after a good meal and program orientation we went to the Pack n save ( pretty much a local Wal-mart where you pack your own groceries and save lots of money) for a few essential items. I have just been taking in all of the sights and little nuances of the town today. We had a scavenger hunt this morning just to orient ourselves with New Zealand customs and culture. Had to take pics with our difgital camera of things like 3 different types of kiwis, an instant kiwi which is a lottery ticket ( I didn't win:( ), and about 18 other items/sights

The buskers festival is going on right now, so there is a TON to do and see. Check it out: http://www.worldbuskersfestival.com

We had our first lecture today on the bio-geographical history of New Zealand, pretty interesting stuff! Afterwards, went to an awesome vegetarian place for lunch called Soulfood. mmmm.... it hasn't been hard at all to find good veggie food which is a plus. Today has been a free day so I think a bunch of us are going to head down to Sumner beach before dinner. I'll post pics soon. I love this country!!

The O.C.

First of all if you're reading this and you helped make this trip happen for me, THANK YOU! It seemed impossible at first that I would even get to go, so my dreams really have come true in this regard.

I flew into the John Wayne airport on Sunday and have been spending the past few days visiting my mom's sister's family. It was long overdue as I haven't seen them since my cousin Jane's wedding 6 or 7 years ago. Since then, my cousin Mary Katherine has married and Jane had a precious baby boy (Liam) who is now 2!

The picture above is my favorite shot I took as I was flying into Cali. I'll also be posting some picture albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/Jenny.K.Woodward. Pretty exited about using the first digital camera I've ever bought!

Trying my best to pack a 44lb bag (harder than it seems) and prepare myself for a flight that lasts an entire day. I've got every homeopathic remedy I could need, so

I'm hoping my jet lag will be pretty much non-existent. We leave at 11:30 p.m. tomorrow the 21st, and arrive in Christchurch around 1:30 p.m. on the 23rd. We'l be staying at Hotel So, which is apple inspired and really eco-friendly.

Well I'm off to enjoy my last night with the fam. The next time I write, I'll probably be in New Zealand!!

Aotearoa - in Maori, It means the land of the long white cloud.

Hello everyone. 6 days here until I depart for California, and on the 21st...to NEW ZEALAND!!! I have been busy as ever packing up, moving out, moving in etc. There is still much to be done.

I'll be keeping everyone updated here on what I'm doing, posting pics and so forth. Hope everyone's new year is off to a great start.