New Zealand 2

Since next Saturday is Halloween I thought that I would explore some holidays in New Zealand. According to Google, Halloween not celebrated all that much in the past, but has been gaining popularity in the last few years. I found a calendar of holidays observed in New Zealand for 2020 online. Halloween is listed there, under the category of "observance". Their labor day is October 26th. I find it interesting that Good Friday, and Easter Monday are national holidays, while holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday are observances. They also have a lot of regional holidays. 

 New Zealand was a British colony from 1841 to 1907. The culture there is described as being a mixture of European and Maori. Immigrants tended to assimilate to European culture, and Maori culture is said to have suffered greatly during colonization. The Maori were torn between preserving their traditional culture, and the pressure to assimilate to European colonist ways. Hmm, I heard the same thing in Kenya, they did have as much of a western lifestyle as they could afford, but there was still the memory of their traditional life. Since I was thinking about "The Piano and The Drums", a poem by Gabriel Okara (linked in the previous sentence), I decided to look up Maori poets. Hone Tuwhare was a well known Maori poet who was New Zealand's poet laureate from 1999-2000. His poetry is written in English, and incorporates Maori rhythms. His poetry is described as controversial because it also includes biblical rhythms, but overall it sounds like he talks about nature and his life. 

On to an outdoor product: tea.

Come on, you knew it was coming. Zealong makes multiple types of tea, so this morning, we're having green tea in a gaiwan. 


Okay, you don't normally brew the tea uncovered, I just wanted to take a picture of the leaves floating around in the gaiwan. 

As you can see, a little tea will still escape from the gaiwan while it is being poured. That's why I typically still use a strainer of some sort. I didn't see the people at Zealong using strainers with this type of gaiwan, but I did see them use a different type of gaiwan with a strainer liner. 

Have a good week whether you celebrate Halloween or not. 

Comments

  1. Poppy CrockerNovember 4, 2020 at 7:36 PM

    Well, I missed it, so I'm going to say the upcoming Friday the 13th is my Halloween.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lace makerNovember 6, 2020 at 10:53 PM

      I love that idea. Maybe every Friday the 13th should be Halloween regardless of its proximity to the actual holiday.

      Delete
    2. Poppy CrockerNovember 8, 2020 at 12:00 PM

      At the very least, it's always a good excuse for us to watch a movie from the Friday the 13th series.

      Delete

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