Sunday 25th,April is ANZAC day –nationwide there are lots of ceremonies to recognise the contribution of NZ service women and men both at dawn and, as in Don and Joy’s small town of Taradale just outside Napier, mid morning at the town’s memorial.
The hour long service was very well attended with school children, local volunteer organisations and the MP amongst those laying a wreath. The NZ national anthem was sung in Maori and English. I’ve learnt a lot from Don about NZ’s early history (he probably taught me some of it many years ago and I’ve forgotten) and about the role that Maori language and culture has here today. Maori is taught in schools, there is a Maori political party and everywhere I go there are signs in both languages,
On Monday morning I joined several other visitors on a walking tour of Napier’s art deco architecture. Rebuilt after the 1931 earthquake (and subsequent fires which started in local pharmacies) there are lots of sunbursts, zigzags and ziggurats as you would expect but also Maori symbols, some Spanish Mission buildings and a few classical structures.
The street names are all in the pavements, and the only square cornered building is one that was left standing after the ‘quake being built of reinforced concrete. The city has just been designated a World Heritage site.
Monday afternoon I had a very special visit to the ethnographic store at Napier's museum where Don was volunteer curator for 20 years.
It was a privilege to get close to many Maori artefacts –and to hold one or two of them!!! Like almost all museum collections most of what Don curated is stored due to lack of display space.Thanks to his enthusiasm many private collections are now in the public domain and certain artefacts have been returned to their original locations. I saw greenstone and bone weapons and ornaments and finely woven cloaks hooked with bird feathers and some stunning carving –a truly unique experience and understandably, no photos allowed.
Don is also interested in the history of pharmacy in Napier –it was fascinating listening to how he discovered the pharmacists who’s who through their medicine bottles. His book details that history and the ‘collection’ is displayed at home.
A concert of chamber music completed a wonderful Monday –Mozart and contemporary works by NZ composers played by the very energetic NZTrio.
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