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| 22 July 2003 - I'm a horrible person and haven't updated in a long time, but my site is currently under construction!!! soon there will be heaps upon heaps of pictures to see and stories to read! :) But...until then, go to this page to see something fun. And don't worry, it's not that I'm going crazy because I'm in a different country...have wanted one for a long time! :) It's on my lower back. Cheers! e tatau o emily |
| 24 Mar 2003 - I guess I should preface this post with a note about the war that began after my weekend at WOMAD. It's been pretty strange to be over here while my country is in such turmoil, both at home and overseas. I guess to some extent it's reassuring to know I'm in such a small country that seems to overlook and be overlooked by the war. And, I definitely get a different perspective on the events and news than I ever got from American propoganda; that is very refreshing. However, it's strange to read about arrests in San Francisco and war support in Sacramento when I'm surrounded by people who are ultimately unaffected by the war. I realize that all my years of ignorance of and apathy for the events going on in the rest of the world are really a bigger deal than I ever thought. I suppose my frustration over the start of the war was amplified because it followed just after an amazing weekend of unbelievable music, beautiful scenery, and an immense, peaceful connection between more ages, races, and countries than I've ever encountered in one place. Before leaving for New Zealand, I had been told about a world music festival that was being held here, but I had put it out of my mind and forgotten about it. I found out about it again about a week before it was to take place. I had been feeling somewhat down and very lathargic; I realized it was partly from city claustrophobia, but mostly because it had been a long time since I had seen any live music, which always seems to be my source of energy. I decided to pick up and make arrangements to go six hours south of Auckland to New Plymouth where the three day long festival was being held. It's pretty exhilarating taking off for a new place all by myself at 7:00am without havng accommodation figured out. I did a bit of exploring when I first got there and figured out where I was going to crash. I ended up staying marae style near the festival, which basically included a mattress on the floor of a gym with 30-40 other people in the room. It was actually really awesome - we got hot showers, toilets, breakfast (although I never up early enough for it) AND it was only $10NZ a night! I met some really amazing people there as well, the most notable of whom was a guy named Jon who was originally from London, but currently working for Amnesty International in Wellington. He and I actually hung out a lot of the weekend and explored some of the town as well as the festival. I also got to meet a lot of other cool people including a fire poi dancer named Mei (who was hapa!) She showed me some tricks and let me have a play with her fire poi and was really fun. I also bumped into some of the EAPers who I hadn't seen since our orientation at the beginning of February. The festival was held among two different parks and on five different stages. There were heaps of yummy food stands and fun vendors (including a stand where they did traditional Maori tattoos on the spot!) The parks were absolutely beautiful. From the street they looked like bush, and even inside they were pretty overgrown aside from various lookout spots and the lake in the middle. It was amazing walking through the park after the festival everyday (which ended around midnight) on my way home to the "marae" because the trees and paths were lit up with brightly colored lights and UV lights, some moving, others stationary. Always a pleasure to walk home and listen to the cicadas and the water after a full day of music. The weekend was essentially one of the best of my life. It was due in large part of course to the music that was played. Essentially 30 plus hours of music on multiple stages with musicians from all over the world, and of many different styles. All were excellent performers. There were many that played pretty traditional music, like Badenya les Freres Coulibay from Burkino Faso, Madonsini from South Africa, Amjad Ali Khan from India, a Javenese Gamelan, Waihirere from NZ, and Toto la Momposina from Columbia. But there were also a lot of modern bands like Che Fu, Fat Freddy's Drop, and Trinity Roots all from NZ, and world music collaborations between several groups that just made the whole place rock. Being a huge music nerd, I could go on forever about each group, but I'll spare you until I can show you videos and expound on each of them. (I haven't figured out how to get the videos online yet...) One of my favorites, though, was a collaboration between an American slide guitarist, Bob Brozman, and a Japanese sanxian player, Takashi Hirayasu. They were good friends and had made an album a while back. They performed all different styles (i.e. boogie woogie, funk, lullabies, swing), all with Japanese lyrics. But what made it so great was to see the difference in performance style. Takashi followed the reserved Japanese style - you couldn't see his body move at all (except for his foot tapping - so you know he was really rocking out.) But Brozman had a hilarious and extremely visual performance style - arms, legs, eyebrows, hair, chair all flopping around as much as possible. It was great to see the two juxtaposed against each other on stage! And of course the sounds blended beautifully! In addition to the music, there were a lot of other things that really made this weekend amazing. It was partly the scenery of the parks and of New Plymouth and of Mt. Taranki/Mt. Egmont (largest active volcanoe on New Zealand) looming in the background. (The black sand beaches were beautiful as well!) But, I think it was mostly being able to see so many different kinds of people - ages, races, backgrounds - come together with similar minds and for a common purpose. There of course was the normal festival/hippy crowd present (so fun!), but there were also kids and babies, as well as people in their 60's and 70's, everyone literally dancing to the same beat. The musicians themselves were often among the audiences, enjoying the music of other countries A Senegalese performer, Cheik Lo, got on stage during a Maori performance as a volunteer to try the haka. (and he did it quite well!) It was so nice to see all these unbelievably talented people just walking around with us, participating in the festivities. The percussionist from Los de Abajo got a traditional Maori tattoo two hours before he was going to perform! Everyone was an equal, and it didn't matter where anyone was from or what language they spoke. Several musicians addressed the audience in languages other than English (i.e. French, Spanish, Zulu) and it was so amazing. I guess I'd never experienced that before; it was nice to hear. I went home Monday morning completely refreshed and energized. An amazing high that I really needed. One of the best experiences of my life. Maybe I can be back in two years for when it comes back to Taranki! |
| 5 Mar 2003 - It's my birthday!! :) Legal in the states, and officially part of the old-bag-club (as stated by my friend Luisa.) Still not quite sure what we're doing for my b-day (I think probably just dinner and maybe a bar.) But, people stayed up till 12:03 with me to celebrate. Last night, the hostile had an "S"party - everyone was supposed to come in a costume starting with S. I went as a samurai, as did Mike, (I think) who's in the middle of the picture. Nicolette, my roommate, on the left, went as silence. The party was okay, although my favorite part (as usual) was dressing up. Classes have officially started and so far seem not too bad. It will definitely be a challenge for me though because all of the classes I'm taking are filled with islanders who already know more than I do. I kind of have to learn the culture and the class material all at once. But it should be amazing. Also, all the classes are really small and intimate, so I think I'll get to know most everyone in the class. That's it for now, I'll write more later! |
| 18 Feb 2003 - My friend Tasha and I just got back from an amazing kayaking trip up in the Bay of Islands near the towns of Paihia and Waitangi! We stayed Saturday night at a Backpackers (hostel) for only NZ$20 and it was so luxurious. We were ready to sleep on the beach with nothing but a towel for warmth, but instead got warm beds and access to a spa, mountain bikes, kayaks, TV, kitchens, and DVDs. It was really nice, and we got to meet a lot of awesome people from all over the world (although most of them were on holiday from London.) On Sunday, we left for the kayaking place. The first half of the day, we went on a group guided paddle through an inlet at the north end of Paihia. It was a really easy paddle, especially since the weather was so nice. We got to manuever through the mangrove forests (mangroves are trees that grow in the water) which was amazing! We also got to go see Haruru falls and put our boats underneath the water. :) The second of half of Sunday, Tasha and I were guided by a woman named Toni who was really cute and showed us all kinds of fun things. We first landed on the small island of Motumaire and ate our lunch. We wandered around the island a bit, and Toni showed us all of the rock oysters hanging out. She asked if we liked them, and I of course said yes, so she popped open a couple of them for me to eat raw. Tasha was game as well and also really enjoyed them! yumm.... We paddled around the bay a bit and saw some people digging in the mud. Toni said they were looking for pippis (bivalve mollusks) and asked if we wanted to stop so we all got out and hunted for what eventually became some of our dinner and breakfast! (I love this whole find-your-own-food thing!) After that we landed on a private beach that belonged to Toni's friend Andrew. He wasn't expecting us, but welcomed us onto his 80 acres of land, showed us around and gave us tea and biscuits! It turns out, also , that he's really into wearable art which is a pretty big thing in New Zealand. He showed us some of his work, one which won a large contest here (in the wearable art website, click on 2002 winners and look for Megabyte). It was awesome, especially to see someone so passionate about what they do! We finally sailed off to our campsite which was near Opua on a little plot of land where we couldn't really see any other boats or houses. We were basically on our own from that point on, though again we felt like we were living in luxury. The kayak place provided our tent and sleeping bags, all the cooking gear we needed, the makings for tea and coffee, a fire pit piled with wood, and even a little camp shower! Amazing! Tasha and I basically spent the rest of the night cooking/eating (the pippis we gathered were sooooo good!) and chatting. The water right in front of us was beautifully calm, like glass and it was so quiet (no ambient sounds of the city). AND we even had a full moon that night that was so bright we could read by it's light! One of the most calming and revealing nights of my life. On Monday, we set off in the morning unguided. It was a bit overcast and windy, and the first leg of our paddle was against the wind and tide so that we could check out a small Mariot island. It was cute, but we didn't stay long. We got back in our boats and paddled with the wind (which was much easier) and paddled up the coast, dipping into the inlets and bays. After what ended up being a five hour paddle (we felt very hardcore after discovering it had been that long), we landed on another private beach for lunch. We talked to the owners (they came running out with a bit of a dilemna - one of their boats had broken loose and was drifting on the bay), and they were extremely nice, just like everyone we met on the trip. t seems like they all go out of their way to be nice and be as helpful as they can. Amazing country. We soon set off for Russel which is a town across the bay from Paihia. The paddle was long and hard, against tide and wind. But we noticed that being in a kayak is really unique, not only because you feel like you're flying across the water, but because you don't really disturb the wildlife. We saw all kind of birds (pied shags, australasian gannets, and some kind of tern I think) and they were all swimming around us, dive bombing for fish, etc. It was incredible. We wanted to stop in Russel for dinner, but realized it would be a long paddle back to Paihia, (an estimated hour and a half) so soon after we landed in Russel, we got back in our boats. The last paddle was so easy and felt only like an hour a half so Tasha and I were feeling very hardcore and a bit smug. Of course, when we took out our clock, it turned out it had taken an hour and a half. I guess the five hour paddle earlier in the day made this one seem so easy We found a backpackers at which to spend the night and immediately ordered pizza and jumped in the spa. We finished the night with a bottle of no-so-good wine and then went to sleep. It was such an amazing trip, espcially cause we both felt like we had REALLY seen the area, and really gotten a feel for the town and the people. And there is no equivalent to gliding on the water in a kayak! :) |
| 26 Jan 2003 - Welcome to my website! A few people have seen it before, but most of you have not. Probably not as cool as something Justin or Ricky could build, but...good enough eh? Suggestions are definitely welcome Last night we had a bon voyage party with my family. It was so nice! not only because there was good food and lots of it all night, but also because I got to hang out with my "scary" cousins and the rest of my awesome family. :) I'll definitely miss having all of my forkhead family around, but I'm sure I'll find opportunities to be goofy. I spent the second week of January in LA, packing up my apartment and saying goodbye to all my friends down there. They also had a really great party for me too. (we had sushi and homemade ice cream! :) ) It's neat that I know so many cool people, and that they're my friends. :) Fight fat and win, yeah! To those of you I didn't get to see, I'll see you in a year! :) a hug to both MikeCat and Heather since I'm horrible and didn't get to say goodbye in person. I'm in Sacramento now, but I leave to LA on Feb. 2nd and will stay for a day. Jonathan's going to take me to LAX to leave for New Zealand on the 3rd. I'll be in the air for...14 hours I think (?) and I land on Feb. 5th at 7:15 in the morning (early!). I go directly to my dorms for the EAP orientation, and then I get a whole month to explore before I start classes :) !! I love you all! Feel free to write to me. I'll really! try writing back, but I'm not so good at it. I wish you all a fabulous 2003! (I'll put in real pictures as soon as I get a camera and something fun to take pictures of ...) |
| 7 Jan 2003 - Well, the experience of building a website is oh so exciting. No, it actually is. I'm finding some very interesting sites about New Zealand. Unfortunately, since I'm working on my dad's computer, all of the sites are being saved as links on my page two, so it's not such a good idea to look at that page yet. Of course, my saying that will just tempt you to go see it. hm... Well, I'm filling my time with lots of stuff to get me ready for the year, most of which is more pressing and important than this page, but not nearly as fun. I've gotten in contact with my cousin (well, first cousin twice removed) Laura in Hawaii, who is absolutely amazing and is helping me make connections and learn some information about my family and our connection to the Maori people. Very cool stuff. I also took a very ugly passport pictures today to send into the housing office at Auckland, so now they'll have three ugly pictures of my floating around. Oh boy! I'm sure this babble is most interesting, especially I'm writing it mostly to fill space. And, since the only people who really know about this site are my mom and Jonathan, (and probably his roommates), I'm sure it is being thoroughly ...um...enjoyed. Well, I've just about filled my space so I think that means I'm done! :) By the way, try closing the ads in the corner! :) |