Auckland, NZ
Today we made a second attempt to visit the Auckland Museum. (You may remember that the last time we tried to go they had a power outage due to weather and were closed.) When we arrived at the museum today we were thankful to find out that they were indeed open to the public. We even found a shorter way to get to the museum, which would have helped greatly when we were walking in the pouring rain a few days ago, but oh well, we didn’t melt.
The museum was full of information and at times it was difficult to soak it all in, but we greatly enjoyed reading up on NZ. The museum seemed to be a combination between a history and a science museum. We were very interested to learn as much as we could about the New Zealand indigenous group, the Maori. The museum housed many tools, carvings, and artifacts created by the Maori people.
We were also very impressed with the volcano exhibit. You begin by walking up porch steps and entering into an area that was made to look like a living room – complete with sofas, tv, and sliding glass doors (with a peaceful scene of the harbor projected onto it). As you are sitting on the couches the Auckland news comes on. However, in a few moments time the house begins to shake and the newscasters tell what’s happening – a volcano has erupted. Soon the tv goes blank, the lights flicker, and you see a volcano erupting outside of your “window.” The peaceful scene has changed into a volcano erupting from the sea and then into the aftermath of the volcano. It was a very effective exhibit!
Maori carving at the museum
Maori carvings at the Auckland museum
A ‘house’ of carvings
Two Maori performers pose with Dan
Part of the Volcano exhibit at the Auckland museum
A display of a “Kiwi” bird