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I've been in New Zealand for almost a week now and when I haven't been getting ready for my trip, I've been studying up on this country and poring over maps and photos. Therefore, I decided to wrap this page up with a brief lesson on New Zealand's geography and history. I may not get all the nuances correct, being a foreigner, but here goes.
First, the geography. New Zealand is about as large as my home state of Oregon and with about as many people, around four million. The country consists of two major islands that are called, not surprisingly, the North Island and the South Island. The North Island, which is conveniently located north of the South Island, has about twice as many people as the South Island. It also has the largest city, Auckland, and the capital of New Zealand, Wellington. The North Island is very volcanic, as opposed to the South Island, which has a lot of alpine scenery, farms, fields – and sheep. Lots of sheep.
Except in the mountains, the New Zealand climate on both islands is fairly mild due to the oceans that surround it, with coastal high temperatures during the summertime (that's now) typically between 70 and 80 degrees. I've worn shorts and t-shirts every day that I've been here so far – though I'm not trying to rub it in, for you folks who are living in the northern hemisphere and are suffering through blizzards and ice storms here in the middle of December.
Now, for the history. The islands were settled by Maoris (pronounced "MOW-rees") who migrated here from the south Pacific, including the Cook Islands, where I had just come from. I always figured the Maoris settled in New Zealand first and then moved east, out towards the islands of the south Pacific, but it was just the opposite. The Maoris, in general, were (and are) a strong and independent people.
The first European to discover New Zealand was the Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman, who named it in honor of the Zeeland province in his native Holland. Tasman discovered New Zealand in the 1600s but Europeans didn't visit New Zealand again for another hundred years. That's when Captain James Cook, who made three remarkable voyages to the Pacific between 1769 and 1779, explored the country and claimed New Zealand and Australia for England.
I stumbled across Captain Cook's journals years ago when I was in college. I spent many long evenings in the U.C. Irvine library reading about his discoveries and adventures in New Zealand, Australia and elsewhere in the Pacific when I probably should've been studying for my midterms. Cook grew up in a poor, working-class family but rose to a lofty rank in the British navy based on his merits rather than – as had so many of his contemporaries in the British navy – his family's wealth and connections. He was a true self-made man. Because of that, and because of his irrepressible sense of adventure and strong sense of propriety, I've always admired him.
Cook traveled probably more than any other person in the world during the 1700s and he discovered more places in the Pacific Ocean than anyone else. On one voyage, he traveled as far south as anyone ever had, before being turned back by ice. On a subsequent voyage he traveled towards the North Pole before, again, being turned back by ice. He even visited the Oregon coast once. That was shortly before he was killed in 1779 in Hawaii, an island chain he had stumbled across several months earlier. In fact, I had crossed paths with Captain Cook during my trip down the Oregon coast back in June at Cape Foulweather, which he named during his visit while navigating through some – you guessed it – foul weather (see News: June 14, 2001).
British settlement of New Zealand began in the early 1800s, not by convicts as in Australia, but mostly by farmers and miners, hence New Zealand's more genteel culture. Although there were some conflicts with the natives, in general Maoris were assimilated into the white society here much more smoothly than the aborigines were in Australia or the Indians were in the U.S.
The Maori culture is still very strong and evident in New Zealand, much more so than the Indian (i.e., native American) culture is in the U.S. In fact, most placenames in New Zealand, especially on the North Island, seem to be Maori. Most Maori placenames have three or four syllables, often alternating vowels with consonants. The Maori placenames that I've seen on New Zealand maps really crack me up but, unlike English placenames, I can't remember them very well, probably because of the various combinations of puka's, rangi's, roa's, and papa's. That includes Papakoura, Paparoa, and my favorite, PapaMurphy. That's a pizza chain in the U.S., by the way, and a little culinary humor – or "humour," as they say here in New Zealand.
Above left: Back in Devonport after my visit to Auckland. This is looking east from the volcano known as Mt. Victoria. Above right: I love this name. It's my favorite restaurant in New Zealand, so far. They have awesome fish and chips!
Above left: The Devonport waterfront. Above right: So long, beautiful Auckland!
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