Marae live-in

Well we were going to have a quiet weekend, to catch our breaths and to help keep going through the 10 week long term. Yes, all our uk readers, the terms here are a bit of an endurance test. 4 terms of about 10 weeks separated by a 2 week break each apart from the summer holiday which is nearly 2 months.

Anyway we got a letter on Thursday announcing the first live-in for the kapa-haka group. The boys were up for it and so trotted off to Te Paatu Marae for 6pm on Friday. What another culture shock! 80 odd children being sorted out by one teacher, sleeping for 2 nights on mattresses in the hall. Plenty of parents popped in to help out with catering, and the children all wanted to be there. kapa-haka is a maori dance and song form, a version of which the All Blacks do before their games. There are lots of versions and types, some of the singing being so sweet it brought a tear to my eye. Other songs were shouted with lots of bulging eyes and foot stomping. Good anger therapy!

Eric and Stuart stuck out the whole do, stopping for 2 nights. Nice and quiet back at home with just Paddy and C and I. We did a stint of cleaning yesterday and helped clean up today, more than ome parents and less than others who stayed the whole time.

The school group is very popular and by all accounts quite successful. They won the Northland finals last June and then went down to Rotorua (aka Rotovegas!) for the national finals.

We were a bit concerned that the boys would be totally done in, but they have had a rest and seem fine!

In the news here: Local news a Belgian couple's car gave up the ghost (it cost them $1200 in Auckland) - that was the Northland Age front page story. NZ Herald: a drugdealer in Auckland was sentenced yesterday, his gang was making $37,000 a week.

Have a good week folks!