02x02 - Maori Culture

[bunniefuu]

This is the
part of the journey

that I was, honestly,
most excited about.

The Maori culture, I think,
is gonna be fascinating.

- Yes.
- It's such a unique culture.

I know very little about it.

Yeah, I can't
wait to dive deep

into their rich traditions.

Now, one of the things
I love about New Zealand

is how you just see that
Maori presence everywhere.

I really want to
honor their culture.

And I hope that we can
share some of ours, too.

The Maori are
the indigenous people

of Mainland New
Zealand, or Aotearoa.

They came here from East
Polynesia in the 1300s,

and they lived here for
many centuries in isolation,

developing their own culture,

featuring completely
unique music, myths,

as well as incredible
arts and craftsmanship.

However,
British colonization

pushed the Maori
to the sidelines.

The country still wrestles

with the effects of
its colonial past,

but in recent years has
made efforts to support

Maori culture by
preserving traditions

and incorporating the language.

Today there are
about 900,000 Maori here,

equal to about 17%
of the population.

Many of them are
standing up to make sure

that their culture is
not only remembered

but thrives in the 21st century.

It's just amazing to
see the Maori way of life

come back to the forefront

after it had been
diminished for so long.

Yes, yes.

Um, and we're
going to a marae?

Yes, a marae.

And we're gonna be experiencing
some... well, the haka.

The haka.

I've only witnessed the haka
performed a couple of times,

actually, at some
rugby tournaments.

Oh, live. So you've
seen it live?

- Live, yes.
- Yeah, it's amazing live.

And something right
up your street...

Learning about some Maori
fighting techniques.

Oh, we're gonna
have a lot of fun.

- And we're doing a waka.
- A waka race.

Yes.

Now, someone
is behind us.

Well,
not a policemen.

I hope it isn't.

Just look like you- you
know what you're doing.

Excuse me, Officer.

I've been abducted
by Ginger Man here.

I don't know where he's taking
me, but it don't look good.

I don't know. Is that
Texas or something or...

The
accent I'm doing?

- Yeah.
- I don't know. It's sort of...

I just like doing it. I
find it kind com-comforting.

Right.

It's
like my happy place.

Oh, it's your happy place.

Being with
him, whoever he is.

Yeah, it's a little worrying
when you do it late at night.

Now, the marae
we're visiting today

is located in Rotorua,

which is known for its
geothermal hot springs

and its pristine lakes

and lush, deep forests.

Anyhow, we're
here at a-a marae.

- Yeah.
- Yes.

But what is a marae?

A marae is
the belonging place,

or what we call a turangawaewae,

for our people.

All of this area
is called a marae.

So the courtyard is the atea.

That's where we welcome people,

our funerals, our
celebrations, meetings,

everything in
Maoridom happens here.

Pick
it up now, Graham.

So it basically
is welcome to...

On behalf of the tribe of
the people that are here,

and welcome and welcome

and acknowledging our connection

through our families, too.

When you're ready.

That's, uh, our language from
where we come from, Scotland.

It's Gaelic.

My name is Graham,

son of Alexander, son of George,

son of Alexander, son of Duncan.

My clan is Clan McTavish.

And Sam's clan is Clan Galloway.

We wear the colors of our
clan today, our kilts,

to bring you something
of our culture

as you have welcomed
us with yours,

and this is a great honor.

We are going to sing to you.

Bear with us, but this is
the song of our nation.

♪ That stood against him ♪

Against who?

♪ Proud Edward's Army ♪

♪ And sent him homeward ♪

♪ To think again ♪

Thank you.

We're gonna go and
have a pressing of noses,

which symbolizes the sharing
of the breath of life.

- Good singing.
- Thank you.

What we
have here is a poi.

Poi.

Days of old, this was
a training implement

- used by our males.
- Mm-hmm.

The ball here, there'd
be a rock inside,

and wrapped around that was
a fiber we called raupo,

which is the inner
fibers of the flax plant.

So I'm gonna hand
you that one there.

Uh-oh. I'm getting a feeling
this could be kind of dangerous

- if you've got a rock in there.
- Hand you that one there.

The males would use it
in days of old like this.

- Ah.
- Beat it on the wrist.

Ooh!

Beautiful. Beautiful.

So this will strengthen
and supple the wrist

and the forearm for
training for w*r.

For
coordination in battle?

- Yes. Yes.
- Flexibility and strength?

Now we use it in
terms of percussion.

Oh, this
is an instrument.

It's an instrument.

So the first action is
we flip it up, up around,

and catch with our
hand facing down.

- Oy!
- Hey!

You're getting a bit close
to my poi, I'm just saying.

Yeah, I'm getting a little
worried I might hit you.

No, you're getting a bit close.

Poi-ay. Poi-ay.

He's actually got really good
hips, like, when he dances.

Like, it'd be quite good
little... get in the hip action.

Actually, yeah, we
can if you want.

I'm not doing... No,
no. You don't want that.

Maybe a step too far for us.

- I was doing so well!
- That's okay. That's okay.

That's okay. So I go first.

- Yeah. We repeat.
- You follow after me.

I think we can do that.

This is... this is flashbacks
to the Highland dancing.

Yes.

We weren't very good
at that either, yeah.

Oh, I'm sure you
guys will be fine.

Just keep in time.

We go...

And again.

Very good. Hold it there.

That was fantastic.

Yes!

It was
absolutely fantastic.

Sorry I hit you with
my poi, by the way.

Just to really make
the most of the situation,

I thought I'd
introduce the long.

- The long.
- The long poi.

Wow. You do it
so gracefully as well.

You're about to see
it not graceful.

Yeah.

Open up your pinkie
and pop it in.

- Oh.
- Oh!

Whoo-hoo-hoo.
Slowly bring them together.

- Oh.
- They're obsessive, actually.

It's a little bit
like juggling, but...

- Do you juggle?
- I do.

Of course you do.

Why do my poi keep
banging into each other?

Yeah, how do you
stop the banging?

- Right, well...
- Right, yes.

Let's do something
we're even worse at.

- Yeah.
- Let's do this.

- Go for it. Go for it.
- Thank you.

Kia ora, gentlemen.

Kia ora.

Right, we're into
fighting techniques 101.

So the Maoris...

They fought very fierce
battles in the land wars

against the, uh... The
colonial government.

- So they've always trained.
- Yeah.

The taiaha is the
most preferred weapon

- of the Maori warrior.
- Mm.

This is for close
hand-to-hand combat.

We used to go to w*r
and fight with taiaha.

It's certainly got
a bit of a blade on it,

and with the right
amount of force,

it's definitely gonna do
a lot of damage, isn't it?

Absolutely.

So what do you
think that might be?

- Tongue.
- No.

- Tongue. Absolutely.
- Yes.

So, when we poke out our tongue,

it's a sign of defiance.

I'm gonna do whatever
I want to do to you.

And I've seen it on some of
the statues here as well.

Yes.

They've got
tongues sticking out.

So it's defiant, right.

Very strong,
very defiant.

This is who we are.

So that's the
arero. Say arero.

- Arero.
- Ka pai, boys.

This here... This
is called the awe.

- Ka pai, awe. Awe.
- Awe.

This is usually
made out of feather.

Now, the awe is
used to distract.

- Ka pai?
- Aye, nice.

So, when you shake it like
that, you go ahead and boom.

I didn't even see that coming.

This feels a bit like
some of the training

we did for Outlander.

- Oh, my God.
- Six...

- seven, okay.
- And you're dead.

So the first um, step that
we're gonna do, gents,

is right foot back,
left foot in front.

And then just a nice little...

you know, can you feel it?

Yeah, I'm feeling this.

When I call the next
move, toro pai pai,

all you will do is drop this
taiaha to your left hand

and bring it up to there.

- Ka pai?
- Ka pai.

This is basically
we're offering the taiaha

to the god of
Tumatauenga and saying,

"Power it up, guy. Power up."

- Ka pai?
- Ka pai.

And go.

Ano.

Go.

Ano.

Go.

Okay, this is a form
of hammerhead shark.

- Mm.
- Oh, wow.

Ka pai?

So this is representing
the hammerhead shark,

which was our kaitiaki
that guided us here.

Ah, like a
spiritual guardian.

Yeah. To there.

Next move, we're gonna
do a step forward,

and we're gonna cross
over, just like this.

There.

And then when I say...

we just go back to the center.

And your eyes should be
on either side of that.

- Oh, 'cause it's center.
- Ah.

Taringa whakarongo,
which means listen.

One, two, three!

One, two, three!

Taringa whakarongo.

- Hoo!
- Come on! Hey?

That's pretty much a
quick lesson on taiaha 101.

- Wow. That is amazing.
- Beautiful.

Now what we're gonna do is, uh,

we're gonna put our taiaha down.

- Mm-hmm.
- And then I'm just gonna

give you the essence of haka.

Yeah, so we-we
heard that the haka

was originally a w*r dance,

and the facial expressions

were meant to
intimidate opponents.

But it's also a ceremony
and celebration, too, right?

Yes. Ha is "breath."
Ka is "fire."

The haka is about our people.

There's many forms of haka.

Some can be about a historical
event that happened.

Something could
be about a chief,

you know, that
we're very proud of.

So you're sort of showing
respect to that person

- by performing this haka?
- Yeah, as a tribute.

The very well-known is
the All Blacks one, right?

- Yeah.
- I think, you know,

we've seen it in
rugby tournaments.

- Yep.
- I've always wanted to know...

What is that
particular haka about?

Well, Ka Mate is
actually from Ngati Toa

down in Wellington.

That's their chief.

He basically had, uh,
these warriors chasing him,

catching up with him.

And, um, he hid so
they didn't find him.

In the last part of the haka,

he's saying, "Ka Mate, Ka Mate,

am I gonna die,
am I gonna die?"

"Ka ora. Ka ora.

Or will I live?
Or will I live?"

So we go...

Hit the chest.

Okay, and then you
grab right hand.

Fantastic.

Bring it
in, man. Bring it in.

- That was awesome.
- Aye.

- Thank you for sharing, like...
- Yeah, this has been amazing.

Your culture, your
heritage with us.

- Absolutely.
- It feels like a real honor.

- It really does.
- It's a pleasure for us.

- It's where we want it to be.
- Absolutely.

If you don't
understand something,

then people either
fear it or, you know...

Or try
and suppress it.

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

Which is uh,
what happened to us.

Even my mother was
getting stripped at school

- for speaking her language.
- Is that right?

- Yeah. Hmm.
- Your mother?

And it's great for us
to actually be, um,

coming out of that darkness.

Feels like it's...
It is alive again,

and it feels like you
guys are celebrating it.

- And I think it's...
- Yeah, it is.

It always has been.

But it was always
just pigeonholed

by, uh, non-Maori
ways we've known.

No, actually, we'll just
own it ourselves and do it

- how we want to do it.
- That's right.

- It's our thing.
- Yeah.

We love sharing it with people
that have got an open heart

to receive um, that as well
because it's what matters to us.

Absolutely.

That was an
incredible honor.

I feel so energized.

Yeah, I know.
It was just so powerful.

But now we're off to
learn about Maori tattoos.

Tattoos, yes.

And I've seen a lot of
people here with tattoos.

So I would love to know...

I think they
tell a story as well.

- They're not...
- Right.

They're
not just decorative.

I know. I
just had this image

of you getting a tattoo on you.

I don't think
tattooing really is me.

- No.
- I don't know.

You don't have any
tattoos, do you?

- Or do you have a secret one?
- Do I have tattoos...?

Well, that's for me to
know and you to find out.

- What?
- I would love a tattoo.

- Would you really?
- Yeah.

If you had a tattoo,
what would it be?

I have been thinking about it.

What, the entire first
book of Outlander

- just tattooed on your body?
- Yeah.

We should get a Men
in Kilts tattoo.

What, like, to commemorate
our experience?

Yeah. We should get
a-a matching tattoo.

You go first.

Gentlemen, we're
at your tattoo parlor.

- The name of it is...
- Moko 101.

Moko 101.

And you guys here are-are doing
a lot of contemporary tattoos

but also traditional,
am I right?

Yeah, as we like to call
it... We call it moko.

- Mm-hmm.
- I think tattoo is

the closest English word
you could use for it,

but it's actually
quite different there.

- Ah! Oh, right.
- Right.

Well, that-that really
does expose my ignorance.

So, uh, literally, you wouldn't
describe them as tattoos.

No. Well, a tattoo can
be any sort of thing

that sort of marks your
skin permanently, you know?

Moko tells a story, yes,
but it tells a story

of that particular individual.

- Wow.
- That's always been inside you.

And my job is just to reveal
the moko that's already there.

Usually someone will come in,
will sit down for a good hour,

may speak about where they
want to get the moko...

- Hmm.
- And what they want to say.

And as they're talking,

and so you sort of start
drawing as they talk,

so that there's
no way anyone else

could ever have gotten that moko

You want something that talks
about where you're from.

Do you want to speak
about your family,

where you were
raised, how that was?

- It's 100% about you.
- Yeah.

There's a real resurgence of,
I guess, more traditional,

and I've seen, certainly,
the facial tattoo.

- Yes.
- And we've seen

that there's broadcasters,
there's politicians

now wearing them,

which you probably wouldn't
have seen maybe ten years.

To be true, it's been
a long, hard struggle

for moko to have its
resurgence that it has.

- Mm.
- But we're very, very fortunate

for the people that
fought the hard battles.

Until recently, would you say

that-that there was a
stigma attached to it?

Well, one, originally
would have been

when Christianity
first come here,

and they seen it as
quite paganistic.

But, you know, if-if you
really break it down,

it's actually quite
personal and quite special.

And another stigma
that's attached to it...

And we've got to pay
them homage, you know...

The gangs in New Zealand played
a big role in maintaining

- moko for a long time.
- Right.

'Cause everyone else
was too scared to.

- Mm-hmm.
- Right.

I mean, if I do moko, you
know, I try to tell them,

you know, "Let the kids
see, bring the kids in,"

because if we want it to
be easier for tomorrow,

we got to let tomorrow watch.

Yeah, it's a lifelong work.

- Yeah.
- Yeah, absolutely.

Wow. So what are we, uh...

What are we gonna
do to Graham today?

Luckily, today, um, we're
gonna be drawing something on

just so you can see
how the process works.

- Oh, really?
- Oh, great.

You're up first, Graham.

Let's see how your
story becomes a moko.

My father was
a pilot, um, Scottish,

my mother from an
Irish background,

and they both served
in the Armed Forces.

With my father, he was away
a lot when I was growing up.

So I didn't see him

as much as I would like to have.

My mother didn't work. She
looked after the family.

My brother and sister
were much older than me,

so I was effectively, um,
really from the age of five,

an only child.

And I came into
fatherhood myself,

uh, very late in life, really.

I feel like I am re-creating

the life of my father

but trying to correct
the absence that I felt.

It's probably the most
important thing in my life,

that I have that constant, um,
connection with my children.

You know, there's
a-a show that we do

that talks about time travel.

And people often ask me,

"Oh, where would you travel if
you could travel back in time?"

And I always say to them,
"I would travel back in

to just spend one
day with my dad"...

Yeah.

"and ask him all the
questions I never got to."

Moko also
plays a huge role.

So we call it omowa.

A omowa means
"things that heal."

- Hmm.
- A lot of people come,

and sometimes it might be
to do a moko about someone

that they've just really lost,
and that's been really painful.

Mm.

And so they wear them

on them as a constant reminder

of the good things
about that person.

So it plays a huge role
in healing people, too.

Okay, so you
said that my left arm

is something I hold close to me.

Well, my dad left when
I was, uh, very young,

three years old, so I didn't...
I didn't know him at all.

Yeah.

I actually
didn't know his name.

And uh, my mum brought me up

with my elder brother in
the south of Scotland.

She's... she's been very,
very strong my whole life.

And she struggled, I think,
to look after two young boys.

Um, and it probably
wasn't until I was...

mid 20s that I finally,
uh, met my dad.

And, actually, very recently,

I got to see him
just before he died,

which was uh, incredible, just
to learn about him and his life.

And, uh, we spent a
few days together.

I work a lot, and
I'm very fortunate.

But I always put it first.

So I guess, uh,
relationships are difficult.

Um...

And Scotland, Scotland
is a very big part of...

I hold very dear to me.

Hence the reason I'm
wearing a kilt, I think.

It's a place that I've
never, ever been... Scotland.

Whether you believe it or
not, we got Scottish in us.

- Yeah, right, yeah.
- Yeah.

So we've still got our tartan.

We've still got our... Our
family name was McCallum.

I think it's incredible
that... that uh, you guys

can trace your lineage
back there and...

you're a mix of these cultures.

Yeah, well, it's...
it's really important to us, eh?

I come from a very small family,

but, actually,
when you look back,

you realize you come
from this huge, huge,

you know, line of...
Of relatives, so...

Uh, and I guess, in a
way, you're not alone.

Yeah.

Oh, yeah. Oh, wow.

- See?
- Wow.

That's amazing.

represents the learnings
and the teachings

that you got from both of
your parents growing up.

Mm-hmm.

The... inside it

represents the teaching that
you're going to be passing on

from your parents to you to
your tamariki, or to your kids.

- Mm.
- You know, and so-so it flows.

Just-it's one constant
flow into the next.

This one over here
is a mangopare.

So a mangopare is
a hammerhead shark.

And the hammerhead shark
talks about perseverance.

You talked about the hard times,

not having your daddy
and all that, you know?

And look at... look at how
you've translated it now,

and now you're using
it to spend more time

- with your tamariki.
- Yeah.

You know, and so- and
so that's what it talks about.

- This is so beautiful.
- Wow.

Thank you. Just fantastic.

♪ The story of my
life I take her home ♪

♪ I drive all night
To keep her warm ♪

♪ And time... ♪

Mm-hmm.

- Um, so, if...
- Oh, wow.

So, if you look at it, it talks
about your... your father.

It talks about your dad and
then your brother in here.

This manaia here
represents your mum.

And so it's obviously
facing upwards.

- Yeah.
- I've been giving you advice.

Ah, so she's giving
me advice, mm.

And if you look at it, rather
than just follow a single line,

all of these colors,
they branch off,

colors, they branch off,
colors, they branch off.

- Yeah, yeah.
- And it was...

They came from you talking
about how you wanted...

Ultimately, you
know, you don't know

whether or not you're
gonna settle down there,

but you-you want to
go and see the world.

Somewhere
else, yeah, yeah.

So that's what... that's
what this will remind you of.

- You know?
- Different branches.

Yeah, but also, no matter
which way you branch off,

never forget where...

- Wow.
- Hmm.

My friend.

- So beautiful.
- That is really...

- Thank you so much.
- It's pretty.

Isn't that awesome?

♪ I spend her love Until
she's broke inside ♪

♪ The story of my life ♪

- Strange experience as well.
- A unique experience.

Yeah, just also very personal.

It felt like going to
therapy a little bit.

- Yeah.
- But, uh, very, very honored.

Yeah. Yeah.
Really, thank you so much.

Thank you for the opportunity

to be able to share
our culture with you.

- Yeah.
- No, no, it's been an honor.

Thank you for sharing
your culture with us,

and I wish we could... I
wish we could keep them.

You can if you want
to. You can come back.

Have we got time? All right.

♪ Story of my life ♪

That really was
such a profound experience.

I just didn't expect
it to be that moving.

Oh, it was really moving.

But we... we have
to switch gears

and head back to the marae.

They have some
wakas ready for us.

Wow. The
original wakas

were such a huge
part of Maori life.

They made them out of trees,
used them for everything,

from traveling to fishing
to carrying men into battle.

Yes, but today
they're gonna carry us.

The modern waka is
all about racing,

and that's what you
and I are gonna do.

W-why do you
make it sound like that?

That sounded so weird.

Why does it have to
be a competition?

But it always
is, my friend.

It always is.

- Kia ora, you two.
- Kia ora.

Thank you.

And waka is all about getting
from one place to another.

Also having a good... good time,
as well as having a good race.

- Mm.
- If you'll grab your one.

Oh, thank you.

- So this is a-a two-person?
- Yes. Yes, it is.

But when they were
used for fighting as well...

- Yep.
- ...back in the day,

they would have
been really huge.

They were the quicker way
to get to the place, yes.

They were, I
mean, sometimes up to 100?

Yep.

What kind of
speed could they get up to?

See the motor one,
that thing over there?

- Yeah.
- Hmm.

Go faster
than that motor.

- Really?
- No.

No.

Totally,
totally fell for it.

Totally fell for it.

- But it'll do about five K.
- Five knots?

- Mm.
- That's pretty fast.

I guess... but this
is, uh... this is obviously

a much more peaceful...
A peaceful one.

But as much as I
would like to...

to paddle with
you, I think, uh...

I think we should go
up against each other.

You're so
into it, aren't you?

Yes. See you on
the finish line.

Oh, it's so tiring.

All right,
watch this thing sink.

You're
all right. Awesome.

Let's do this!

Before you both go out for your
race, we always have a karakia,

- or... or a prayer.
- Mm-hmm.

Make sure that you
have a safe journey.

Okay.

See you later, guys.

Whoo.

- We just won.
- And stop paddling.

Yeah, okay, cool.

We're just practicing.

Eight, nine...

Oh, oh, so it's
nine and then over.

Yes, loser!

Ah, here they come.

Ah, our enemies.

But I'm
not your enemy, Sam.

It's just a friendly
race, just very friendly.

Go.

Nice.

Yes!

Yes, McTavish!

Eat dust!

- Hup! One more.
- Or eat my water.

Huh? Now you're
swimming home, McTavish!

Oh.

Whoo!

Ah!

You're rubbish!

Oh!

Beautiful.

Come on!

- Congratulations.
- Thank you. Thank you, sir.

As well congratulations,
Sam. I'm-I'm so happy.

- Well done.
- Thank you.

Thank you for helping me win.

Thank you.
Thank you so much, man.

Thank you so much.

This has been an amazing
leg of the journey,

really very memorable.

Being invited into the-the
marae and being sort of greeted.

Yeah, yeah, that was
very special, actually.

To stand there and to be greeted

by... by these warriors
and then to be invited in.

And it was great to be
able to share our culture

- with them as well.
- Yes, absolutely.

- Singing was, uh...
- Not very good.

The thing is you...
you meant it.

- I did.
- You meant it.

I did, actually, yeah.

And then... and then the
fighting technique and...

Yeah, yeah, the haka.

- The haka.
- The poi.

- The poi.
- Poi is not probably...

- It wasn't my strong point.
- No.

You were quite good, actually.

I don't think we
should do that again.

Why are you wearing
your towel again?

Oh, that's right,
because you fell in.

- Because I got in.
- Fell. You fell in.

- I got in.
- Getting in implies

that you just climbed out
of the... of the waka.

I got in.

- Anyway, cheers.
- Cheers.

Here's to a great, great
leg to the journey.

What an amazing...

amazing end to an
amazing journey.

Really, one of my...
One of my favorite parts

of the entire experience so far.

And, obviously, beating
you at this was great, too.

Oh, God, you just had to say it.

How are you finding driving
in a kilt, by the way?

It's like riding a horse
in a kilt... it's good.

Is it?

I do tend to spread
a little more.

I-I've got to say, I'm...
I'm not entirely convinced.

Why?

Because the pleats
sort of create

- this kind of bit of a lump.
- No, I like that.

What has happened?

- You've changed.
- No.

Would you rather be in,
like, swimwear or something?

No. I like this kilt,
though. This is nice.

Your sporran is so...
It's so hairy...

Thank you.

That it's practically
driving the camper.

- Oh, oh.
- It is.

You guys are going
the wrong way.