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I spent the last few days (well actually the 23rd and 24th) of last weekend at the Soundsplash Eco Reggae Festival in Raglan a surfer town known to many.I left Turangi on Thursday and not long after leaving the outskirts of the city I had some rad feral hippies scream out of their car window if I wanted a ride (read: the use of feral is common in these parts by hippies and I [they agreed] attribute that to something like how black people call themselves niggers). Plus I’m feral as well and that happens when one doesn’t 
actually need to shower everyday I suppose. These two womyn have to be the best ride I’ve had so far in New Zealand. They made a detour to the *free* hot springs on the way up to Raglan, which I definitely didn’t object to doing. We all dived into these beautiful waters mixed with cold river water and hot water coming from the volcano and honestly it was the coolest/weirdest feeling I’ve felt in a while. I had no swimming outfit (well it was in the bottom of my bag) so I just used my underwear which made for a good swimming suite. I probably would have gone naked but there were people around so decided against it.
Then off we went to Raglan ot the land of chilled out vibes, surfing bays, beautiful country-side, and some great peeps. The entire weekend was chalked full of some really amazing music including the highlight for me - Mihirangi!
“Mihirangi performs acoustic soulful-roots and funky world-r’n’b with a rare performance style. She creates her own band sound - live in front of the audience. Using a loop pedal she layers her vocals into intricate harmonies with beat boxing and vocal bass lines, along with acoustic guitar and tribal rhythms, to accompany her R’n’b infused vocals.” - Mihirangi’s website
I’m telling you this performance was worth missing Blue King Brown (one of the reason’s why I originally headed to Raglan) for. She had a lot of energy, love, and good vibes coming from her performance. I kinda wished that I had an opportunity to chat with her afterward but things were crazy that night and at the very least she put me in a great mood. So thanks for that Mihirangi. And on a rad plug note check out her website El Canado Kids cause she’s coming to a place near you. AND she has good promo deals for those that are willing ot help her out with her gigs (they are all in March folks).
Today I felt that it was appropriate to pay some respects and hi-fi’s to a special friend of mine whom is embarking on an amazing journey.
Jamie Liewaluzny (Liew+Zackaluzny=Liewaluzny - haa haa) has decided to take the degree that she trained so hard to obtain (law degree), jump on a plane, and head to Sierra Leone.
So why is that such an amazing feat you ask? Umm well Jamie (on the right of this picture) is heading to Sierra Leone to work on the defense case of one individual being tried at the Special Court that the United Nations and Sierra Leone have established. The conflicts that have plagued this country are extensive and tragic. This country is still not a really nice place to visit because of all the unrest that is plaguing these people.
As Jamie indicated to me it’s something that she feels strongly about and it doesn’t “matter who I represent because everyone deserves a fair trail.” She’s right everyone does and needless to say I think your great for believing that Jamie. I think that just taking the time out from her regular job in the Ottawa judicial system where she works for a judge to dedicate a few months on this project is really amazing.
If your history about Sierra Leone is rusty you should really have a look at the latest movie about this tragic history called Blood Diamonds (or here for official web addy). Apparently, this movie is a real eye-opener to the conditions in Sierra Leone and give one perspective of the situation that people faced. It’s tragic to know that something that we deem precious and special such as a diamond could really fuel and encourage such violence and despair in people.
“To many people, diamonds symbolize love, happiness or wealth. However, for many others, they mean conflict, misery and poverty. In some African countries, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, profits from the unregulated diamond trade are used to fund armed conflicts. As a result, tens of thousands of civilians have over the past years been killed or tortured and millions have been displaced. ” - Amnesty International report on the situation.
It’s beautiful to be inspired by so many amazing people around me and to you Jamie I say thanks and cheers! May your travels find you beautiful things and lots of learning.
Hugs
Shane
I decided it was best to rest and take some time out for my leg (which appears to be slowly healing and yet yesterday’s hitchin kinda flared things up a bit but I’ll survive).
Regardless, my time at Rongo Backpackers (Rongo meaning peace in Maori) and the idea behind this is to establish a beautiful artistic community with lots of great ideas including a permaculture farm, more building expansion, and the development of a bigger community. So far they are off to a really great start in this chilled out environment. I think anyone coming off the Heaphy Track would be silly to not stay here for a few days and see what they have to offer honestly.
I managed to spend a bit of time getting to know the woofers and the collective owners of this project (well some at least) and it was worth it. The Rongo backpackers has been focussed on making their hostel as sustainable as they can afford to (read: the more money they make the more they invest in environmental projects to reduce their carbon footprint). Roll the list…
- They have some pretty amazing things setup such as a huge rain barrel in the backyard that feeds the shower water (possibly the toilets as well). This is the first time that I’ve run across a hostel like this and it makes me pretty happy to have a staggered shower with reused rain water (YAH)!
- All the water for the showers is heated with solar heating on the roof. I was totally giddy when Paul took me around to show me the heaters. Two different panels were used to heat all the water used by everyone (sizeable hostel really) staying at Rongo. I’ve seen this once before at a sustainable eco-lodge up in northern Alberta called Aurum Lodge (beautiful place to stay too)
- Composting - This included raw food for the garden and cooked food for local pigs *being a vegan I’d rather see the food go towards something then be chucked out*
So today marked the last day of the Heaphy Track for me. It’s pretty hard to describe the entire experience in one post but regardless I think that I can slam in a few highlights for peeps to read.
On the first day of the hike I was going up some pretty steep rock pathways and managed to mangle my leg. (read: it really hurts to bend my knee). Now this wasn’t discovered until I rocked into the first hut called Perry Saddle Hut. At the time I had thought that my injury wasn’t as bad as it later appeared to be. I ended up hiking the remainder of the trek (hiking = tramping here in NZ) which was approximately 60 KM through some crazy terrain with my leg. The last day although an amazing experience was probably the hardest for me.
Regardless, the amazing scenery was something of a treat for me to take in. All the vegetation, environment, animals and air seemed to change so many times I could hardly keep track. On the second night I spent it sleeping completely on my own in the Saxon hut. I was surrounded by mountains on both sides of me, a kitchen overlooking the mountains, and a relaxing vibe (pic on the left). I woke up at about 5:30 AM in the morning cause I had to use the facilities and upon looking around all the landscape was covered lightly in a beautiful fog, the full moon was bright and in the horizon the sun was rising. I stood there for a little while and took it all in and then headed back to bed for a bit more rest before jetting off.
The day that I hiked to the Heaphy Hut (9 hour hike) was the most special to me. At the end I came across Remu trees (picture above) that were the widest tree I’ve ever seen in my life. I spent a bit of time (until the sandflies tried to carry me off to their layer for an early dinner) standing near one just being in it’s presents thinking about how long it had been there, how many peeps had passed it, and what cool stories it would have to tell if it could talk (no I wasn’t on anything). Read the rest of this entry »
After meeting up with Becs (a musician from OZ) and Lilo (an Austrain sculture) in Takaka we all decided to rent a vehicle and roll down the westcoast together (read: 1 Villie *his name* which was a station wagon we all crammed into at night for rest…it was an amazing feat).
The westcoast of New Zealand proved to be one of hte most memoriable moments of this trip yet. The breath taking forests, beaches, rock, caves, and all the rest really had me feeling more and more connected with nature. It was nice to travel with two other peeps who like to take their time with no real agenda on hand. It made for interesting and beautiful moments together filled with music making, lots of amazing conversations, and interesting meals made in the bush.
We managed to dumpster dive a bit of fruit and such to eat together (they were into my diving techniques and it made it easy in places like Takaka where the organics are placed in seperate bins). We also managed to make mattresses out of scavanged cardboard boxes for some padding rather than buying something to later be thrown out or carted elsewhere.
I definitely agree with Lilo that the best part of the Westcoast (thus far) has been that from Westport to Greymouth. And if you are rollin down that area PLEASE take your time rather than just rockin up somewhere, taking a picture, and then rollin on. Not sure how people are able to do that really but I guess it’s really your perogative. I think that at this point I have that connection with the earth that I was looking for since I got to New Zealand (thanks to Becs and her strong native connections). I think it’s going to make my trek through the Heaphy Track that much more special for me.
Hope life is rollin well for everyone! After the Heaphy Track I’m heading to a national park near Greymouth to do some conservation work! WAHOO!
