Our Trip to Te Papa by Seth

Museums can be pretty boring especially when you have a tour around an exhibit based on NZ history; I love history!

But believe me knowing how your country managed to settle in tranquillity without further disturbance is essential.

On the twelfth of February 2013, the senior school classes from Muritai: Room 22, 23 and 24 went for a trip to Te Papa for our Trick or Treaty inquiry subject, along with a few parent helpers and obviously the teachers: (without them it would’ve been abnormal) Mr Devenport, Miss Coton and Mrs Allen.

At about nine we gathered our bags and made sure we had a lunchbox full of food and a sunhat. We went to the bathroom and then lined up at the gate. We then got in order and waited but the bus didn’t come. A woman came over this side of the school and explained that the bus was on the other side. She escorted the classes to the buses. We boarded the buses had a roll call and began our departure to the National Museum of New Zealand: Te Papa.

The bus trip was long but we didn’t suffer, the traffic was as slow as a turtle, but eventually we arrived. We got off the buses and lined up and had morning tea. After a few minutes of total chaos and organisation, we were fully prepared. We made our way to the entrances (or exits depending on which side you were on) and placed our bags in cages by the baggage storage compartment and locked them.

Our teachers put us in groups and assigned certain work to fill in. My group consisted of: Beth, Gabriella, Amy, Frankie and a couple of others. We first had to identify certain places on the map of New Zealand in Ourspace. The map had no lettering to show us where everything was so we had to use our geographical skills to find the places by using certain unique landmarks. Our first task was to find the places that the nine copies of the Treaty of Waitangi were escorted too. After about half and hour we completed the task although everyone had a bit of an argument which was good and bad at the same time.

Our second task was to find how the Maori and Pakeha helped to settle in and destroy our country. We had to identify several species of animal and plant life that was known as “natural, pesky pesticides” in the Blood, Earth, Fire exhibition. We learnt that rats like the Pacific Island Kiore some how secretly managed to get over the Pacific waters in Maori Canoes undetected. The country became infested with a variety of European and Polynesian rodents. Both groups of people were concerned so they introduced feral dogs and cats: the European Wildcat and the Pacific Kuri-dog. But that didn’t get rid of the rodents instead it abolished a substantial population of birds and bats.

After a few more tasks were completed we were directed to an enlarged replica of the Treaty of Waitangi sealed inside a certain resin. We stated the differences between the two treaties, the Maori translation and the English/Royal Crown translation. However the Maori translation was just short and brief and was more understandable then the other version even if you didn’t know Maori. We had a huge discussion.

For our final task we got given a question to answer. After all of us answered the questions we put quotes and sentences in the two main groups: positive and negative. Once we had agreed we packed up went down to the cages, grabbed our bags and sat down before beginning to eat our lunch.

There was a feeding frenzy when kids were feeding their bread to the pigeons. They just wouldn’t leave even if we chased them. After we replenished our hunger and quenched our thirst, we got back in groups and we could do anything we wanted to do throughout the museum. Our group went to the sandpit and then to the earthquake house. Crack! Crack! And finally…

What a wonderful day of learning about history.