Glossary of New Zealandy terms

Maori Terminology:
Kia Ora- Hello
Haere Ra- Goodbye
Aoteoroa- Land of the Long white cloud (What Maoris call New Zealand)
Hawaiki- The place we were before (The land the Maori came from)
Waka- War ship, like a long canoe. Seven wakas came from Hawaiki, each carrying a different family. Maoris track their lineage by which waka they came from.
Haka- Ancient war dance. Used to intimidate the enemy. Women are not allowed to perform the haka.
Marae- A central hub of Maori culture, meetings and ceremonies take place on the marae. It is on tapu, sacred, land. On the Marae are two buildings, the Wharae Nui (Big House) and Wharae Kai (Food House).
In the Maori language, a "Wh" makes an "F" sound.
Tutereinga- The name of the group that built the Tutereinga Marae. (A tribe-type subdivision)


Kiwi Terminology:
Kiwi- a bird, type of fruit, or person native to New Zealand. Pay attention to context to distinguish.
Pineapple lumps- deliciousness. Chocolate coated pineapple flavored marshmallowy nougat. Can not be explained. Must be tasted.
The Warehouse- Big Box store, the closest thing to a Wal-Mart.
Tramping- Hiking
Jandals- Flip Flops, or sandals
Flax- Extremely hearty, durable plant. Resistant to tearing or breaking. Also a cultural symbol of family.
Gorse- An invasive, introduced plant. It was introduced as a natural fence as it is very hearty, bushy, prickly and impossible to navigate. I spent days removing bushes of full grown gorse, and came to hate it with a burning passion of seven suns.
Pounamu- (poe-nah-moo) New Zealand Greenstone made into a pendant. Can mean many things.

City names and pronunciations:
Auckland- International Airport, where we saw our first sights of NZ in the 5:05 sunrise.
Tauranga- (tour-on-ga) Major city in the Bay of Plenty region.
Kati Kati- (kah-tee-kah-tee) The name of the city where we stayed for two weeks at Blair lodge.
Coromandel Penninsula- Hosts such attractions as Cathedral Cove. We went there as a mini vacation during our two week volunteer project.
Whangamatai- (Fang-a-ma-tie) A surfing city on the Coromadel penninsula.
Whitianga- (Fit-ee-on-ga) The city we stayed in for a night in Coromandel.
Waitomo- (why-toe-moe) home of blackwater rafting and Dan the kiwi cave man.
Rotorua- (row-toe-roo-a) Not to be confused with roto-rooter. Home of Hell's Gate, geothermal hotspot, where the smell of sulpher will stain your clothes for ever. Also home of the Kiwi Experience, and ZORB (giant plastic ball rolling down a hill with you in it.) Called the "Vegas" of New Zealand because it is so culturally rich.
Taihape- (tie-happy) World capital of gumboot throwing. City nearest River Valley Lodge, home of Black Forest Ham, the cat.
Wellington- Capital city of New Zealand. Home of Te Papa museum (translation: Our Place)
Nelson- A popular place for skydiving. Also a great site for sea-kayaking and quad biking.
Franz Joseph- Home of Franz Joseph glacier, and not much else.
Queenstown- Adventure capital of the world! Home of Bungee Jumping and creator A.J. Hackett.