"Early morning quake shakes Wellington11 June 2006
Some Wellingtonians had an early wake-up call this morning after an earthquake shook the capital around 4am.
The quake which measured 4.7 on the Richter scale struck at 4.01am and was centred 30km north-west of Porirua at a depth of 50km, GNS Science said.
GNS Science said the quake would have been felt throughout the Wellington region."
Yeah, uh-huh.
In other news, the All-Blacks played Ireland last night in Hamilton. Apparently Ireland hasn't beaten NZ in 101 years (is rugby that old?), and last night was no exception...except they put up one hell of a fight. Despite a 'try' (translation: goal) scored by the All Blacks in the first 45 seconds, Ireland then came ahead and dominated the game well into the second half; sometimes leading by 9 points.
In the end, thankfully, the AB got their sh%t together and won. Phew.
One of the high points for me was to finally see the infamous All Black haka at the beginning of the game.
Fom the All Blacks website:
"Today, haka is defined as that part of the Maori dance repertoire where the men are to the fore with the women lending vocal support in the rear. Most haka seen today are haka taparahi, haka without weapons.
More than any aspect of Maori culture, this complex dance is an expression of the passion, vigour and identity of the race. Haka is not merely a past time of the Maori but was also a custom of high social importance in the welcoming and entertainment of visitors. Tribal reputation rose and fell on their ability to perform the haka (Hamana Mahuika).
Haka reflected the concerns and issues of the time, of defiance and protest, of factual occurrences and events at any given time
The haka adds a unique component, derived from the indigenous Maori of New Zealand, and which aligns with the wider Polynesian cultures of the Pacific.
The All Blacks perform the haka with precision and intensity which underpin the All Black approach."
And here is some video of the All Blacks performing the haka (from other games) I recommend turning the volume way up on these:
from a match against the French in Paris
from a match against England in Dunedin, NZ
1 comment:
Yep, Ian, thanks. My flatties schooled me on the whole thing (before we got into a drunken debate on why it's called a "try" instead of a score, and what kind of lame, wishy washy name is "try" anyway? That's only, like, an "attempt" when it's actually a "success". Then we got onto why it's called a "test" match...is it an exam? a practice match? a preliminary one? sheesh...)
By goal I actually was referring more to a touchdown, or even a goal in soccer/football.
And maybe I'll check out the Aussies once they learn the words to "Ka mate..."
:)
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