Festivals and celebrations in many countries around the world have a long history, such as the Lantern Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and Spring Festival in China, and Christmas in Christian countries. The history of these festivals is much longer than that of New Zealand.
New Zealand is a young country, and the Maori are not the indigenous people of this island. They were the first immigrants to come across the ocean, but they do not have very fixed festivals.
The biggest Maori celebrations are either Spring Celebration or Autumn Harvest Celebration. The time is not fixed. As long as you feel that spring is coming or autumn is about to harvest, you can celebrate.
This time their party was called 'Hakari', which means 'grand banquet' in Maori, and is specially used to entertain important guests on important days.
There is no doubt that they respect the mainstream residents of New Zealand and regard Christmas Eve as a significant day. They also respected Wang Bo and treated him as an important guest.
Before coming, Wang Bo thought it was just a party with Maori people. In fact, it was not that simple. All Maori people from Sunset Town came to the scene, and some Maori people also came from Wanderer Town. It was roughly estimated that there were thousands of people!
There is a square in the center of the Maori village, which is about the size of a football field and a half. There is a wide platform made of wood on it, and there are bonfires around it. When Wang Bo arrived, the flames were burning, and people who came to the square let out cheers.
Atulu introduced him: "This is our Malai, which means the broad courtyard in front of the assembly hall. Today's Hakari is held here."
Wang Bo exclaimed: "God Mo Yi, this is so big!"
Atulu said proudly: "In fact, this scale is quite small. When the Maori tribe was most prosperous in the last century, our Hakari was huge!"
"You won't believe it. At that time, our tribe was going to have a Hakari. We had to start preparing ten days ago. For example, to prepare food, we had to catch a lot of fish, hunt a lot of cattle, sheep and wild animals, and put the food on a shelf. Just be one meter high!"
He pointed to a wooden shelf in the north of the square, about 20 meters long and two meters wide. It was covered with a huge red satin. Wang Bo didn't notice it at first, but after Atulu introduced it, he realized that there should be food underneath.
Behind the food rack is the gathering hall, a wooden bungalow building with a gabled roof. Some old people were sitting inside. When they saw the flames burning on the bonfire platform, they came out tremblingly.
These old people have the most status among the Aturu clan. The current Maori tradition has been impacted by modern society and civilization and has become a bit messy. In many tribes, the patriarch is no longer the most authoritative leader.
For example, in their branch tribe, the leader is Atulu, but he is not the most respected person in the tribe. He can even become the leader only because his grandmother Otutu is a priest in the big tribe.
Wang Bo, Eva, and Little Loli walked over first. The old woman Otutu grabbed Old Wang's hand with bright eyes and said, "Thank you for participating in our Hakari! Great mayor, our God will bless you and Sunset Town, and our God will protect you and Sunset Town!"
"Thank you very much, Lord Priest. I am very happy to receive his blessing." Wang Bo politely thanked him.
When Otutu grabbed Eva's hand, the beautiful teacher took out a big red envelope from her bag and handed it to her. She smiled and said: "The mayor asked me to give this to your tribe. I wish you prosperity and prosperity." Last forever!"
After receiving the red envelope and listening to her words, the old priest's face showed an unprecedented bright smile.
Wang Bo didn't know that he would have to get a red envelope to be a guest here. This was his first serious visit to a Maori tribe.
Atulu guided them to sit in the gathering hall. Lao Wang asked Eva in a low voice: "When did you prepare the red envelope? Do you still want to prepare the red envelope?"
The beautiful teacher smiled sweetly and said: "Of course, I know you won't bother to study other people's etiquette. Every time Maori holds a hakari, they have to prepare a lot of food. If the host only pays for it, it will cause a lot of trouble. There’s a lot of pressure, so guests have to bring gift money.”
Wang Bo said awkwardly: "I really didn't know this. If it weren't for you, I would be in trouble today."
Eva waved her hand and said: "No, you didn't make a mistake. Atulu told me that you provided more than half of Hakari's expenses this time. The red envelope I brought was not big, it just looks good."
They sat and chatted in the gathering hall, and a young and beautiful Maori girl poured water for them.
Wang Bo drank two cups of tea and asked, "What are we waiting for?"
Atulu said: "Waiting for other guests, there are still people coming from Wanderer Town, such as the Glorious Warriors, Destroyers, Bakajia, etc. Important people from each tribe are coming."
More than ten minutes later, at a little after 3:30, the square was once again bustling with people. The glorious warriors, shirtless and covered in tattoos, were waiting for the arrival of the group.
Wang Bo thought that these people were showing off and came late on purpose, so he whispered to Eva. Eva pursed her lips and smiled, and then explained: "This is also tradition. It was not until modern times that Maori people had the habit of using clocks to tell time. They didn't have watches before. The concept of time is very poor. When the Treaty of Waitangi was signed, the Maori Queen and the chiefs of the big tribes were late. This may not be a virtue, but it is tradition and they are paying tribute to tradition."
"Is there such a good thing? Everyone is late to pay tribute to the tradition?"
"No, it's not that simple. We agreed on a three-thirty o'clock date, but they actually came in a time jam and were one minute or two minutes late. Being a little late is a tribute, and being late for a long time is a provocation!" Eva Tell us about these traditions.
After the arrival of the Glorious Warriors and others, they indeed gave out red envelopes, and a fat Maori man gave them cash directly. A thick wad, which Lao Wang roughly estimated to be worth tens of thousands of dollars.
He had an impression of this fat Maori man. He was Xiao Wang's former owner. He was the richest man in Wanderer Town and a famous rich man among the Maori people in New Zealand. Otherwise, he would not have the financial resources and skills to bring the liger home.
The two parties hugged and greeted each other. Wang Bo was not unprepared. He knew that this kind of greeting at a gathering does not start as soon as they meet, but waits until it officially begins before saluting.
Different tribes of Maori have different forms of welcoming guests. It is those with higher status among the Aturu tribe who bring guests into Marai.
There are many long stools around Malai, and people will sit here. Wang Bo sits in the first row, Eva and Dai'er were taken to the last row, and on his left and right are the priests Atulu and Otutu. , this is obviously a theme.
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