Te Papa Tongarewa

This was just the most perfect ending to my New Zealand visit. I know some folks felt they had been "museumed" out but,  maybe sadly,  once a teacher....always a teacher! This was not a museum but an incredible interpretive centre and one which obviously catered to all my needs. It is a must visit if you ever go to Wellington. The entrance here is a waharoa or gateway which was especially carved for the New Zealand International  Exhibition held in Christchurch in 1906-07.

Forget the "stuffy" understanding of a museum, look but don't touch. This was a modern, contemporary, functional and well laid out building with such a wealth of knowledge and information attractively and excitingly displayed. 

The information contained in whole sets of Encyclopedia Britannicas,  all the National Geographics ever published, wonderful David Attenborough TV programmes, so many websites, collectively represented in different ways under one roof.  You couldn't help but follow the trail through adventures known and unknown.

Te Papa is New Zealand's bold and innovative national museum and a recognised world leader in interactive and visitor-focused museum experiences.

 Entry is free, though charges apply to some short-term exhibitions and activities. New Zealand's geology and natural environment and the stories of New Zealand's indigenous people, the Māori, are celebrated in Te Papa's permanent exhibitions, while Te Papa's Marae is a vibrant contemporary meeting house and a living communal centre, unique in a museum.

An exciting range of exhibitions display New Zealand's diverse art and visual culture and top-rating international exhibitions tour regularly. Te Papa's event programme features free events and entertainment, performances, floortalks, lectures, and more.

 

I wanted to give a sense of how well information is shared and displayed. Diagrams are large, colourful and often interactive to try to clarify the information/ make more easily understood.

The whole area on "Awesome Forces" is just superb. Folks in New Zealand live with the constant threat of the shifting tectonic plates  and a land full of volcanoes even if apparently extinct?  

It is fundamental to the school curriculum that children have knowledge and understand not just the implications but know what to do in any emergency.

We practice fire drills regularly in our schools but no-one ever really expects to be involved in a real one. Schools in New Zealand need to ensure children are not frightened but they live with a "reality" which is really hard to comprehend when we live so very far away.

Recent events have brought this to the fore.  Man even with ever increasing knowledge and constantly evolving technologies is no match for mother nature.  

Many of the displays are interactive and here, using large touchscreens you can see and add to the information you need/want. This particular display is updated on a daily basis from the GNS Science website and you can clearly see the intensity of the many, many aftershocks in Christchurch and its surrounds. 

I listened to a group of youngsters circa ten years old in a school party  as they went around this area and they had  already had a couple of fundraisers for the children in Christchurch schools and had several more things planned.

They were very aware of the practical difficulties living in temporary accommodation etc but were most revealing when they were talking about the emotional traumas  children must have experienced and what they might do to help.It never ceases to amaze me how "adult, systematic and action orientated children of this age can be. They often deliver the goods when the adults cannot!

Another example helping folks to understand what happens during a quake, simple but effective.

Using a lever you build pressure between the plates ultimately causing movement.

I have possibly another 50 pics taken throughout this particular section and none can give the "immensity of impact".

On this display can be seen the volcanoes in the Northern Island. Clicking on any one gives detailed information of its history and current status. (This is a photo of display so not interactive).

These are great websites for those of you out there interested in following up. I think you will have picked up I would love to take students to a place like this! 

http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/Education/Pages/Education.aspx

I haven't even talked about me going on a submarine two kilometres deep  on the Kermadac Arc and exploring the depths of Brothers Volcano, a spectacular  area of  hydrothermal volcanic activity and undersea creatures! (by the way I was only in a simulator sadly not for real!)

Te Aka Matua Research Library is a major research and reference resource, with particular strengths in New Zealand, Māori, natural history, art, photography and museum studies. 

Three hours was too short, allow at least a whole day and for me I could have spent three days here. I have no idea how I will condense my visit into a few photos and a few paragraphs.

Websites:   http://www.gns.cri.nz/ 

http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/pages/default.aspx

http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/ResearchAtTePapa/LibraryAndInfoCentre/Pages/Overview.aspx

Research library