SHANGHAI MISSION - DAY FOUR

One of the loveliest aspects of Ngāti Kahu’s annual Missions to China is the strengthening of whanaungatanga (relationships) between the members of each Delegation.  Our first year was an entirely Ngāti Kahu affair, but since 2016, Mr Gui has chosen members of his Carrington staff and their whānau to join us.  Initially, I had wondered how this combination might be affected by the need that arises from time to time for Ngāti Kahu to hui privately. 

Very quickly I got my answer, outside our normal lives and inside a foreign country, we quickly become comfortable enough to know when to hang together and when to diplomatically separate.  And regardless of whether we are selected by Mr Gui or Ngāti Kahu, we bond with and care for each other. 

That caring manifests in many ways. E.g. on day four of the Mission, as we make our way through the Shanghai Museum of Art and Technology surrounded by millions of tamariki mokopuna who weren’t always looking where they were going, one of our younger members says, “Stay close behind me whaea,” then places himself between me and the jostling crowds. 

This museum is one of China’s most visited.  Publicly administered by the government and privately funded by local businesses, including Shanghai CRED, it has 14 permanent exhibitions and 4 science-themed IMAX cinemas.  However, we end up only visiting one exhibition, the Spectrum of Life, which imitates the scenery of Yunnan Province and displays its diversity of creatures.

By the time we finish viewing this exhibition, it is already afternoon and I for one am feeling the strain of the crowds.  So, when our guide gives us a choice of visiting another exhibition or having lunch, the unanimous and immediate response is, “Lunch!”  And on that slightly hasty note we exit stage left for lunch.

That afternoon, we make our way over to the Fake Markets in the massive underground AP Plaza Mall which has more than 1,000 stores selling clothes, suitcases, watches, and other luxury goods that are openly fake but just as good as their branded counterparts.  By the end of the afternoon, and with the help of a couple of our Ngāti Kahu members who are good hagglers, all of us leave with most of our gift shopping done for this year and our thoughts are turning homeward.

That evening, our Carrington members go out to try and buy some KFC as a birthday surprise for one of our Ngāti Kahu members who loves the stuff.  They return emptyhanded an hour later, having learnt that without an interpreter it is really hard to complete any mission in China.  We warmly welcome them back into the fold.

Since 2015, two dozen Ngāti Kahu individuals and seven Carrington members have travelled this road together building relationships and understanding that outlast each Mission and increase our opportunities and capacity as a sovereign people to act locally while thinking globally. 

To be continued.