On day two of the
Mission, our Ngāti Kahu Delegation awake in Zhouzhuang, a 900
year old suburb situated in the heart of Suzhou, itself built 2,500 years ago along
a large network of canals.
We start our day with
karakia and breakfast, then tour
the markets of this ‘water town’ where we experience the fine art of haggling
and learn to get it right or else sit down, avoid all eye contact and leave it
to the experts.
The hullabaloo of the markets is replaced with serenity at
our next destination, a large and open rectangular courtyard with shaded
porticoes on three sides and a raised, roofed stage on the fourth. Like us, our hosts use music and theatre to tell
their stories, and the stage is taken by the renowned Suzhou Opera to tell us two
of them.
First comes the
story of a monk and a nun who broke their vows of celibacy to fulfil
their dream of living and loving together, going on to become ancestors to many
of the people of Suzhou – waimarie rātou (lucky descendants)!
The next story has a single character whose makeup and
movements suggest either a monkey, a rat or a cat. Eventually, we decide he’s a mix of them all
because his is the
story of a very game thief who risks life and limb to steal from the
emperor. He’s the Chinese Maui-Tikitiki-ā-Taranga; nanakia!
After lunch,
our guide Julia introduces us to the elegantly
preserved home of Zhou Zhong, the founder of Zhouzhuang. I am always struck anew when we enter these
ancient spaces, first that they have survived so much human history; and
second, that some of their classic architecture is so similar to that of our tūpuna.
Doors and walls are adorned with intricate carvings that
tell important stories, while doorsteps are elevated, both as an indicator of
status and a protection against ghosts which are traditionally thought to have
no knees, so are unable to step over high obstacles. Ridgepoles are buttressed by rafters,
reminiscent of our tāhuhu and heke, while ancestors and guardians are
symbolically remembered and represented, as are tūpuna and kaitiaki in our
architecture.
We end our time in Suzhou with a gondola ride along the main
canals. Initially we have a rocky
start but, encouraged by loud shouting from the kuia (elderly woman)
who is our gondolier, we finally get our weight distribution right.
Using a deceptively simple wrist-twisting action on the
tiller, the kuia then serenades us
throughout. We nickname her
‘Aunty Suzie’ after one of our late, great kuia who, as occasion demanded,
could similarly be commanding, comical, delightful or daunting – the kind of
woman you want on your side. To reciprocate, we sing Putiputi
Kaneihana and gift her a korari (flax) putiputi (flower) brooch.
The return journey to Shanghai starts with contemplative tātākī
(chatter) about what we’ve experienced and ends in haumūmūtanga (silence) as jetlag
catches up on us all.
To be continued.
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