After a rewarding but long day presenting at Miria Marae Ruby and I decided it was time for a day off and a good ol' Sunday drive. The car loaded up with the necessary goods for a day trip, that is nuts, chocolate and togs we set off on our merry way. With no destination in mind, we followed our noses, deciding on heading West on the SH12. With a short stop in Rawene we soon stumbled upon Opononi, the home of Opo the dolphin. Now this dolphin has some pretty big celeb status in these parts, so much in fact he has a life size stone statue dedicated to him in prime position on the main drag. Good ol' Opo was a bottle nose dolphin who became famous throughout New Zealand during the Summer of 1955-56 for playing with the children in Opononi on the Hokianga Harbour. I was slightly more intrigued however by an abundance of John Wayne look-a-likes, that is cowboy hats, double denim and western boots milling about the Opononi Hotel. With a little research we soon realised we had hit Opononi on the one Sunday of the month that was Country Music day, what a treat! I definitely revisited some stellar child hood memories of sing alongs with dad and his geeetar when the local band lurched into 'The Wanderer'. 

Next on our travels, the Hokianga, I need not describe the beauty of this place, it must be experienced for yourself.

We had just one more man to visit before our journey was complete. Situated in the Waipoua forest, this man is a pretty ancient dude, with a cheeky 1,250 years under his belt.  Tane Mahuta, Lord of the forest, son of Ranginui and Papatuanuku, holds a presence that definitely calls for a moment of silence.

Ana and I have been busy beavering away on a couple of projects up in the far north. One being schematic concept plans for Miria Marae. Miria Marae is in Waiomio, just south of Kawakawa on the main drag opposite the stunning Kawiti Glow Caves. 

Presenting our first ever ARCO work to firstly the trustee's of Miria Marae, then in the afternoon to the kuia & kaumatua. I have to admit, I was pretty stoked to get a warm "ka pai" after my mihimihi, we were off to a good start! The site boasts a beautiful wharenui, Te Rapunga, that we have proposed to move to higher ground. We also presented schematic designs for the much needed rebuild of the wharekai [dining hall] and wharepaku [ablutions]. Harnessing inspiration from the local environment, the caves & the swirling waters of Waiomio

It was a real honor to present our ideas for the regeneration of Miria Marae to the whanau and to have an open discussion regarding the potential of the project. Made to feel at home with some great kai after our hui, and some interesting korero with the whanau. We are looking forward to hearing if we get engaged as the designers for this project - will keep you posted! 

After 4 days of rain this week it has been a treat to unleash our cabin fever and explore our local hot spots. Lucky for us, out our back door is the Twin Coast Cycle Trail and it's a great way to start each day before we get cranking on ARCO work. I have to practice what I preach, and 'do something everyday that scares you' by running through the pitch black tunnel. Gets me 'eart pumping that's for sure.

The last month has seen Ruby and I live like nomadic gypsies, hitting the road Thelma and Louise styles, with many a stop at the Kaiwaka cheese shop for liquorice cats. On our northern travels we have met some ridiculously talented people. We had the pleasure of meeting Sarah Longbottom, founder of the Ngarangatahi Toa Creative Arts Intiative, who invited us to the opening night of 'The Sole Project', a project enabling sustainable change in the lives of marginalised rangitahi in South, Central and West Auckland. The project sees youth connected with an artist/mentor who guides them through a journey of cultural knowledge, life experience and a celebration of artistic expression. We were very humbled to meet the rangatahi, check out their creative work and hear their stories.  Watch out Aotearoa, definitely some future talent to be reckoned with!

1 Woods Rd, Whangarei, is the home of Wood, a not for profit community work and social space that houses numerous activities. Ash Howell, the founder, and one cool cat, gave us the rundown on Wood and Whare Bike, an open workshop and social space, believing in the idea that bicycles will help make this a better world for all. If you have a bike, you can fix it. If you don't have a bike, you can make one. All for free. It's great. We love it. Check them out.
Photo credit: wharebike.org 

Well here we are, Kaikohe, in the beautiful far north. This is where we turn our ideas into reality. We have met lot's of talented locals, and are very excited to kickstart our first project! Stay tuned folks!