Museum of New Zealand Te Papa

The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa was an immersive educational experience that we all got to have a taste of today. I enjoyed being in such a large structure while still witnessing a common thread throughout the hours that I was walking around the place. That thread is Maori culture. I’m so used to being in museums that prioritize European history so to see an indigenous culture at the heart of this museum was refreshing. Even the logo was something I took note of right before walking in. It was a fingerprint with the Maori koru symbol at the center. I believe my favorite part of my walk around was the forest and nature section. It was quite devastating to see the number of extinct animals that New Zealand has lost and in turn so has the rest of the world. There was a small section that was a dedicated memorial to those animals that were lost including the largest bird to the smallest insects. A recording of a Maori singer was also playing in this room. I could hear the mourning and sense of great loss in her voice as she was singing and it honestly made me tear up. The connection between indigenous cultures and native animals and land is uniquely beautiful.