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Culture, sport and holidays in New Zealand
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The culture of New Zealand is largely inherited from English and European customs, interwoven with Maori and Polynesian tradition. New Zealand has three official languages: New Zealand English, Te Reo Maori (the Maori language), and New Zealand Sign Language. According to the 2006 census, 174 different languages are used in New Zealand (including sign languages). After English and Maori, the most common are Samoan (85, 428 speakers), French (53, 757), Hindi (44, 589) and Cantonese, spoken by 44, 154 people.
New Zealand has two 'high cultural' traditions: Maori and Western. The New Zealand Historic Places Trust and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage are national bodies that assist with heritage preservation. Most towns and cities have museums and often art galleries, and the national museum and art gallery is Te Papa ('Our Place'), in Wellington.
Mā ori were one of the few peoples to have no form of alcoholic beverage. Following the arrival of British settlers, Mā ori adopted many of their foods, especially pork and potatoes, the latter of which transformed the Mā ori agricultural economy. Many traditional food sources became scarce as introduced predators dramatically reduced bird populations, and forests were cleared for farming and timber. Traditional seafoods such as toheroa and whitebait were over-harvested. Present day Mā ori cuisine is a mixture of Mā ori tradition, old fashioned English cookery, and contemporary dishes.
Sport in New Zealand largely reflects its British colonial heritage. Some of the most popular sports in New Zealand, namely rugby, cricket and netball, are primarily played in Commonwealth of Nations countries. Sport is very popular in New Zealand and despite New Zealand being a very small nation, it has enjoyed great success in many sports notably Rugby Union (The national sport) and also Rugby League, Cricket, Americas Cup Sailing, Netball, motorsport and many other sports.
Some of the noteworthy cultural events include: Summer City Programme (January to February; Wellington) which is a series of festivals around the city; Marlborough Food & Wine Festival (2nd week in February; Blenheim); International Festival of the Arts (February, even-numbered years only; Wellington), an entire month of national and international culture; Golden Shears Sheep-Shearing Contest (March; Masterton), a must for lovers of sheep, scat and sweat; and Canterbury Show Week (November; Christchurch) which has agricultural exhibits, rides and local entertainment.Main train routes are few, though train travel is reasonably quick. Trains are modern and comfortable, and the fares are sometimes cheaper than those by bus on the same routes.Car travel (New Zealanders drive on the left) is recommended as the roads are good and well signposted and the distances short. Rentals of cars, motorcycles and campervans are popular with a range of special deals available.There are plenty of boat services, including the Interislander ferry (operating between Wellington in the North Island and Picton in the South Island.Although New Zealand is a compact country and generally easy to get around, it makes good sense to fly - especially for the views over the mountains or volcanoes.
Text 3
Look through the following articles about different places of interest in New Zealand. Choose one of them and prepare a small presentation with photos of this place. Be ready to present it to the group.
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