North Island Road Trip, Day 4

We were near the Waitangi Treaty grounds, so I convinced Mom and Peggy that we should take the morning and go over to visit before heading to Auckland. http://www.waitangi.org.nz/

The area around is gorgeous, dense and lush old growth forest.

The Treaty of Waitangi is very important to New Zealand history, it was the first official agreement between the English and the Māori. The translation, however, was poor, and the Māori leaders thought they were signing a document that would grant them English protection but still allow them to govern their own affairs. The English saw it as granting them complete sovereignty over the islands. Over the years, the treaty was used and abused - a full history can be found here: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/politics/treaty-of-waitangi

There's a giant ceremonial waka (war canoe) on the grounds, pulled out for special occasions. The carvings on the boat and the shelter protecting it are pretty fantastic.

The waka is very, very heavy, so tracks were added to aid getting it in and out of the water whenever the boat is launched.

That's the current New Zealand flag at the top, the UK flag on the bottom right, and the first official New Zealand flag (the flag of the United Tribes) on the bottom left.

From here, we drove back to Auckland and dropped of the rental car, boarding our respective flights - Mom and Peggy back home and me off on another adventure to Sydney!