New Zealand Sisters Visit the Centre

Colleen Woodcock and Marie Skidmore came to the Centre for a visit, and we had the privilege of showing them around town. We took them or accompanied them to Notre Dame, the night time luminaries, Polignac castle, St. Laurent, St. Joseph Basilica. We also took them to the Kitchen where the first sisters lived and to the scenography, which outlines the history of the Sisters of St. Joseph from 1650 to the present. They went to the Saturday market and later that day, Colleen walked up to the summit of St. Michel Chapel by herself. It was a full three days and they never tired!

One of the joys of my job at the Centre is to meet people from all over the world and learn new things from them. One interesting thing they talked about was the New Zealand soccer team, The All Blacks, who do a haka dance before each international match. They are the only team allowed to do some sort of spirited gesture before a game. This tradition began in 1888 when the New Zealand Native football team went on tour. It then fell to the All Blacks to carry it on since 1905.

The haka is based on the Maori war dance, which was performed by warriors before a battle. By doing it, they proclaim their strength and prowess as a means of intimidating their opponents. Today, the haka is performed to welcome distinguished guests or to acknowledge great achievements, occasions or funerals.


Here's the way The All Blacks do it.

Here is the way the Maori do it (complete with subtitles).