Before coming to New Zealand, I honestly was not aware of the culture or the community surrounding it. I first came to notice the unique artwork and diverse environment when I visited the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa. This national museum opened in 1998 and displays cultural treasures and ancestral links to the indigenous Māori people. The exhibits show the history of these people and tells the story of the country. After my visit, I wanted to learn more about the people, especially the east Polynesian culture that shapes the Māori way of life.
Like most people, though, over the past few weeks, I have been interacting with my community in an online environment. I currently live in a dorm building provided by my college in Wellington. My fellow dorm-mates and I engage in weekly Zoom meetings and talk to each other about our health and well-being. It is a very different experience to regular college activities, but everyone is excited to share their stories. The R.A .(Resident advisor) arranges games or quizzes to play with all the students in the bubble. We are also involved socially on Facebook, where we can share our ideas, concerns and joys while maintaing the distance. This type of engagement helped me feel a lot more integrated and part of the community during the four week lockdown that was imposed on New Zealand by the government.
