July 5: Te Papa Museum

Today I was planning on going to Zealandia and waited an hour for the shuttle to pick me up, but unfortunately it never showed up. Instead I went to the Te Papa Museum. This is New Zealand’s national museum and has countless different exhibits. It was easy to spend a whole day here.

The Te Pape Museum has countless exhibits. A lot of these exhibits focus on the Māori culture, but others focus on the biodiversity seen throughout New Zealand. They show different mammals, insects, plants, and others. It also shows exhibits about the climate, earthquakes, and history about New Zealand. It was a very educational and enjoyable museum, while being free to the public!

My favorite exhibit is seen within the marine life area about the colossal squid’s life. In 2007, scientists caught the squid in the Antarctic. The fishermen had to freeze the squid to preserve it and months later, scientists at Te Pape had to carefully thaw the squid. The 495-kilogram squid is the largest and intact they have ever found.

Another exhibit I enjoyed was an interactive one to raise awareness for the environment. Guests had to write on a post-it note how they connect with nature and their favorite wild places. This small gesture is raising awareness and appreciation for the nature seen around our everyday lives that humans might look right over.

Other exhibits deal with habitat loss and the impact humans have on it not only for the animals, but also for the Māori people.

After visiting the museum, I was able to learn more and view the awareness being brought everywhere for the ocean and environment. Raising conservation awareness is the first step to a cleaner and improved world.