Leafa Wilson’s Hamilton

This majestic war canoe was gifted to the city in 1974 by the Māori Queen, Dame Te Atairangikaahu, as a gesture of harmony and goodwill. As a distant relative to Tangata Whenua (indigenous people of Aotearoa), I feel a deep sense of gratitude and love for the Waka Taua (war canoe) Te Winika. In my humble opinion, Te Winika is one of the most important Tainui treasures. In Te Ao Māori, we think of this as an ancestor and living taonga. Because I work at the Museum, I often come and say hello to her, and I encourage visitors to also stop and pay respects to this majestic tupuna (ancestor).

I have no idea why, but one of my favourite places in our city is the Chinese Scholars’ Garden at the Hamilton Gardens. When I go there, entering the garden through the little jasmine walk, the smell is intoxicating in the middle of summer and it immediately takes me elsewhere. Then heading up the bamboo walkway to the little Ting Pavilion, I imagine I am in China. Of course, this is just my own made-up fantasy version, but it is a nice place to go.

As a Polynesian person, Frankton Market is a place I can go and feel at home. I love the smells of food and the stalls of the beautiful people, the booming sounds of the music that I know, the sounds of languages I am familiar with and experiencing the joy of all the cultures ‘being’ community. It reminds me of how proud I am to be who I am and that I belong.

Best fish and chips this side of the awa (river) is definitely Fush & Chups on the corner of Brookfield and Grey Street. A two-minute drive to the Hamilton Gardens and a quick walk to the grassy bank overlooking Turtle Lake.

This giant, 8-metre sculpture by Michael Parekowhai on Victoria Street was installed by the Mesh Sculpture Trust. What’s awesome is that it links to the creation legend of our awa (river), the Waikato, and the legend of our maunga (mountains), the siblings Tongariro and Taupiri. It’s an enchanting story about a servant dog which cuts a pathway for the healing waters of Tongariro to reach an ailing Taupiri. The sculpture’s tongue of water is the symbolic tongue of this dog. I see this sculpture every day so it’s a part of my life. I’m just so pleased that we have a Michael Parekowhai of that stature in Hamilton!

My favourite is the Hamilton East Duck Island on the corner of Cook Street and Grey Street, because that was the OG. Also, you can take your ice cream across the street and sit in Steele Park, which is a bit like a village green in England. This was where my kids romped when we first shifted here from Tokoroa, so there are fond memories for me there.

As a supporter of te ao Māori, I celebrate the river as my ancient ancestors that live on today. The river goes all the way from the maunga (mountains) of Tuwharetoa to here. It connects a whole lot of people and it’s beautiful. I appreciate that we can walk alongside her. I’ll often just look at the water moving and sing little songs in my head like ‘Waikato Te Awa’ and pay my respects. Sitting on the banks of the river I find is a good place for contemplation.

This little lane is packed with cool creatives, GG’s café, Framing House and Sun Salute Yoga, and as well a place that makes glass pipes.... There’s a florist and even an archaeologist, too. Sometimes they have little lane festivals or exhibitions. I don’t go there often, but when I do, I’m quite proud of it being in my Hamilton East neighbourhood. 

It’s not widely known, but you can actually book a tour of the Waikato Museum Collections with one of us four curators. I lead visual art tours, and we also have curators for social history, science and tangata whenua. My tour will take you through this vast storage area where you can see paintings, drawings and sculptures among the thousands of taonga. There are Colin McCahons and Ralph Hoteres and Toi Te Rito Maihi works. We also have a large collection of Pacific and Oceanic taonga. People always love to see the large collection storage room with gigantic sculptural works by artists like Chris Booth, Dion Hitchens and Andrea du Chatenier.