Jordan Watson
Waitangi Day is better in the UK – sure, it’s not summer and it’s bloody cold, yet somehow Kiwis in the UK celebrate our national day a hell of a lot better than us back here in Godzone.
I was once one of these energetic, expat Kiwis making sure the whole world knew exactly what made New Zealand great.
February 6, 2010. Putney, London – I’m up early trying not to wake my girlfriend; I have accidentally stained the bed with white paint as I tried to finger-paint the words NZ CHUR on to a cheap Primark black polo.
See, I was a landscape labourer, not one of these qualified ex-pats that were raking in good money and could afford to order a Four Square Man costume. My £3 polo would have to do.
I wasn’t the only one proudly preparing a Kiwi costume that morning. New Zealanders throughout London were gearing up head-to-toe in DIY costumes from Fred Dagg and Billy T to any number of classic Kiwi birds.
Why does this not happen here on Waitangi Day? It’s the perfect day to fly our Kiwi colours.
Yes, there is, and always will be controversy around the Treaty and how it is interpreted, but that controversy shouldn’t spread throughout the whole land. Politicians and Maori leaders should be arm-wrestling that stuff throughout the year but Waitangi Day should be a celebration as opposed to a method to create feisty news stories.
In London, we were trying to demonstrate how
Waitangi Day should be a celebration as opposed to a method to create feisty news stories.