Mind Body & Spirit

The sacred procession carrying the 'Cow with Gun' to the burn site at Kiwiburn 2011

Cow With Gun

Kiwiburn 2008 - The Man

Drumming in a Parade up Auckland's Queen St

A Herd of Drummers ?

Some of our Drum Family

Drummers in the Wild

Jambalaya action on Stage

A Gaggle of Belly Dancers

I suggest that you Do NOT Piss this fellow off !

Jousters

Medieval Trebuchets

Knights in Battle

Juggling Olympics

Jugglers at play

Unicycle Jousting

Camping doesn't have to mean roughing it

The Worlds Biggest Dream Catcher @ Kiwiburn

Lake Kiwiburn

The Banner says it all

A Magick Earth Hug Chain

Belly Dancers are a standard feature at Magick Earth

A famous Magick Earth Wand making Workshop in action

Prana Art

A stressful day at Prana

Having a fun Dinner inside Our Crystal Circle

Circus Kumarani @ Prana

Drummers are found everywhere

A crystal Workshop inside
The Crystal Circle

Where else would a Witch park her Broownstick

Favourite Festivals and Events

Burningman Circulation Full Moon Fire, Dance & Drums Heat Hoop retreat Jambalaya Jousting Jugging festival Kiwiburn Magick Earth Prana Womad

Burningman
There are 10 principals that define this festival and why it is so different.
Radical Inclusion - Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.
Gifting - Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
Decommodification - In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.
Radical Self-reliance - Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.
Radical Self-expression - Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
Communal Effort - Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
Civic Responsibility - We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
Leaving No Trace - Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.
Participation - Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
Immediacy - Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.
for full details about this amazing event see www.burningman.com

I am now one of the 4 Regional Representatives for Burning Man here in NZ
After meeting Maid Marian and Megs (key players at Burning Man HQ) at Kiwiburn 2010 I put my hand up when the call for people to help out our current regional representative Yonderman. My job is spreading the Burning Man word and ethos, I had already been doing this in an unofficial role but this gave me access to people, ideas and information to make the job easier.

Circulation
Now I have to admit that I have not been to this wondrous festival, but I do know the organisers and many of those who attend and run workshops, with all those people present in one paddock it can not be anything else. One of Aotearoa's best-kept secrets: an arts, music and circus festival hidden in lush native bush. People from all around New Zealand and further a field make the annual journey to beautiful 'Whare Flat', just 20 minutes drive inland of Dunedin, for a festival that they will never forget.
Running for FIVE days with a massive lineup of over 70 national and international artists, instructors, performers, dj's and bands, Circulation is here to be soaked up by people young and old, tall and small.
Workshops, live music, shows and outdoor parties are all included in the ticket price- this is one festival you cannot afford to miss!
During the day live music rolls over the hills while circus, music and arts workshops are taught continuously, from juggling, fire performing, drumming, flax weaving, comedy and trapeze, to everything in between. This is your chance to have a break away with friends, learn something new and see some incredible performances!
Circulation is for everyone! You can come to learn, watch, play or even just spend the weekend in a hammock listening to live music!
Find them on Facebook

Full Moon Fire, Dance and Drums
I decided to create this regular event in mid 2009 because I had enjoyed the Full Moon events I had attended while over in Australia and nothing seemed to be happening here. We found the lovely Tahaki reserve venue that has trees to soak up the sound of our drums so they don't cause the neighbours any problems.
There is also a stage with a covered area if the weather is wet.
The event is free to all and usually held on the night of the Full Moon but occasionally I will move it one day either side. We are family friendly and I start off the night with a drumming workshop for anybody who is interested, I bring spare drums and percussion instruments for people to share, come along and join in the beat.
We also share the night with another of my passions, fire performing, spinning my fire staff to the beat of the drum, others bring a full range of fire and LED staff, poi, hoops, fans, whips, clubs, swords etc. These guys and girls are also friendly and if you are interested please have a chat to them, if treated right most of them are happy to teach you and loan you their equipment.
I supply a large bottle of fuel as well as the safety equipment and I pass the hat around for donations to cover these expenses.
Last but certainly not least we welcome any dancers to join in the beat with us.
Find us on Facebook

Heat
The Spring Festival of Circus & Fire performance related skills set in the lush surrounds of Native NZ Bush. This is a great little festival organised by some of the juggling community, based in Northland it combines Juggling, Fire performing and Music with networking and relaxing. Up until now I have not actually been able to get to the event but knowing the guys organising I know it will be a great weekend, In 2011 the altered dates of other big events have allowed me to book this in my schedule.
Find them on Facebook

Hoop retreat
This is a new idea from some of our lovely Hoop friends, they are in the process of planning the first NZ Hoop Retreat!!!! Dates TBC, but looking like the 2nd or 3rd weekend in Feb 2012! Join this group for updates, and invite your hoopie friends! lets put hooping on the map in NZ, geek out and strengthen our awesome community!
Workshops to include:
Burlesque Hoop
Flow and Transition Work
Hoopdance
Tricks Labs
Belly Dance Hooping
Isolation Hoops
Note Hoopers can also be found with Fire Performers and Belly dancers.
To join the NZ hoop geek out... join our facebook group... New Zealand Hoopers!

Jambalaya
This is a great music and dance festival with the big difference in that they offer many amazing workshops given by the world class artists who perform at the festival. In the past it was held every 2 years down in Taupo and Rotorua.
For 2011 the event moved to it's new home in Auckland, set in the beautiful bush surrounded Corban Estate Arts Centre, with an outdoor main stage, huge sprung floored studios and a theatre for dance performance, and it has now became a yearly event. The music and the dance types cover a very broad spectrum, not just World Music.
Workshops have included Tango, Swing, Beatboxing, Salsa, Hip Hop, Dance Hall, Contemporary, A Capella Singing, Samba drumming, African dance & drumming, Flying Trapeze and many more. Camping beside the festival makes it much easier to enjoy yourself and removes any drink drive worries.
I am involved in helping to make this festival happen because I think it is very special.
Find them on Facebook or www.jambalaya.co.nz

Jousting - Harcourt park World Invitational Jousting Competition
The Medieval re-enactors community is a great bunch of guys and gals, they have regular events all over the country. This is one of the top events and includes far more than a few people of horses, although there are some great horses and riders. This included mounted skill-at-arms and mounted melee competitions, medieval foot combat displays, sword & buckler and long sword competitions, an archery display, a siege engine display and various displays of historical crafts and activities.
The tournament aims to recreate the feel and atmosphere of a medieval tournament – the equivalent of today’s big sporting events like the Super-15 and the main focus of the event is on mounted displays of skill-at-arms, melee and of course the big one - full on jousting between competitors wearing authentic replicas of medieval armor taking part in modern sports jousting that recreates as safely and as accurately as possible the jousting of the late medieval period.
see www.jousting.co.nz
for more information about Medieval re-enacting groups click here

Jugging Festival New Zealand
I am not much of a juggler but the Juggling community is a bunch of lovely people and you don't have to be an expert. There is also far more to juggling than just throwing and catching balls. There is also a large cross over between the hand drumming community, the fire performing community and the jugglers.

New Zealand is a popular spot on the world juggling circuit and at the festival you will find lovely people from all over the country and all over the world, a weekend full of workshops for all ages and all skill levels.
see www.nzja.org.nz

Kiwiburn
This is the Official New Zealand Regional BURNINGMAN event and we also follow the 10 guiding principals (see Burningman above) so it's completely non commercial, the only thing you can buy is ice each day. Each year a unique theme is chosen for the festival that we try to incorporate into what we do there.
Groups of people get together and build "Theme Camps" which may be very simple or large and complicated, these camps offer some form of experience to the other festival goers, it may be food, drink, a party or even a ride on lake Kiwiburn in our world famous Pirate Ship.
Other people create "Art Works", some are to look at, listen to, climb on, and partake of the experience. There are 2 special Art Works created, one is "The Man" this creation may take the team a couple of weeks to build and in the end he is burnt in a fiery Viking funeral party. The other is "The Temple" this creation has surfaces for you to write messages to be send to the "Other side" or draw special pictures on to commemorate lost ones, and this creation is also burnt but it is a solemn occasion with tears of sadness but also joy.
Kiwiburn is NOT about being a spectator, it's about getting involved,
the more you put into it the more you will get out of it.
My first Kiwiburn was 2008 and I immediately found myself at home, this was a festival that is based on many of the same ideas I live my life by, I spent a lot of time creating a photo log of life on the paddock and have continued this each year since then.
In 2009 I took over the job of Pirate Captain, bringing the Pirate ship back to life and adding a small outboard motor so we could venture out into the lake, this is a family friendly activity and we have Pirate Parties down at the beach where the kids get to take over the ship, people walk the plank and have great fun. I also supplied drums and ran drum workshops with Chewy.
By the 2010 event I had joined the Excom (the organising committee) as well as doing shifts as a Black Sheep Wrangler (our Rangers), MUDFOP (Mug Under Pressure, Finger On Pulse, our event superintendent), and again reviving and improving the Pirate ship experience.
In 2011 I created a small 'Pagan Theme Camp', built a bigger and better replacement pirate ship (after most of it was stolen) and enhanced the lakefront with some shade space.
2012 will see the return of the pirate ship, but perhaps not as you know it. I will be very involved in creating some structures to provide shade and shelter for several of my friends and some form of theme camp will return to this my favourite festival.
Be prepared for a shift in your mental thinking.
Find them on Facebook or www.kiwiburn.com

Magick Earth Festival, also known as MEF
Gatherings and celebrations for people who follow the Earth and Nature based faiths, religions and beliefs.

We have our 4th annual Hollyfrost MEF on July 15-17 2011 again at Waitaweta
Our first MEF close to Auckland will be Oct 21-23 2011 at Kaukapakapa
Easter 2012 we have our National MEF at Waitawheta
Easter 2013 we return to Waitawheta for our National MEF
They are essentially focused on ........
• family and community
• the sharing of information through workshops and lectures
• the celebration of Pagan and Heathen music, art and culture.
• networking and community building through discussions and public forums
Previous people who have attended include a multitude of paths, Wiccan, Pagan, Heathen and Druid just to name a few, we all come together in a spirit of community and respect for others who may have a different path.
Magick Earth was established in March 2005, and held many festivals around the North Island,
With the permission of Polli and Ed who created it and own the name "Magick Earth" we have carried on their traditions and principals in our MEF festivals.
The difference between MEF and other festivals is that even the organisers pay to attend, we minimise our costs so it is affordable and we encourage participation by everybody to create a community where we help each other and share our knowledge and experience.
MEF features stalls, lectures, workshops and discussion forums as well as rituals appropriate to the timing or theme of the festival. You may also find drumming circles or bardic circles. They have also become a place for folks to get together for Rites of Passage ceremonies such as Wiccanings (or Namings) and Handfastings (Weddings).
MEF is a very family friendly place, most of us have kids and they enjoy mixing together and entertaining each other in a loosely supervised environment.
It is about honoring our Earth Mother, our Ancestors, celebrating our individual chosen paths and connecting with like-minded souls from many different traditions.
So I welcome any and all who wish to come along and get yourself a dose of uplifting pagan community spirit.
Find us on Facebook or our web site

Prana
Is based in a small piece of paradise on the coromandel, a lovely beach with lots of camping under the trees, they hold several events each year, we have been to many of them and the New Years festival is our favourite. People come from all over the country every year to attend this great family event with it's workshops, market place and entertainment.

It is a commercial event but for the organisers it's not about money, it's about the experience and the sense of family created by everybody involved. We have a stall there that we take turns running because we also run and attend interesting workshops and then in the evening we take over the big Tepee and encourage a drum circle that the dancers can also enjoy. Sitting on the beach to watch the sun come up over the ocean is something you should do at least once, just take a warm blanket as the sand gets cold.
Find them on Facebook or www.prana.co.nz

Womad
The "World Of Music Art and Dance" festival is held each year in New Plymouth around March, it took me several years of trying before I finally managed to make it there but now I would not want to miss it. To get a free ticket I work as a volunteer, there are lots of lovely people involved in making this event happen and the venue is beautiful.
Lots of World Music of all types to listen and dance to, amazing international acts and lots of familiar faces in the crowd from all over the country, also some great workshops are offered.
Camping up at the race course is great because it's all just a short walk away.
Find them on Facebook or www.womad.co.nz