Backgrounders

Woodbridge Garden Situated half an hour north of Auckland city, this four hectare country garden envelopes a large pond and bog garden and includes areas of whimsical informality as well as sophisticated formal hedging. Woodbridge has featured in a number of New Zealand magazines and includes a productive potager garden, a dry garden, a bluebell grove and extensive perennial borders.

The majestic kauri tree is the only member of this coniferous genus that is endemic to New Zealand. It grows up to 60m tall with an impressive trunk girth of up to 16m. These ancient trees can live for up to 2000 years and New Zealand's largest kauri, Tane Mahuta in Northland, is appropriately named after the Maori God of the Forest.

New Zealand is once again being showcased on the big screen by Peter Jackson in his latest film, King Kong. Filmed entirely in Jackson's home country, King Kong is set in the disparate locations of 1930s New York during the Great Depression and the primordial surroundings of Skull Island. Jackson worked with several of the Academy Award winning specialists who created the sets in his last epic, The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The rainforest of the Waitakere Ranges is the ecological treasure at Auckland’s western fringe. Situated only 24 kilometres west of Auckland, the area covers more than 18,000 hectares of rainforest and beaches, and features more than 240km of walking trails through beautiful strands of native trees, streams and stunning coastline.

Written and directed by New Zealander Roger Donaldson, and starring Oscar-winning Sir Anthony Hopkins, it seems New Zealand is taking the world's centre-screen again.

Narnia was created in the early 1950s by English author CS Lewis as the mythical land for his books "The Chronicles of Narnia". Loved by children of all ages, this world of fauns, satyrs and centaurs will soon become real, and you won't need a wardrobe to find it.

Mahi raranga, or the art of weaving, was a fundamental part of the pre-European Maori life and economy. For everyday domestic use kete (baskets) were created to carry and gather kai (food) and whariki (mats) were created to cover dirt floors and provide seating.

New Zealanders, by nature, love to entertain. Most aren’t after cooking qualifications. They simply want to learn the tips they’ll need to confidently welcome friends into their homes to enjoy a classy meal in a gorgeous setting. This list gives details of non-vocational cooking schools around the country.

Kapahaka is the term used to describe a group of people who perform traditional Maori performing arts. The items the group perform include, patere – chant, poi – ball dance usually performed by women, waiata a ringa – action song and haka taparahi – posture dance of defiance. The language, movements and the way these particular items are performed are specific to their iwi (tribe) or hapu (sub-tribe).

Ta Moko (traditional Maori tattooing, often on the face) is a taonga to Maori and the purpose and applications are sacred.