The graduates would all assemble in front of the historical Old Government Building, the biggest and oldest wooden building in the Southern hemisphere. Families and friends gather, mingle with the members of the academia, picture taking is a must, flower bouquets, hugs and congratulatory wishes are in abundance.The sun decided to come out today, adding a merrier atmosphere to the surroundings.
For the past 2 years, these parades in May were wet occasions. Vic U has graduation ceremonies in May and November. Most would choose the November session, as it is nearer summer time, but then again, Wellington has a fickle weather. I went to the parade just now, not that I know anyone in the parade except for my supervisor, but just to get the feel of it, sharing the happy feelings of people there, feeling the happiness in the faces of the family members, and the relieve in the faces of the students too after gaining the fruit of their labor. Then I start to wonder whether I will get to experience this too in a year or two? Will I be able to come for my graduation? Unlike other levels of academic achievements, the conferment of PhD is not that straight forward after you submit your thesis. There are PhD cohort members that were conferred after a year of submission. If, for whatever reason I am not able to come for my graduation, I would want at least one of my children to get the scroll for me, hear the recitation of my research, and absorb the gratitude of Allah Almighty for His Blessings, that that part of my journey in life, difficult, frustrating at times, challenging and exciting, has finally come. InsyaAllah.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Vic U Graduations
Museum of Wellington City and Sea
This three-storeyed building is situated at Wellington's Waterfront, and the displays and contents tell the stories of and about Wellington, the making of the city from the end of the 19th Century till the present. Display techniques range from the conventional to contemporary, with a multi-mix of media used. My favourite of all is the show on Maori legends "A Millennium Ago", which uses the 19th Century theatrical technique called a "Pepper's Ghost, named after 'Professor' Henry Pepper. At first I thought it uses the hologram technique, but it is not.Namali, my office mate and I asked the Museum staff, and they explained the techniques used. It is created with mirrors and a projected image.This Museum is a MUST see for visitors to Wellington.I rate it the best Museum I have ever been to. The clever use and mix of content display is refreshing, both educating as well as entertaining, stimulating your thinking senses.
"Openess" & Accessibility
This morning, as I was sending some documents to the School of Law, housed in the Government Building, I noticed a group of tourists, busy taking pictures of the beauty of the building's interiors. Government Building is a heritage building, apparently the largest wooden building in the Southern Hemisphere. The School of Law is there, so are some government departments, though some of the judges and the members NZ's judiciary have moved to the new High Court next door ( grand opening of the High Court was by HRH Prince William earlier this year :)) ).
The Beehive, NZ's parliament is just opposite Government Building. But, I don't see any sentry post, or guards at all. The building is under electronic surveillance, of course, as members of the public are allowed into government buildings. Victoria University's buildings and facilities are open to the public. Members of the public are allowed to go in and use the University Libraries, except for borrowing materials. Most of the public universities I went to back home, have sentry posts, where you have to leave certain kind of IDs before you can set a foot into the University grounds. When can an ordinary member of the public be able to use the facilities developed from tax payers' money, such as a public university, without feeling as if you are under heavy observation?
Cultural Fests in Wellington
Wellington is an artsy city. All around the year, there are arts festival, cultural events, performances organised, and being the capital City, Wellington has the advantage of Embassies and High Commissions based here. Recently, the Embassy of Brazil launched the Brazilian Festival, with The Ambassador launching it with a musical performance by musicians from Brazil, performed at the Wellington City Hall, followed by a series of Brazilian events the entire week. The Italian Fest was launched with an Italian food fair, and a series of Italian movies. I went to one movie " The wind blows around"yesterday with my university colleagues, and we enjoyed the movie, though by comparison, Yasmeen Ahmad's movies are way better! I am positive our Malaysian High Commission can organise one Malaysian Fest par excellent, with support from Malaysia's Tourism Ministry and Malaysia's corporate sector, as well as the Malaysian coommunities in New Zealand. The Malaysian students here are already making headways in introducing Malaysia to their colleagues, especially using Malaysian food as the major "channel".
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
The coldest weekend so far this year...
Winter is here, and it is frostier than usual, and the last time hail and snow flurries happened in Wellington was about 14-15 years ago.Why am I not surprise? When it was my turn to accompany my dear husband during his studies in London in 1990, the firsts winter we had there was so cold that it snowed heavily, and the last time that happened in London was more than 20 years before that. And now, here in NZ, and, co-incidentally, it happened when we are here. My Kiwi friends told me this year, there's no autumn in Wellington, we went straight into winter. The cold southerlies add to the dropping temperatures, and ski resorts in NZ opened early. The surrounding hills near where we live now can be frosty in the mornings and the patter of early morning hails can be heard on our windows. Our electricity bill will be quite high this winter, as our house was built in the 60's, so it is really a cold house, sometimes colder than the temperature outside.
Thank you, Wellingtonians!
Coming to a new place, to live, can be very daunting, and can give a person high anxiety levels.We ( my 2 children and I) arrived first in Wellington, New Zealand, as due to bureaucracy glitches, my husband can only arrive at a much later date.On arrival at the Wellington International airport, we were greeted with what Wellington is well known for, the rain and strong gusty winds. The flight from Auckland was akin to a mild roller coaster, due to the winds! Vic Uni kindly arranged for airport meet, and was kind enough to transfer us to our temporary accommodation. Datin Judith Amin, cheers for your kind heartedness for offering us to put up at your nice and warm house, without which, we would have been more challenged, as the very next day, I have to report to the University. Wellingtonians are very helpful, and all you have to do is ask, or even before you ask for help, they offer their help. To the Wellingtonians who came up to help this "Damsel in Distress",Your kindness and warmth made up for the sometimes "unfriendly" weather you have. A very BIG THANK YOU! That sells Wellington!
To Ann and Gill, thanks for taking us under your wings! You are God sent Angels that helped took care of us when we felt so lost!
Have books will travel!
My dear father always asked me,"when are you going to stop studying?" I don't have an answer to his question everytime he asked me, as I consider studying and learning an ever continuous process. Everyday, every second,hour, there's always something new to learn. I took the plunge to take a sabbatical from my work, to undertake, or rather trying my hands on attempting a PhD. Now my family and I (minus my eldest) are in Wellington, and I am with Victoria University, Wellington. I hope I will be strong enough to weather the demands and challenges of my study, as well as life in cold, windy Welly!
