Where’s Maia? Travelling from Ohakune to Wellington
Published on Wed Nov 13 2019 in Community
Of the 60,000 babies born every year in New Zealand, about 600 will have a Childhood Heart Defect (CHD). These “brave hearts” have a lot of hard work ahead of them—lots of time spent in hospital, getting many tests and procedures done, and often major surgeries.
But, they’re also lucky to have the support of Heart Kids. It’s the only charity in New Zealand that provides lifelong care and support to children with CHDs and their families. Here at Momentum Life, we feel so strongly about the great work they do, that we donate a portion of all first-year premiums to Heart Kids.
To say thank you for this support, we were presented with our very own Maia Bear for the office. Maia is given to all heart kids before their first open-heart surgery. This soft friend is a great comfort to little ones in hospital and cuddling her can also help reduce their soreness after surgery. As you can imagine, Maia takes this job very seriously!
Since our Maia doesn’t have a kid to cuddle, she decided to help in another way—by traveling near and far to help spread awareness about CHDs and Heart Kids!
This trip Maia visited some special places in the southern half of North Island.
Ohakune
You might think this stop is better suited to a bunny, but our traveling bear loved it too!
Ohakune is the “carrot capital” of New Zealand. Carrots were first grown there by Chinese settlers in the 1920s, and they continue to be an important crop in the region. In fact, two-thirds of all carrots grown in the North Island come from Ohakune! The town is also a popular stop for winter sports enthusiasts on their way to the Mount Ruapehu ski fields.
Maia and her friends couldn’t pass up a photo with Ohakune’s most famous landmark— “The Big Carrot”—on their way to some fun
Hawke’s Bay
Maia spent a bit of time exploring the Hawke’s Bay region, visiting a local sheepskin tannery and tagging along to a few wineries. But, she had something sweeter in mind to cap off this part of her trip!
At The Silky Oak Chocolate Company, Maia learned all about the history of chocolate. She also got to peek inside the factory, seeing how these sweet treats are made. Unfortunately, she couldn’t take any photos of this process as they might reveal company secrets!
Before leaving Silky Oak, Maia and her friends sampled some of their yummy chocolates and bought a bag of milk chocolate hokey pokey to share with the office.
Mount Victoria
Next up, Maia popped down to Wellington and did a bit of Middle Earth site seeing whilst she was there.
Heading up to the Mount Victoria Lookout, Maia took in all the lovely cottages inspired by the architecture of San Francisco, California in the United States. She was treated to a lovely view of the entire Wellington area at the top—though it was quite windy from this vantage point!
Finally, Maia headed into the Town Belt where she saw some of the filming locations for The Lord of the Rings. Thankfully, she and her friends didn’t run into any Nazgûl in the woods.
The Weta Cave
A trip to Wellington isn’t complete without visiting Wellywood—home to the New Zealand film industry!
Maia headed straight to the Weta Cave, where costumes, miniature models and props used in dozens of movies and television shows each year are created. She saw artefacts used in everything from Xena: Warrior Princess and The Last Samurai to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Power Rangers.
Before heading out, Maia took a quick photo with Gollum from The Lord of the Rings and drove by Park Road Post, Sir Peter Jackson’s post-production company.
Where’s Maia?
Our little bear loved her latest adventures in the North Island, and we hope you’ve loved reading all about them! You never know where Maia might pop up, so be sure to like us on Facebook or follow us on Instagram to see where she gets to next.
And if you’re interested in helping Heart Kids, why not donate today! Every little bit helps brave heart kids right across New Zealand.
Learn more about how Momentum Life is supporting Heart Kids across New Zealand.
About Author: Momentum Life is a leading provider of Life insurance and Funeral insurance in New Zealand.
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