Glimpsing the Past in Oamaru

The summer weather was ideal when I flew into Timaru from Whangarei, but I spotted sea fog approaching from the coast. I arrived at the YHA Oamaru hostel around 4pm and by next morning it was wet and dreary. Dave had told me to only bring summer clothes; it was going to be a chilly weekend for me!

A contingent of YHA members from both islands were gathering in Oamaru for a Members’ Weekend.  As a board member (and Deputy Chair) of YHA New Zealand, I have participated regularly in these weekends. They’re a chance for members to get together for a weekend away with significantly discounted activities and accommodation. It’s also a chance to chat with National Board members and senior staff.  Last November the Members’ Weekend was planned to coincide with the Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations. What a great idea!


 
The Heritage Celebrations are one of the Waitaki region’s biggest annual events. Visitors get to experience the sounds, sights, tastes and happenings of a bygone era in New Zealand. I believe this may have been the first time a Members’ Weekend was modelled around an event like this – it was excellent! All the activities at the Heritage celebrations were a smorgasbord of choices for us all.

We attended the Friday night Ball, the Steampunk evening show and the Saturday evening opera. We followed this by going to an all day Sunday Fete. The Fete was amazing fun. Crowds filled the streets as banners were strung between the grand facades of the heritage Oamaru stone buildings. Men, women and children enjoyed the market stalls and street theatre. Quite of few of them were even dressed to the nines in Victorian costume. Dancers danced in the streets, drummers drummed and fencers sparred. Touché! Fellow board member, Dave, and I even posed for a photo with one of the dozens and dozens of vintage penny farthings in Oamaru for the annual Penny Farthing Race Days.


 
After the excitement of the Fete, the YHA members decided to have a Sunday lunch BBQ at YHA Oamaru. This was to finish off the leftover food from the BBQ we’d had the previous day. We discovered it was honourary life member Gwyn’s birthday and so Margaret from Dunedin purchased a wee sponge cake and candles. Gwyn was surprised by the fuss and when she blew out the candles it was possible, quite possible, that her wish was to attend the heritage celebrations the following year. It was an excellent weekend.

The next Oamaru Victorian Heritage celebrations are being held 16 – 20 November, 2011. Maybe I’ll see you there!

Harry Guitry

We booked our YHA Oamaru accommodation through YHA New Zealand. If you’d like more information on services and deals, visit www.yha.co.nz, call 0800 278 299 or email info@yha.co.nz

For more information on Oamaru’s Victorian Heritage Celebrations visit: www.historicoamaru.co.nz or call 03 434 5381 or email owct@xtra.co.nz

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