532 days ago

Medieval quest seeks donations for latest time travel experience

The Team from Momentum Waikato

Hamilton Gardens enthusiasts now have the opportunity to support the completion of its Medieval Garden, the next new time-travel experience at the city’s premier visitor attraction.

A fundraising campaign to raise $300,000 needed to complete the new themed space has been launched by Momentum Waikato, the region’s community foundation.

The design of the Medieval Garden will be based on the ruins of the St John of the Hermits Monastery in Sicily, made up of a ‘Cloister Garth’ for prayer and meditation and an ‘Apothecary Garden’ for growing medicinal herbs and healing plants.

Peter Sergel, the founding director and visionary designer of Hamilton Gardens, says each of its existing and planned gardens represents a major transformation point in history, with the Medieval Garden representing the spread of Christianity.

“Three particular aspects will be reflected in the Medieval Garden, one is the piety, study and prayer, second was protection and looking after strangers, and the third was superstition, particularly around geometry and maths and numbers.”

“The Medieval world has inspired all sorts of fiction, including science fiction films, because it was a strange brutal world with all sorts of magic and mystery,” says Sergel.

The monastery spaces of the Medieval Garden will ultimately be one of four gardens on site reflecting the philosophies of the world’s major religions, the others being Islam via the Indian Char Bagh Garden, Buddhism via the Japanese Garden, and Hinduism via the planned Vedic Garden.

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20 hours ago

Leaving Neighbourly

Orlando from Pukete

Hey everyone, just a quick note to say I’m leaving Neighbourly. I joined because I thought it would be a good way to connect with people in the community, especially the older generation, and to receive advice, help, and shared knowledge.

Over time I’ve made quite a few posts genuinely looking for help or guidance, and unfortunately I’ve rarely received any responses. Most of the time it’s just one or two likes and no actual comments or help, which gets pretty discouraging after a while.

I understand people are busy, but when you consistently put things out there and hear almost nothing back, it starts to feel like there’s no real point in being part of the platform. Because of that, I’ve decided it’s best for me to move on.

No hard feelings — just not the right fit for me. Wishing everyone all the best.

15 hours ago

Neighbourhood Challenge: Who Can Crack This One? ⛓️‍💥❔

The Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

What has a head but no brain?

Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!

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Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.

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2 days ago

Poll: Are Kiwis allergic to “exuberance”? 🥝

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

In The Post’s opinion piece on the developments set to open across Aotearoa in 2026, John Coop suggests that, as a nation, we’re “allergic to exuberance.”

We want to know: Are we really allergic to showing our excitement?

Is it time to lean into a more optimistic view of the place we call home? As big projects take shape and new opportunities emerge, perhaps it’s worth asking whether a little more confidence (and enthusiasm!) could do us some good.

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Are Kiwis allergic to “exuberance”? 🥝
  • 41.1% Yes
    41.1% Complete
  • 34.5% Maybe?
    34.5% Complete
  • 24.4% No
    24.4% Complete
499 votes