#BOYSONTOUR /// WANDERLUST 108 /// AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND
April 30th, 2016

E HOA MA, UNA TE ORA O TE TANGATA
‘My friends, this is the essence of life!’

New Zealand, or Aotearoa, the ‘land of the long white cloud’ as it’s known in Maori, the mother tongue of the land. This was our second stop of the tour and for me, the most special one. I was born in New Zealand, most people don’t’ know this as I’m currently stuck with a causal Southern California accent, but I was born at 25 Timaru Grove in Lower Hutt, a suburb just outside of Wellington, the capital city. So for me, this is my homeland, my spiritual source and one of, if not the single most meaningful places in the world for me, so to bring the BOYS movement ‘home’ was something special.

2ND CITY /// Auckland, New Zealand
Written by: MJ

Kia ora whanau,

From the moment I stepped off the plane in Auckland, Anwar in tow, it was like arriving home after a really long trip away. From the smell of fresh pies to the Minties and Pineapple Lumps in every shop, it just felt right.

Unless you’ve been to New Zealand, it’s hard to explain just how special it is, especially for me. For a lot of the world people still think that New Zealand as the place to spend a few days at the end of your Australia adventure, or if you’re really into the rugby union or Lord of the Rings. Well yes, to the last two things, but no to the first point. New Zealand is stand alone spectacular not only scenically and culturally but by the warmth of the people who occupy the lands. To this day, I’ve never many any place more welcoming and open as kiwi’s and it’s a testament to the global yoga community that there is a place in the world that operate completely from a place of love and care.

We were only in town for a few days and as we prepared for the festival we were lucky enough to meet a slew of local yogis who took us around to visit a lot of the local studios, eats some local grub and hunt down some solid kombucha.

When it was time for the festival, it was nothing short of magic. Our BOY Jase lead the day with a traditional Maori blessing that brought a beautiful quiet across the crowd of 2,000 yogi’s ready to move & flow together. And just like Sydney, the event ROCKED, co-lead by Jase and I (@michaeljameswong) with the support of Anwar, Josh & Jonni P. All the BOYS were on form sharing some good vibes with awesome music, DJ’s and some mindful Meditation to bring it all together.

In Jase's words "Through Yoga, one finds their purpose, their essence, the answer to why we're here! My purpose brotha, is to share/guide and lead! To share my love of life, my passion for my culture and my devotion to being a better version of me through Yoga. That is the 'essence of life'!"

Click on any of the photos below to see all the pictures

Make sure you check out Wanderlust.com for future events & festival

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Here’s our picks and tips for Auckland studios & places to eat (I asked our local BOY Nik)

A bit of Yoga
-       Power Living Wellington
-       Urban Ashram
-       East West
-       Studio Red
-       Golden Yogi