Song Lam QSM, a Chinese New Zealand writer, delivered a talk at Renison last Wednesday evening(13 May 2015). The lecture, "The Similarities between Maori and Chinese Cultures", explored a number of similarities between Maori and Chinese cultures, such as languages, legends as well as customs. Song spent more than two years researching Maori legends, customs and history when she was studying at the University of Auckland with a major in Education and minor in Maori culture and history. She has had the privilege of meeting many Maori people and staying on different Marae (a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes in Polynesian societies) during her research.