Kia ora! Kei te pēhea koe? Hello! How are you?

It’s been a good week, and it seems lots of people are practising te reo. I got responses ranging from Kei te tino pai - I’m very well, to Te mutunga kē mai o te pai! - Couldn’t be better!

It’s great to hear people giving te reo a go with me.

The important stuff - How to order your kawhe

With a chef and a barista in the family, I was set the challenge of ordering my morning coffee in te reo.

I consulted te wiki o te reo Māori, and got busy practising. It was fun once I got the hang of it, and it felt good to be having a conversation in te reo.

He aha māu? What would you like?

 He (coffee name and size) koa. I’ll have a ... please.

I like a flat white, or mōwai. So I would answer He mōwai koa?  Can I have a flat white please?

However, sometimes I like a long black instead, so I would answer He pango roa koa?

Some of the coffee terms you might use are:

mōwai - flat white

rāte – latte

pango roa – long black

kutē – espresso

kaputino – cappuccino

moka – mocha

And for those who don’t want to order coffee, you might like a tiakarete wera hot chocolate, or maybe even a kaputī cup of tea.

If it’s later in the day, I will quite often order a tī kakariki, or green tea.

“He tī kakariki koa.

How’s your kawhe?

Mmmm … Namunamuā! Delicious!

Keep practising and enjoy your kawhe or kaputī. Remember it doesn’t have to be perfect - just give te reo a try.

Check out te wiki o te reo Māori here