Paihia goes under the sea for Christmas
Paihia’s streets were invaded by hundreds of fish, crabs, sharks, mermaids and a few octopus’ gardens on Friday afternoon. The Bay of Islands town further sealed its reputation for putting on Northland’s most creative Christmas parade with this year’s event notable for intense competition for the title of best float. Long-time winner Paihia School managed to hang onto the coveted trophy for best float overall — thanks to a coral reef swarming with sea creatures, capped by principal Jane Lindsay as a giant octopus — but faced stiff challenges from Opua School and Paihia-Waitangi Kindergarten. This year’s theme was Under the Sea. Reporter Peter de Graaf donned his mask and snorkel to get these photos.
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