April 16 - Brook - Today we were hosted by the Botany East Tamaki Club for a wonderful recreational day. First we went to visit the lovely little town of Clevedon. In Clevedon we had the opportunity to visit a few of the tourist shops. Many of us found lovely New Zealand gifts for friends and family at home. Then we had morning tea, well most of us enjoyed some sort of amazing coffee and a variety of sweet and savoury treats. Then it was off to the Hunua Ranges and specifically the Kokako Lodge High ropes course. The Kokako logde is supported by the Botany East Tamaki Club as a place where students from low decile schools can come and have confidence challenges and leaderships skills developed all while building life skills and self-confidence. I think some of us were not sure what a high ropes course meant when it was just one of many things listed on our itinerary. I was excited to find that it meant that WE got to take a go at the course. What a rush, once I could get my legs to stop shaking and listen to the messages my brain was sending, I had a great time walking across a beam suspended about 7 meters or 25 ft up in the air. We then all got a chance to try the "leap of faith", it sure is a leap and a climb! First we had to climb a pole about 6m or 22 ft in the air, manage to pull ourselves to standing on top of it, then take a flying leap at a bar suspended about a meter or so away from us. All the while it was our team and members of the Rotary club that were in charge of managing the ropes that were to catch us if we fell. All in all we did awesome! Everyone was up to the challenge in fine Northern style!

We ended the evening with a presentation to the Botany East Tamaki club. I guess I was getting a bit cheeky when in my presentation, I suggested we fine the sheriff (on behalf of the president of course) for not having one question about the Yukon in his quiz that he had diligently researched and made up about our Rotary district. I pointed out that as much as I love my Alaskan team mates, I am NOT Alaskan, and to call me an Alaskan would be akin to me calling a Kiwi an Aussie! Then I think the room finally understood that Yukon, Canada is indeed a different country!!! It was another very fine day!