Report from New Zealand

March 11 2013 - New Zealand

Dear friends,

Today we are putting an end to an incredible visit. Whatever the previous teams told us about New Zealand and its people is true and much more!

It is so incredible that such a small country would have such array of different landscapes. It feels like a mixture of Chile and Hawaii but without the oppressing heat or humidity.
At the beginning everybody was taken aback by the price of restaurant food until we realized that the HST and the tip are already included. That, plus the 85 cent dollar made for a more positive approach. The weather has been fantastic. We had two partially cloudy days and one rainy morning.

We have been so busy that I haven’t had a chance to seat and write to you. Today we ended our program at 3pm and we have an hour and a half before the club meeting, so I am grabbing the opportunity.

I am attaching a copy of the Mount Maunganui and the Rotorua North Bulletins that write about our presence.

Tomorrow, some of us are going back to Auckland. Sandra and the Yee’s are staying longer with their hosts here. Sandra, the Yee’s and us will board a Celebrity cruise ship on Saturday. Ironically it’s first port of call is Tauranga next Sunday, which is perfect as we have had no time to visit the city per se. We will be back on Easter Sunday, arriving earlier that when we departed. I understand that our leader and the Nimsick’s are flying back on Friday.

In spite of our discretion on the subject, people did remember Irene when she appeared on a photo receiving our club donation to REACH. Those who were not on the know were entertained by the Kiwis’ recollection of her disappearance act in 2007.

All our hosts have been wonderful and have bent over backward to make our stay a very pleasant one. We have to send an official note of thanks to the Rotorua-North Rotary Club. Their members have no association with our club, nevertheless, they hosted us for three days. They actually reacted very well to a tragedy: the mother of our driver from Mt. Maunganui passed away suddenly and she had to leave. The Rotoruans improvised and made sure that our program went along seamless.

This club has an interesting fund-raising. They host a flea-market every Saturday at a local park. They pay a lease to the city and have to involve six members every Saturday, but they collect 40 grand's a year! They use to have a fishing competition but the city got greedy and they had to can it. Mount Maunganui hosted a picnic at the park, featuring local singers and dancers, last Saturday, but it coincided with other public events and they got less attendants that they hoped for. They were a bit sad as they put a lot of effort organizing it.

We had a chance to be with Ed and Cathy Klassen. They were our impromptu driver-guides from Rotorua on Saturday, and on Sunday they hosted a barbecue for visitors and hosts at their new place. Ed is thinking of the next steps, especially a possible three-weeks grandchildren exchange.

There are quite a bit of funny anecdotes but, what happens in New Zealand stays in New Zealand!

Well, it is 5pm and I have to get ready for the Club meeting at 6pm. All the best to you!

Guillermo