Caves,Chiefs, Royals,Rotary and friendship

The Chiefs Stadium

The shop in the cave

Terry,Robin and his new office

Sonja and Hayley making ginger cookies

Man look at the size of these shoes!!! (in the locker room)

Zoe the golden doodle

The Pelham Family

Morrie Carlson giving me a base ball

The golf cart

The carpet in the stadium

Our tour of the Kansas city Royals Stadium with Morry Carlson and Curt Nelson







The pit and outfield at the Baseball stadium

wow today has been a full one with lots to see, experience and do.

The pictures are a little out of order but once again its late and I cant figure out how to move them around so that's how it will have to be. We have had a fantastic day and can say that we are packing things into every available moment that's left.

It is hard to know where to start with all that we have experienced today. So I will start with breakfast and work my way through the day. This morning we were picked up by Robin and Terry Norwood. Terry is the CEO of MPR (local government insurance agency that hosted the conference that we began our stay with). They very kindly took us for breakfast along with Joan wilson,where I sampled the trifecta - it was waffles, blueberry, bacon, and eggs. It was yummy. Next we were treated to a tour of the MPR new office building which is due to be completed in five weeks. It was beautifully constructed, light, airy and warm. They have built an on site gym facility, have a doctor on site, and have an outside BBQ area with a built in BBQ. There were lovely features, and Terry has a fireplace in his office. The angles and wood and glass features are something that I would love in my own home. Next Robin and Terry took us to some underground limestone caves that have been renovated into office and storage space. It was quite surreal to be in a cave system as large as that. The photos do not do the cave justice as to the magnitude of them. Here there were shops and offices - of note that archive building was located there. Robin and Terry treated me to a visit to a store in the cave that had all sorts of Christmas and Halloween decorations - I Loved it and did purchase some items - that suitcase is looking like it might bulge on the way home. Terry and Robin also very kindly gave us a lovely gift to remind us f our visit to the US - it is a Naivety set. I have always wanted one of these. it will have pride of place at Christmas.

Very quickly it was lunch time. Then it was off to Rotary - where we were guests. Richard was asked to do a short presentation about the exchange and NZ. He got lots of tricky questions, but coped really well. Rotary is great, the same as if it were a Rotary club meeting that you were attending in NZ. We were made to feel very welcome, and they knew that we are KIWIS.

After Rotary it was home for a quick change to less formal wear and to tours of the Chiefs Football Stadium, and the Kansas City Royals baseball Stadium. WOW is all I can say about the tours and the magnitude of the stadiums. We were very privileged to have a personal tour of both stadiums. They are Lovely and very flash. The Royals Stadium had a fabulous Children's area at the back of the stadium with a mini ball park, mini golf, and many more games. Our Hosts Morrie Carlson and Curt Nelson drove us around in a golf cart and gave us some goodies to bring home. We were very spoilt. Morrie generously game me a signed baseball (jose ???). Alex I'm not sure that I will give this up, as it is very special. At the Chiefs stadium we were lucky enough to see the teams locker room and sit in the players pit and walk on the pitch. You could almost feel the atmosphere even without players present. Both these stadiums were impressive and side by side.

This evening we were hosted by the Pelham family for dinner (supper in the US). Todd is the assistant city manager, and his wife Aletha works for federal government. They have two gorgeous kids Zach and Addie age 9 and 7. We spent a very enjoyable evening sampling Todd's famous Brisket (smoked, seasoned and marinated beef), salad, cheesy potatoes, corn and brownie for dessert. Zach had made the brownie all by himself - impressive for a nine year old. The Pelham family are lovely and they also have a gorgeous dog called Zoe who is a golden doodle (a cross between a golden retreiver and a poodle). The kids were fabulous and enjoyed showing us all their tricks and rooms. Abbey here there are little wrist bands like ruberbands that are all the trend in the US. They are called silly bands. The kids kindly gave us some to bring home for you. They make shapes when they are off your wrist eg a dog- or a horse. the kids here trade them with each other. I have forgotten their names, but you will enjoy them.

One of the Hero's at the Baseball Stadium ( a bronze statue)

A photo of the cave

It has been a great day, and now its after midnight again. I have surprised myself on my stamina and staying power. It just goes to show that being busy at home was great preparation for this experience. We have sooooooo many thank yous to write and I really can't put it into words just how memorable this whole trip has been, it definately is a once in a lifetime experience.