March 16 –30 2009 Just Us Two Again

Monday night we had made arrangements to meet Billie and Grant Biel for dinner. We had intended to take this opportunity to thank them for their wonderful Kiwi hospitality.  Billie had chosen the venue and so we agreed to meet them at Euro, which is a top restaurant down on the quay of Auckland's harbor.  When we arrived we were very pleased to see that their son and daughter, Blythe and Qwilton, and Martha (Billie's closest friend), were also there.  What Billie didn't tell us when we made the arrangements, was that it was her birthday!   We felt very honored to have been included in this intimate family gathering.  The meal was magnificent and being able to spend this special evening with them was dear.  Frank and I will miss them greatly when we leave New Zealand but definitely plan to stay in touch and to see them again.  In fact we are strongly considering a return visit to NZ at the end of cruising season this year. Frank and I spent the next week tidying up the boat and taking care of general maintenance issues, getting Destiny ready for Tom and Mary's arrival on the 30th.  During that time we made a few day trips to visit friends in other anchorages and to just regroup. On Saturday, the 21st, one of our friends from "The Lady Leah Quartet", Mike, and his wife Karen stopped by for a visit and to let us know that he was trying to get the boys and their wives together to meet us for dinner at their boat club.  These are the guys we had met in Great Barrier Island's Port Fitzroy at the end of November 2008.   This event had been in the making for quite a while so we were looking forward to seeing them all again.  When the weekend rolled around we drove over to Stillwater.  It is a lovely place about an hour outside of Auckland, tucked away into a very peaceful anchorage (hence the name I suppose).  Sadly, Pete and Rod couldn't make it but Mike and Scotty were there with their wives, Karen and Linda, and as well many of their good friends and fellow boaties.  They had prepared a special dinner just for us and brought over so many friends for us to meet that our heads were spinning.  We ate and then watched a Warriers rugby match with the gang.  It was yet another very special night for us.  www.frankandbarbgladney.com while at sea: kd0cff@winlink.org (note: 1st time senders must include the character sequence "//WL2K" in the subject line of the message.) Skype ID: frank.barb.gladney