🌍✈️ Travel Tales from Provence!

At last night’s Rotary meeting, we were transported to the sun-soaked south of France thanks to our guest speaker (and fellow Rotarian) Helen Dugdale. Helen and her husband Rob recently returned from a five-week European adventure — eight of those weeks spent living like locals in Aix-en-Provence, followed by a stop in England for a family wedding. 🇫🇷🇬🇧

Helen shared stories of wandering Paris before settling in Aix-en, Provence, enjoying day trips through charming villages, and exploring Roman ruins, lush gardens, and the region’s famous fountains — there are said to be over 100 of them! 💦

Their focus was true immersion: discovering local markets, sampling goat’s cheese and rosé, and soaking up the art and history that makes Provence so special — including a visit to a Cézanne exhibition and an internment camp museum.

Oh, and the pièce de résistance? A motorbike and sidecar tour through the countryside! 🛵🌸

Thank you, Helen, for sharing such a wonderful glimpse into Provence life — we could almost taste the cheese and smell the lavender from here in Narrabri! 💐

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Our club is delighted to share that Holly Anderson has recently departed for Germany as part of Rotary’s Short-Term Youth Exchange Program. Holly is being hosted by the Rotary Club of Euskirchen in the region of Westphalia, where she’ll spend three months attending the local high school and exploring Germany alongside other international exchange students.

When Holly returns home, her family will warmly welcome a German exchange student to Narrabri — continuing the wonderful cycle of friendship, learning, and cultural exchange.

Rotary youth exchanges provide young people with extraordinary opportunities to grow in confidence, broaden their world view, and build lifelong friendships that strengthen understanding and goodwill between nations. 🌍🤝

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🌏🐎 An Extraordinary Achievement!

At our recent Rotary Club of Narrabri meeting, we were captivated by an inspiring talk from Dr Alison Thomas, who shared her incredible experience competing in this year’s Mongol Derby — the world’s longest and toughest horse race.

Riding 1,000 km across the Mongolian steppe, Alison spent 11–12 hours a day in the saddle, changing to a new horse every 40 km (32 horses in total!) and navigating independently through the vast landscape — a true test of endurance, navigation, and grit.

The Mongol Derby recreates Genghis Khan’s ancient postal route, with horse welfare paramount and riders fully immersed in Mongolia’s ancient and generous culture. Horses are donated by local families, revered as sacred, and often just 13 hands high — small in stature but mighty in spirit.

Out of 45 starters, only 25 finished — and Alison was one of them. Her preparation included marathon training and a year of mental and physical conditioning.

Incidentally, Alison is also a proud member of the Narrabri Rotaract Club, making her achievement even more special to our local Rotary family.

Congratulations, Alison — your determination, courage and sense of adventure are truly inspiring. 👏🐎🇲🇳

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