Last Friday was supposed to be a day off for the students at Panmure Bridge School, but for the Kapa Haka group, the real work was just beginning. Teachers from all around our local area and some who had traveled from all around New Zealand were gathering, and our school was chosen to welcome them into our school. I woke up at 7:00 AM to get to the school at 8:00 AM which was the time we were all meant to be at school. It was cold but that was no excuse to not perform. I threw on my mufti clothes, laced up my shoes, and headed out the door, walking as fast as my legs could carry me. The streets were quiet, but my mind was racing with the lyrics and actions we had practiced so hard to perfect. When I arrived I quickly got into my Kapa Haka uniform and put on my black lipstick and piupiu. Then the girls who had done that then went nextdoor by the boys to get their Moko done by a teacher. After that we then had a quick practice and lined up to head on down to the stage to perform. Once we got into our lines we started off our performance strongly. I was scared but proud at the same time, when we finally got to the Haka which was my favourite part I could see the crowd with shocked/amazed faces and it made me happy on the inside. Then we finished off with a karakia and then welcomed all of the teachers and princples into the hall and the made our way back to the classes to get changed back into our mufti clothes and then headed back home. I really liked this day because it made me feel proud of my culture.