All her Andersons Bay School classmates were going on a field trip to Quarantine Island in Otago Harbour yesterday, and because she has cerebral palsy and is in a wheelchair, she was not able to join them on the excursion.
But when the 9-year-old found out her school had planned alternative trips for her on a V8 motortrike and a Monarch Wildlife Cruise, she was elated.
Deputy principal Anna Hailes said the Quarantine Island trip aimed to help pupils explore the local environment and learn about our history.
"It looks at how we, as a community, can support and take care of our local environment."
However, to access Quarantine Island, you have to climb up a ladder to get up on to the wharf, which Maadi is unable to do.
"Quarantine Island isn't accessible to people in a wheelchair, and so when we were planning this trip, I started exploring alternative options for Maadi."
She said the Experience Dunedin motortrike trip and the Monarch cruise were "obvious" alternatives because she was able to see some of the history and wildlife on the Otago Peninsula from both.
"So we were looking down on Quarantine Island and looking at our local area from just, I guess, a different perspective."
"My favourite part was probably the trike ride.
"It felt like I was on a roller coaster, and it was really fun.
"I loved the wind blowing in my face."
What made it even more enjoyable was that she was allowed to take her best friend and classmate Tayla Donaldson, 10, on the trips.
"Today was like a really fun day, and I just wanted to say thanks to Ms Hailes for thinking of me.
"And I got to do it all with my friend."
Maadi said she and Tayla were looking forward to sharing their experience with all their other classmates at school today — and maybe there would be some time for them to hear about their classmates’ part of the trip to Quarantine Island as well.
