Luckily we had a very
quiet family Christmas in New Plymouth,
New Year is now a distant memory as we were off to Florida on 4th January for our
homestay option being the initial part of International Assembly. Considering we arrived in the middle of
their winter the temperatures were actually higher than we get in our summer –
most days in the mid 20’s. The
hospitality was unbelievable, with several clubs coordinating a welcome – a
boat trip around the lovely lakes of Winterpark (yes alligators live there too)
and a ‘typical’ American BBQ on
the shores. This amazing
hospitality continued for the whole week.
Must admit we had some very early
starts to attend breakfast Rotary meetings 70 miles away from our hosts !! The Rotary meetings themselves
were very friendly and fun giving us lots of ideas to float for our coming
year. Other highlights
whilst we were in Florida were visits to the Kennedy Space Centre, EPCOT
Centre, and the Tiffany Exhibition at a Winterpark Gallery. It was an opportunity to meet and make
friends with people from a diverse group of countries including Finland,
Serbia, UK, Europe and Australia.
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| Kennedy Space Centre |
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| Hosts in Florid |
Time to head to San Diego, whilst a little cooler very comfortable for the Kiwi contingent. Orientation and finding our way around the hotel was the first priority – it was on the very large scale! Our time was organised from breakfast starting at around 7.30 am and first sessions commencing around 8.30am. Whilst the Kiwis arrive very well prepared for this event there was still heaps to learn and lots of discussion and networking over coffees, lunches and dinners. Having dinner with the rest of the table unable to speak English is certainly a challenge. Hearing speeches from Kalyan Banerjee and Sakuji Tanaka with the ultimate surprise coming from the CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation committing another 50M to the Polio eradication programme. Traditionally part of the social “commitment” from the Kiwis is the Haka on International Night. After much practice, face painting and copious quantities of Dutch courage our performance got a standing ovation from the 1500 strong, the men taking
off their shirts during the performance got a huge roar from the crowd. Taking from this week – getting a huge
insight into the bigger picture of Rotary, also the admission that Rotary will
have to make changes real and listening to John Hewko, the newly appointed
General Secretary I’m sure they are heading in the right direction – watch this
space. Definitely moves are afoot
– to encourage and attract younger members, more women and more cultural diversity.
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| Haka group |
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| DGEs with RI PE Tanaka |
Back in New Zealand it
is time for us to start planning for District Chair training, SP PETS, and
working on getting the District directory together.
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