The Homestead was every bit as luxurious as we had thought it would be! From the sprawling grounds, the majestic buildings and the uniformed bell hops, to the opulent interiors and tea at three; this place radiates class. Of course,as five South Africans, we soon discovered that our pockets responded by radiating dollars. Grant was forced, through sick obligation, to spoon the foam from his coffee cup when he calculated that it cost R55; it's not right for a grown man to cry.
The conference was very well run, and it was a real treat to attend. We found the GSE reports and presentations, by teams incoming and returning, varied and interesting. The returning team from Brazil impressed us as we discovered that they had done all their presentations in Portuguese! (Luckily nobody expected us to do ours in American English; it's just too much to ask!) The returning team from South Africa obviously held a special interest for us, and more than one team member confessed to being a little teary eyed when listening to The Scatterlings of Africa (except Grant, who was still upset over the price of coffee.) They did a good job and we all missed home because of it.
Overall, as with all things "Rotary", there was business, there was pleasure, but most important of all, there was the opportunity, within a community of people who put others first, to establish or renew friendships. We met some great people at the Homestead. Some we might never see again; others we will make deliberate efforts to stay in touch with, so that our paths might cross again.
PS: On Saturday night one of the employees at The Homestead shot and killed Two other employees (and people say crime and violence in South Africa are a problem). Have a look at the link below and it will take you to a video clip, from a local newstation, about the murder. If you look carefully at the point where there is about 1:30 seconds to go you will see 4 South African GSE team members sitting on the steps of The Homestead, on Sunday morning.
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