Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Perth - Issue No.: 201 Issue Date: 15 May, 2012

ROTARY CLUB OF PERTH’S – Presidents Update

Dear Rotarians,

I have just returned from the 2012 Rotary International Conference in Bangkok.

There were 38,000 people registered from 200 countries.  Clubs from as far afield as Afghanistan, Bhutan, Japan, USA.  As I was sitting in one of  the sessions between Rotarians from Nigeria and  Bangladesh, it really made me realize how big Rotary is and what an amazing amount of people in the world there are who are committed to “service above self”.  A Mind blowing experience.

My favourite  things – meeting people from all over the world, experiencing Rotary on an international scale, the Opening Ceremony where flags from each country represented at the conference were carried onto the stage,  speaker and Nobel Prize winner  Muhammad Yunus talking about Micro Credit and Bonsai People and Singer-songwriter and UNICEF Good will ambassador, Angelique Kidjo.

I also enjoyed the fabulous Thai food, curries for breakfast lunch and dinner, hospitality of the Thai people and experiencing the waterways and canals that are the arteries that link Bangkok and connect the people as they transit up and down the river in the ferries.

A day excursion to “Hell Fire Pass” where there is a memorial and Museum funded by the Australian Government, visiting the cemetery where many of our soldiers have been buried and having the opportunity to walk across the Bridge over the River Kwai were all very humbling experiences.

For those who have not been to Bangkok I would highly recommend it!

Yours in Rotary,

Kathy Kusinski - Rotary Club of Perth President 2011/2012