Rotary 4610 District Conference

We are back in Sao Paulo after a fabulous 4 day stay at the Paradise Golf and Lake Resort in Mogi das Cruzes.
Let me just say that this place is not easy to find. I was happy to hear that we were not alone in making several stops to ask for directions to the hotel. Ahh, but once we found it, it was worth the trip! Since our presentation was on Sunday we had the good fortune to spend Thursday evening, Friday and Saturday doing whatever we wanted. You all will be happy to know that the ladies made very good use of the indoor heated pool and the fitness center (yes, the workout junkies LaTonya, Beth and I enjoyed using the state of the art equipment). We also attended a few Rotary sessions, played BINGO (Brasileiros LOOOOVE BINGO) and sang karaoke (Christina, LaTonya and I sang Madonna and Spice Girls songs, but then LaTonya shut it down with a Robert Flack song that has pretty much made her famous and now every club wants her to sing at their meetings!)
The best thing about the conference was seeing all of our friends that we have made in our last few weeks here. Everyone attended the conference, from our host families to the Rotarians who escorted us to different points of interest around the various cities we have visited. SHOUT OUT TO LIMA!! Alicia <3 MARIO 4ever!!We miss you ABBY!!!
Going to the District Conference was more like attending a reunion and seeing family and friends you didn't know that you missed.The other amazing thing about District 4610 is that they are all business during the day, but at night they love to dance and party! This year a singing troupe from Sao Paulo performed on both Friday and Saturday night and they sang a few oldies, but mostly songs from MUSICALS!!!!! I'm talking Phantom of the Opera, Mamma Mia, Color Purple and GREASE!! So you know we were up dancing and singing along and turning the party OUT! Beth remembers the name of the group and later we will post a link to their site because they were amazing. They only spoke Portuguese, but they could sing the paint off the walls in English, okaaaay!!!!
Saturday night was the costume ball and again, it must be seen to be believed. The costumes were so elaborate and the masks were dripping with jewels and feathers. It really was a fantasy night where everyone got to transcend outside of themselves a little. It was great fun and again we danced all night long!
On Sunday during the morning session we debuted our full presentation which included information on ourselves, our vocations and NC in general. Unfortunately, the session was running behind so we literally had 10 minutes to do it. And although it was very rough and rushed we got through it and we got a lot of good compliments and yes, LaTonya sang! :p
Overall it was a good weekend and a little bittersweet, because I knew this would be the last time that we would see some of our friends. SO to everyone who has come in contact with the GSE girls from NC just know that WE LOVE YOU and GREATLY APPRECIATE your time and efforts. And as Beth would say, Muito obrigada para suas hospitalidade!
And for anyone else reading, if you ever hear about District 4610 having a conference, you need to make it your business to be there! District 4610 knows how to have a good time!


p.s. sorry i can not figure out how to get my photos uploaded, but please be patient, the photos are worth the wait so please keep checking back!