Wow, what a weekend!

We arrived at District Conference on Friday evening and watched the flags paraded in to `Chariots of Fire` - it reminded me of the Olympic Opening Games Ceremony without the torch but each club bringing their flag in to a round of applause!

Then it was time for some food and socialising where we saw lots of the Rotarians from clubs we had already visited and also met some of the Rotarians we would be seeing over the next few weeks. We also met the RI Representative from Argentina -Juan Pedro Torroba - and lots of other interesting people.

Then it was time for late night pizza (nearly midnight and the restaurant was still full!) at a funky little restaurant where the waiters poured liquers from a great height standing on a stepladder - he must have practiced that one before!!

Saturday morning was a lovely breakfast at the Casa de Amizade before heading off to Floralia to learn about growing orchids and to see some award winning flowers. They also show them at the RHS Flower Show each year. From there we headed to the fish market where you can purchase your fish/seafood downstairs and then take it upstairs to the restaurant where they will cook it for you!

Then the nerves began to set in as we headed back to the conference to prepare for our presentation. We met the incoming team and it was great to catch up with them and hear that we will be meeting them again on our travels around the state.
They talked to the conference about their trip to District 1100 and it sounds like they had a fantastic time! They even had a few photos of places and people we recognised!

Then it was showtime....we were on......it all went smoothly and we even got a few laughs and the crowd seemed to stay awake and enjoy learning about our district - I think we could get a few visitors to the UK in the future!

Time for a quick rest and change before heading back for the Cheese and Wine night (without cheese and wine - more like pasta and beer - but was very good) and the Rotary Talent Show - we had rehearsed a tune but unfortunately they ran out of time before we could perform our rendition of `Yesterday`. Sandra and Fernanda sang a couple of songs beautifully! It seems like every club has a chance to join in and most do!

Breakfast was a little later the following morning at the Casa de Amisade before we were taken off for a tour of Niteroi including the Fortaleza de Santa Cruz da Barra and the Modern Art Museum (Mac) designed by Oscar Niemeyer. There were beautiful views of Niteroi and over to Sugarloaf and Rio! We had a bi-lingual guide - Li - who was very informative and talked us through the history of Niteroi as we drove through the streets.

Back to the conference for our lunch and to say some goodbyes to some of the friends we have made and hope to see again in the future......Thank you to the District for their hospitality at the conference and we are looking forward to the rest of the trip!