As a new member of the GSE committee it was a good experience to feel how it
is to be a team leader and to be involved in a GSE program.
The Japanese Rotarians of district 2660 learned me a lot how to cope with such
a situation.
The program was impressive and the organisation terrific.
Once and a while we had an evaluation to solve possible problems.
If there were demands or questions it was solved immediately. Everybody was
very involved.
To maximise the communication a number of host families took advantage of the
English knowledge of their children who studied abroad (mostly America).
We met many exchange students living in the Osaka district at the time, ex GSE
members telling about their experiences, the team of District 2660, who would
go to Holland (and they were anxious to know all about Holland) and rotaract
members.
Many of them we met for the second time at the district conference in Osaka.
For the team members a good change to notice what Rotary is doing in this field.
Very special was the celebration of the Dutch queens birthday at the Rich Carlton.
The district Osaka organised the invitations. Unfortunately not everybody from
the team was able to go there because of other obligations. Sitting together
with the team and asking ourselves if we could find a critical note we cannot
find any.
We probably saw the best part of the Osaka area although we know that the economic
situation in Japan is under pressure (our host families informed us many times
about the present situation and their personal circumstances)
As a contrast, in the park near our hotel, we saw many homeless people living
in tents as victims of the former bubble economy.
Afterwards I was happy to be well informed by a Dutch journalist I met at the
queens birthday party and who lived in Japan for many years.
He wrote a long article about this problem based on his own experiences amongst
the homeless. It is human to show the best you can. We lived in a big city.
Maybe next time it would also be nice to see something of daily life in the
countryside, a ordinary school or just a hospital or a house for elderly people.
I myself was surprised having my own vocational programs.
I want to thank all the involved Rotarians and others.
Thinking about the beautiful and famous ancient gardens it developed a new spiritual
feeling and it made me another time humble.
In the beginning I said in one of my speeches that it seems to be that you can
buy your fortune in a slotmachine, your luck in a shrine and your health in
a hotspring.
The Rotarians and all the others involved showed us that there is much, much
more going on in the country of the rising sun.
Thanks to all of you also on behalf of the others of the team.
Thanks to the wonderful people who hosted me and took care.
Henk Veenbergen
