I have been here for an entire month already!

I had an awful, awful night of sleep last night. After getting back at about midnight or so, I found that I still couldn't sleep! I am very much on a uni student schedule - going to bed at 3am and waking up around 10 or 11am. And this night was no different. So I read for 2 hours, and then turned off the lights, and tossed and turned for another hour and a half, until I finally fell asleep. But I slept fitfully, and was up before my alarm anyways, at 6:45am.

Today was the main day of the District Conference and it started at 8 am, so I was up early to shower, get dressed, and eat breakfast before we went over to the Empire Theater where the conference was being held.



During the morning session we heard from the keynote speaker DG Dick Garner, as well as multiple speakers about their projects such as the Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children (ROMAC), and the ECHIDNA project (which was collecting 5 cent coins, on which there is an echidna). The Toowoomba Vocal Ensemble performed wonderfully, and then we heard from Cassio Furtado, one of the Peace Fellows.

Then the session ended for morning tea.

And started up again 20 minutes later with some more presentations from people involved in different projects. (And it seemed like all of them were asking for monetary donations to their cause.) We heard from another keynote speaker, Brian Doolan, from the Fred Hollows Foundation, and the session was over.

I went to the Alumni lunch with Ray and Anne Brand, as well as a couple of other Rotarians. It was very nice to get to sit and talk with them about their former experiences, most of which were as a part of the GSE teams. We had tapas at a nearby wine bar, and it was very yummy. Afterwards, we headed back for the afternoon session.

The afternoon session was a bit more lighthearted, with a fun presentation from the students who are doing the Youth Exchange Program (high schoolers) and then another singing performance, this time from the Prep School Choir. There were a couple more speakers and afternoon tea, and the session was at its end!

Tonight was the District Governor's Dinner and Show at Rumours International, so everyone got dressed up for the black tie event. Rotary had rented the restaurant, and there were about 600 of us present, and we had a great meal and plenty of fun. The entertainer sang and told jokes, and did a couple of good impressions, and a band played for the rest of the night.