Message from Rotary Riddarfjärden Charter member pin ceremoni performed by Ella Horton and Jan König:

Hi Geoff and Ray, 

Hope this email finds you well. 

We will have our Charter Presentation Meeting (and party) on 26th of April.

We hope to be able to set up a GoToMeeting so that you can participate live late Saturday or early Sunday your time but we haven't decided time and place etc yet so we will be back on this. 

Yesterday we had our monthly physical meeting and we were extremely happy to have your member Ella Horton and her partner Elliot with us. 

As the Charter Festivities are late April we decided that we should have the Charter Member Pin ceremony last night. 

You should be proud of Ella, who as a representative from our sponsor club (you :-) together with me as charter president put the pins on 18 of our 24 happy members. So one part of the charter presentation was done with your club present in Stockholm. 

I attach one photo of me an Ella from the event. 

Kind regards,

Jan

Hej from Sweden!

Elliot and I went along to a meeting with the Rotary Club of Stockholm on Tuesday and had a wonderful time. It was held at the Grand Hotel, which is a beautiful building located on the waterfront in the city. The meeting was at lunchtime, and we ate in the 'Spegelsalen' or 'Mirror Hall'. As you can see from the pictures, the room was magnificent and was where Nobel banquets were hosted in the early 1900's. We were lucky to be there for the presentation of a youth-coach award, which was given to a young magician for his work in local hospitals. The club was very welcoming and very interested in what we do back in Australia!!

Hej hej!!!

Just a quick note to let everyone know that I have arrived in Stockholm and have settled in to my cosy little apartment in Södermalm. I have recently learnt that this is the trendy part of town, and is referred to as 'Sofo' as it is similar to the Soho area of London! I am going to do my best to look the part...but I'll likely be too busy with studying!

I will be taking two courses at the Karolinska Institute while I am here - the first one begins on Thursday and the second begins in late January. These are part of my Masters of Public Health, which I am studying at Griffith University on the Gold Coast.< [> My interest in Sweden stemmed from my experience as a Rotary exchange student in 2008, when I lived with three wonderful families on the west coast. I learnt to speak Swedish quite well, and was captured by the environment, culture and people.

With my current academic interest in health, Sweden was the perfect choice for a semester abroad. Sweden's population is among the healthiest in the world, and their welfare and health system is one that I am intrigued by and keen to study. They also represent progressive thinking and have an intrinsic concern for the environment, which both inspire and challenge me!

There are a number of Rotary clubs in Stockholm - and I have made contact with two of them. I will join them at their meetings over the next few weeks, and look forward to making new friends and sharing the E-Club with them! One club even has an exchange student coming from Australia, who I am eager to meet. I understand how overwhelming it can be in the beginning, and hope to offer my friendship and support.

I look forward to sharing my stories with you all when I am back online - and in the meantime I may be able to get some photos up here to give you a glimpse of Stockholm!

Merry Christmas and a God Jul to everyone!

Ella