Rotary International President Elect

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

A prestigious visit

Rotary International President Elect 2025-26 Mário César Martins de Camargo visited the Rotary Club of Beijing on 7 January 2025, part of his tour worldwide to visit clubs.
He also visited other Rotary clubs in Beijing and Shanghai.
As a club member I had the privilege to meet many of the RI presidents. The visit of Mário was special for me as he is from the State of São Paulo and I resided in Brazil many years, including in the city of São Paulo.
I introduced to him my friend Nelson who is the journalist of the well-know Folha de São Paulo. Nelson later interviewed him.
We had a big turnout and the dinner in Kempinski Hotel was a success. And the food was great!

Pictures by Rtn Tom and Rtn Gilbert
This post is my personal view, not an official report of our club.

The program

An overview of the evening, as related by Mário himself and slightly edited by myself
Source: Mário on Facebook.

On 7 January 2025, Rotary International President Elect 2025-26 MARIO CÉSAR MARTINS DE CAMARGO, in Beijing, China, participated in moments of exchanging experiences and fellowship, with great engagement with the local Rotary community. It was moments to reinforce the values of solidarity, leadership and teamwork, pillars of Rotary, in an international context. It was a unique opportunity to exchange experiences, strengthen bonds among Rotary Clubs in the region, and promote global initiatives that reflect Rotary’s commitment to making a difference in the world.

RIPE 2025-26 Mario –  Great Moments at Rotary Club of Beijing

We highlight special moments from the President-Elect’s visit to the Rotary Club of Beijing.
▪︎ Registration of the attendees at the occasion. Present: members of the Rotary Clubs of Beijing, Beijing Riviera, Shenyang, Rotary China delegates among others and guests.
▪︎ Presence of journalists of Folha de São Paulo (Brazil), Pakistan and Germany
▪︎ Admission of new members: Realized by RIPE Mario, strengthening the associative framework of the club. Induction of our new member Joel.
▪︎ Presentation by our club directors of the activities of the club.
▪︎ Speech by Mário after the introduction by Rtn Tom and thanks by Rtn Didier who presided the dinner
▪︎ Special gift: Mario received a traditional Chinese scroll with calligraphy in Chinese characters, symbolizing friendship and gratitude, from Rtn Tom.
▪︎ Historical recognition: Rotary International Certificate in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Rotary Club of Beijing.
▪︎ President-Elect with Katrina Sam, Associate Rotarian with the Rotary Club of South Barbados in the Caribbean. Former president of her home club and currently an expatriate in Beijing on an international mission for a multinational development bank, Katrina has been instrumental in supporting the disclosures of the President-Elect’s actions in Beijing. She cooperates with sending materials and responds promptly to requests. Katrina participates as a visiting Rotarian at the Rotary Club of Beijing, proudly representing District 7030 in the Caribbean

This visit reflects the spirit of unity and cultural exchange that Rotary promotes globally.

Some background

See the background of Mário here:

Rtn Tom explains the sophisticated design of the scroll he donated:

Indeed a state of the art AI à la Tom…

Birds visit Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Adventures with my birds

Birds visit Beijing  see earlier posts:
Beijing birds visiting
and
Beijing birds

Nothing dramatic has changed but I had some new visitors.
Eurasian tree sparrows and spotted doves are the regulars. The Eurasian magpies are afraid to visit except sometimes for drinking, they are a lively gang in the big tree in front of my office.

The Eurasian magpie or common magpie (Pica pica) is a resident breeding bird throughout the northern part of the Eurasian continent. It is one of several birds in the crow family designated magpies, and belongs to the Holarctic radiation of “monochrome” magpies. The Eurasian magpie is one of the most intelligent birds, and it is believed to be one of the most intelligent of all non-human animals.
The other one is the Azure-winged Magpie.
The azure-winged magpie (Cyanopica cyanus) is a bird in the crow family. It is 31–35 cm long and similar in overall shape to the Eurasian magpie (Pica pica) but is more slender with proportionately smaller legs and bill. It has a glossy black top to the head and a white throat. The underparts and the back are a light grey-fawn in color with the wings and the feathers of the long (16–20 cm) tail an azure blue.

Another intruder in the kitchen

A small azure-winged magpie fell down our chimney landing in our kitchen through the gas stove air exhaust. My wife tried to catch it but only managed to catch its feathers from the tail. It then hid in a small corner

Before going to bed I made sure there were no any lights in the kitchen and left the window open. By the morning it had left.
Yes, I told my wife several times we need to install some screen on the chimney and just now a worker came to soon solve the problem… The birds are attracted by the warm air…

A new visitor

I spotted a new bird on my balcony and finally succeeded to take a picture.

The light-vented bulbul, also called the Chinese bulbul, is a species of bird in the bulbul family found in central and southern China, Hong Kong, Macao, and other. Scientific name: Pycnonotus sinensis,
Looking forward to more different visitors, attracted by the corn and drinking water.

Old China Hands Lunch 3 January 2025

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Pretty good attendance

Despite last minute cancellations – several people sick, the Old China Hands Lunch 3 January 2025 had 21 participants, not bad as many people were still away.
The menu, see the pictures:

  • vegetable quiche OR Morel’s chef salad (ham, blue cheese and pan-fried chicken, beef on lettuce) OR fresh smoked  salmon croquettes  OR fresh daily soup
  • beef tenderloin stroganoff served with market vegetables and steamed rice OR meatloaf with black pepper sauce served with market vegetables and mashed potatoes OR red snapper provençale style served with vegetables and mashed potatoes
  • daily desert

Thanks to Khee Liang for the extra pictures.
It was our first lunch in 2025. Next lunch is on Friday 7 February at the start of the Year of the Snake. Chinese New Year is on 29 January, public holiday is from 28 January to 3 February.

The benefits of our monthly lunch

Our lunch combats a change in society that affects Americans, as well as other nations. See here copy of interesting article. Our lunches bring people together – again.
In The Atlantic‘s latest cover story, “The Anti-Social Century” Derek Thompson illuminates America’s loneliness epidemic.
The big thought: Loneliness is no longer a temporary problem in America. Staying home and being alone has become a way of life.
Some eye-popping stats:

  • Americans’ time spent socializing in person dropped 20% between 2003 and 2023, per the American Time Use Survey. Among people younger than 25, it plummeted more than 35%.
  • In that same time, the share of U.S. adults having dinner or drinks with friends on a given night has declined 30%. And the National Restaurant Association says that 74% of 2023 restaurant traffic came from takeout and delivery.
  • A typical teen spends 270 minutes on weekdays and 380 minutes on weekends looking at a phone screen, according to Digital Parenthood Initiative. That’s about 30% of the time they’re awake.

The bottom line: “Practically the entire economy has reoriented itself to allow Americans to stay within their four walls,” Thompson writes. “This phenomenon cannot be reduced to remote work. It is something far more totalizing — something more like remote life.”

Old China Hands Lunch 13 December 2024

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

The Old China Hands Lunch 13 December 2024 was a week later than normal, as I was away to USA in early December. It was also a celebration for Christmas, New Year and 25 years of Morel’s Restaurant. The following lunch is planned for Friday 3 January 2025; the price of the lunch will be slightly increased to RMB 180.
Turnout was modest as many were starting their holiday travels. The 23 participants had a good time as always.

See the menu, refer to the pictures:

  • scrambled eggs Provençale style OR Morel’s chef salad (ham, blue cheese and pan-fried chicken, beef on lettuce)  OR green split peas soup
  • veal sausage with onion sauce served with daily vegetables and hotchpotch potatoes OR Christmas ham with gravy vegetable and gratinated potatoes OR red snapper Provençale style served with vegetables and mashed potatoes
  • daily desert

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and see you all in 2025.

Old China Hands Lunch 1 November 2024

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Everybody busy

Our Old China Hands Lunch 1 November 2024 had only 22 attendants as many were busy and several of our members had to cancel last minute. Nevertheless always great to see everybody happy chatting and enjoying the great food of Morel’s Restaurant. See the menu and the pictures:
– Russian eggs salad OR fresh smoked salmon croquettes OR fresh daily soup
– pork piccata Provençale style served with grilled tomato and pan fried potatoes  OR thin sliced beef tenderloin with wine merchant sauce served with marker vegetables and Belgian fries OR pan-fried snapper with mustard sauce served with daily vegetables and mashed potatoes
– dessert: profiteroles

The following lunch is planned for Friday 13 December 2024 as I will be returning from USA on 6 December. We will then also celebrate upcoming Christmas and the New Year. But also 25 years of Morel’s Restaurant!

Halloween

Our sclerotic Chinese goons were doing their best to ruin Halloween activities in most cities, arresting people dressed up and prohibiting outdoor decorations. Sad really.
That did not stop most restaurants and clubs having Halloween activities.
Morel’s Restaurant had indoor decoration and organized pumpkin carving. You don’t have to be a kid to do the carving!

Susan’s brother, an artist at work!