Friendship Exchange - Sweden

Rotary Friendship Exchange (RFE)

John Owen from Thurso Rotary writes about the RFE visit to Sweden in August 2023

Someone once said, “Travel is the only thing you spend money on that makes you richer”. Fred Olsen, now in his 90s said about travel “the only thing we are short of is time” – so when it comes to travel it’s time to do it now.

I like cruising, it’s fantastic. All inclusive food and drink, no driving, a show in the theatre every night and if you want a quick look round the port/city you berth at. Sitting on a sunny beach is nice, not my thing, but I can see the attraction. Self-drive, self-catering travel can be adventurous, but also hard work and sometimes stressful. Hotel trips to cities can be very, very expensive and London, Paris, New York etc. are very, very busy. So what other options for travel are there?

Rotary Group Exchange? Not sure about that. Travelling with Rotarians from elsewhere in 1010 I don’t know? Staying in a stranger’s house? What will the accommodation and food be like? What will I do all day? How much will it cost? How will I get my laundry done? Lots of questions. Fortunately, I have the answers for you which I learnt on my Rotary Group Exchange (RGE) to Sweden in August 2023.

With some trepidation the challenge of doing something different and new – I flew to Stockholm a couple of days before the exchange began.

There I had arranged to meet fellow 1010 Rotarians, having only met them on Zoom before. On meeting instantly, we gelled as we were all Rotarians looking forward to a new exciting experience with our fellow Swedish Rotarians. We represented 1010 from Forres, Glenrothes, Kirriemuir and Thurso.

In Stockholm the first hint that RGE is a good idea was when a fellow Rotarian invited us to their summerhouse on the Stockholm Archipelago the day before the actual programme started. An afternoon at a beautiful, secluded summerhouse with a walk around and a speedboat trip later I was really getting into RGE. After an al fresco lunch with local cuisine and wine I was a convert. What a unique and special trip this was – and this was only the beginning.

The next day we were to meet our hosts and go and stay in a strangers house. Of course, this is not the case. These hosts are fellow Rotarians who have volunteered to be your host. They have planned for your every need, even laundry.

Staying with Rotarian hosts is a wonderful experience. Being Rotarians, we had much in common and were really made to feel “at home”. They went out of their way to enthusiastically tell us about their way of life, culture, and history in a relaxed and convivial way. They also had a great interest in learning more about Scotland.

The meals out their homes were great social events and they enjoyed preparing Swedish specialities for us to try – I enjoyed the moose so much at dinner I had it on toast for breakfast too.

Our programme was full of a variety of unique experiences arranged by the Rotarians that no cruise company or holiday package tour could match. We were hosted in three cities Karlstad, Kristinehamn and Västerås – three places I had never heard of.

Over the two weeks I never saw a moment of TV as our hosts proudly showed us what their cities and surrounding areas have to offer.

Castles, farms, island hopping, nature reserves, a linen weaving mill, summerhouse visits, river walks, city tours, ironworks heritage centre, steel plant, animal hospital, brassworks and aviation museum.

We even toured the house of Alfred Nobel and saw the only outside sculpture by Picasso.

On our last night we attended a classical music concert in a large theatre and were introduced to the conductor during the interval – wow.

We attended Rotary meetings in the three cities we visited and made very welcome by all the Rotarians we met. This proved a great opportunity to see how Rotary works the world over.

The RGE programme is a fabulous example of an event which matches our tests.

• Will it build goodwill and better friendships.
• Will it be beneficial to all concerned.

To better my chances of going on another RGE I would like to tell you that you would be better taking a cruise but that would not match the Rotary test of telling the truth.

The truth is I have been lucky to travel round the world and I found the RGE to be one of the most fulfilling travel experiences I have had ever.

To conclude, I refer you to my earlier Fred Olsen quote and recommend you get your name in for the next RGE now.

The next exchange is to Australia (District 9640 – North New South Wales and South Queensland). Interested or would like more information please contact Sheena MacGillivray sheenarotary@gmail.com