Our district, District 47 of Toastmasters International held our Fall 2012 Conference in Nassau, Bahamas. This was the first time after an eighteen-year hiatus from the country. Our Bahamian counterparts have attended multiple meetings and two conferences to fulfill their leadership duties each year. Our leadership thought it was only fair to host the event in their country again.
I was really excited to attend the conference to support the success of the event. From the time I stepped off the airplane to the time I left the Bahamas last night, I was so impressed with the hospitality the Bahamians showed my fellow Toastmasters and me. When the Bahamian customs officer asked me why I was visiting. I told her that I am here for the Toastmasters Convention. She told me she heard about the event on the news station. Wow! The cab driver was so pleasant and she disclosed that she was also a Toastmaster member. It seems that most people in the Bahamas respect the Toastmaster International organization and many employers on the island are impressed when someone seeking a job acknowledges that he/she is a member of the organization. Amazing.
We were warmly welcomed at the hotel and they went out of their way to accommodate us. Now you may think, they are just being nice because they want our tourist dollars. But I don’t think that is quite so. I observed the interaction between the citizens of this country with each other and they were very respectfully and friendly with each other, the same way they were with us. Our Bahamian Toastmasters put on quite a show for us. They had a live band both nights; they provided dancers and revealers for our entertainment.
They turned out enforced to support the event. It was by far one of the best conferences I have ever participated in. It was an honor for me to be one of the speakers/presenters in one of the workshop on leadership. I forgot the connector for my laptop and one of my fellow Toastmasters sent someone to retrieve his laptop from his home to loan me for the session. His kindness helped me to conduct the workshop without a hitch. The attendees were very attentive and help to make the workshop a great success.
Although, I did not get a chance to put my foot in the water due to the jam-packed schedule, I left with no regrets, except that I didn’t stay longer. The love that I felt from my Bahamian brothers and sisters left me feeling so welcomed that I almost didn’t want to leave. I can’t wait for the next event in this wonderful country. I now know why their slogan is “It’s better in the Bahamas.” They certainly lived up to it this weekend.
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