This year’s Pentangular get-together was hosted by the German Lüdenscheid Rotary Club where we were welcomed with great gusto after a somewhat lengthy and frustrating journey due to the very heavy motorway traffic. Our group then broke up with some staying in a local hotel and others opting to stay in the homes of their German hosts.
photos by Martin Ward. Click or tap any image to enlarge
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That evening we were entertained in the various Lüdenscheid Rotarian members’ homes where we were joined by Rotarians from Belgium, France and Holland. We all enjoyed splendid meals washed down by copious glasses of wine and schnapps before blearily making our way back to our rooms knowing we had an early start in the morning.
Saturday turned out to be sunny which was a welcome change from all the rain we had endured the previous day; we were quickly ushered onto our respective coaches and then it was off to visit the Karl Ernst Osthaus museum in Hagen. The museum houses one of the main collections of paintings by Christian Rohifs and the most important collection of paintings by Emil Schumacher. The visit was followed by a light lunch back at Lüdenscheid at the Phänomenta which was the first science centre in North Rhine-Westphalia and where we were let loose to explore and cause havoc in keeping with the centre’s motto of “Please touch”. Being true Canterbury Rotarians we complied to the letter and much fun was had by all. That evening we attended the traditional gala dinner at the ERCO building, which was an ex light factory where we were treated to a sumptuous meal followed by dancing to a local band.
Sunday started with a church service followed by brunch at the Humboldt-Villa and then sadly it was time to say thank you and goodbye to our hosts and to our friends from the other Pentangular Rotary groups before making the long journey back to Canterbury.
Next year it will be our turn to host the event and to welcome our European friends to what we hope will be an enjoyable and memorable occasion.
Charles Evans
