Our Rotaract listens to Mike Furst

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

On Monday 27 May we had our usual Beijing Rotaract evening meeting, in Brussels Restaurant.
We had a number of new faces who turned up to discuss the latest projects of Rotaract, the preparation for the 15 June Rotary Ball and … to listen to our Rotarian Mike Furst.


Mike gave a humorous and rather unexpected ego talk, explaining the many jobs and career changes in his life. You could wonder what job he did not try. A matter of adapting to changes and reinventing yourself. Mike is also well known in Beijing for heading the Amcham for several years. The crowd had many questions so the meeting went a bit over the 9 pm mark.
Thanks Mike! And thanks to Mena for her special pic!

Rotary and GSE in Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Our Beijing Rotary Club organized a GSE Dinner on Sunday, 26 May in the new Four Seasons Hotel (next to our usual Kempinski Hotel). GSE: Group Exchange Program.


The foundation committee and the board had decided to hold a fellowship dinner to welcome the GSE team of several doctors from Colorado, USA. One doctor from Henan who participated in the GSE tour to the USA also attended the dinner and gave a colorful presentation of his one month stay in Colorado. The team is concluding its China tour and the doctors gave an overview of their China experience, including participation in a tour of the Rotary bus that acts as a clinic on wheels to check children for congenital heart disease. They also visited our GOL (Gift of Life) partner hospitals in Henan and Hebei The team was led by a Rotarian, Martin Postma.
For more details on the team members, program and stories see: http://www.amchub.com/
See the pictures of our dinner, pictured are also David, our Club president, with Martin. Rotarian Piper was the driving force for the whole program. Very lively interaction and great stories by the lady doctors.

Vlerick Business School in Beijing – again

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

On 27 May I held my seminar for a very international group of MBA students, from the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School, the MBA in Financial Services and Insurance (MBA-FSI). As usual the location was BIMBA in Beijing University. The group was led by André Thibeault, Professor of Banking & Financial Markets – based in my home town Ghent in Belgium.
Information about the program: http://www.mba-fsi.com/


Looks like my talk was well received, many students were asking a lot of questions.
I thought this seminar was one of the last of the season – wrong. Coming up are the University of Georgia and the CASS School from London!

Boeing 747-400 makes a hard landing in Beijing!

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Yes, China Airlines flight CN2008 had a hard landing in Julong, due to a pilot error (my wife was steering). One of the engines was dislocated and its landing gear broken. The plane is part of our park of helicopters, rockets and other planes.


But there is nothing that cannot be repaired in our workshop. Job done. Same day repairing my bike, my hearth rate monitor belt, etc.
All because Sun is vandalizing all pictures and frames in our meeting room, doing a new arrangement. I am afraid to have a closer look. You don’t argue with her. I will leave my final evaluation for later as she is still in the process or redoing our “gallery of fame”…

André Flahaut in Beijing, again

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

On 20 May the Belgian Embassy organized a reception on the occasion of the visit of André Flahaut, President of the Chamber of Representatives and Minister of State.
The Chamber is also called House:
Belgium is a federal State with a bicameral Parliament consisting of a House of Representatives (Chambre des représentants – Kamer van volksvertegenwoordigers) and a Senate (Sénat – Senaat). The Communities (Flemish, French-speaking and German-speaking) and Regions (Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels) were established next to the already existing federal, provincial and municipal institutions.
The House consists of 150 members who are directly elected on the basis of the proportional representation system for a four-year term. It convenes in the Palace of the Nation (Palais de la Nation – Paleis der Natie) in Brussels. The Federal Government is politically accountable solely to the House.
I had met the minister a couple of years ago when he was Minister of Defense and we had lunch together in the (former) Morel’s Restaurant on Liangmaqiao Lu.


As the minister is a big fan of Renaat Morel, the great buffet was obviously done by our friend Renaat.
Pictured are Rik Van Droogenbroeck, Chargé d’Affaires, the minister and Renaat. Plus the crowd of guests enjoying Belgian beer and Belgian haute cuisine!