First impressions

After weeks of preparation, yesterday it began! Early in the morning, we met at Schiphol Airport and left our country for the trip!
Almost 20 hours later we arrived at Porto Alegre. There was a big delegation of the Rotary Clubs and our guest families.

My first impressions:

- nice, friendly people
- lovely temperature, only bad weather (rain)
- a lot of meat at barbecue
- capairinha´s
- the Portuguese Brazilian language is difficult, but I´m trying

Tomorrow we have our first formel meeting, but what we are going to do is not clear to me. It will be a surprise.

Jo-Anne

Wouter van Diemen de Jel

My name is Wouter van Diemen de Jel, born twenty eight years ago in The Hague and now living in the lovely city of Utrecht. I have one brother, living in Utrecht as well.

After high school in The Hague, I decided to study one year at a US college in Maryland, for a broad study orientation and to experience the United States.

After this year I went to Enschede in the east of the Netherlands to study Public Policy, with a Master in European Studies. Besides my study, I became a member of the European Study Association and became a member of the board of the Public Policy Study Association. Together my internship at the Atlantic Council in Washington D.C. these activities really broadened my world.

In 2006 I moved to Utrecht where I have lived since. Since these two years I have been enjoying this city. In this city I became a member of Rotaract Utrecht.

Furthermore I play volleybal here with my friends, listen to different styles of music and enjoy city trips to other European cities. During the last three years I have been working for APG Group, the second biggest organization for pension funds of the world.

It administers the collective pension funds for the government, educational and construction industry and invests the 200 billion euro assets. As a project leader, it is my responsibility to implement new elements to the organization, running from a change in the organizational structure to a new way to communicate with the one million participants of the pension fund. My jobs, Rotaract and the various hobbies keep my very busy. But in April, I hope to combine all these in Brasil.

Michael Severs

Hello everyone, my name is Michael Philip Severs, I'm 26 years old and I spend most of my time in Nijmegen in the Eastern part of the Netherlands. Although I was born in Woerden, which is located in the centre of the Netherlands, I have lived in different places throughout my youth.

From birth until the age of eight, I have lived in a small village near Woerden called Linschoten. After that, I moved to Germany to live there for six years with my parents and my sister Wendy. Before moving back to The Netherlands, we lived in the Southern part of Belgium for four years. All this moving around was the result of my father being in the military.

In 2000 I started studying computer engineering at the Transnational University of Limburg in Diepenbeek, Belgium. But after two years, I found out that computers weren't my piece of the pie, so I moved back to the Netherlands to Nijmegen to study Business Communications at the Radboud University. In June of last year I graduated as a Master of Arts and since then I started my own company in trend marketing, coaching and guiding people to become successful entrepreneurs in the Wellness industry. Besides that, I have been an Office Manager for Duosport Courses since September of last year. This is a commercial sports organisation that provides high quality service for recreational athletes that specialises in speed skating activities of all kinds.

As one of my main responsibilities/activities in both jobs is the training and coaching of personnel/entrepreneurs, my main vocational interest is in this area. During my time in Rio Grande do Sul, I would like to find out in what way service organisations in Brazil educate, train and coach their people in order to provide customers with the highest service possible and distinguish themselves from other companies.

I am looking forward to meeting the local people in Brazil and I am eager to get familiar with the language and the local culture. The link will show you a short movie of me and some friends having a great time speed skating on the lakes, our greatest passion.

http://hugokruk.hyves.nl/fotos/523395044/0/E5xF/

Willem Barent Wijsmuller / Team Leader

Hello to everybody reading this weblog.

Since 57 years, my name is Willem Barent Wijsmuller, a name given by my parents based on the historical Dutch Explorer - Seafarer "Willem Barentszn", who spend a full Nordic Winter on the small Island of Nova Zembla in a cottage they constructed from the wooden remains of their crippled Schooner. Regretfully Willem Barentszn passed away on their return to The Netherlands after a real Nordic Winter of 5 months. I am one of the 4 childern, all boys, born in our family my brothers as well are named after wellknown Dutch Admirals and Sailors.

After spending my happy youth in Baarn, regretfully my father passed away when I was hardly 7 years old. I joined the Military Service, which at that time was still obligatory in The Netherlands. Afterwards I studied at the Poly Technical University, Mechanical Engineering with a finallisation on Business Administration.

In the meantime I got married with Inger, my Highschool Love, with whom I am still married happily. We have 3 childern in the range of 30 Y, 27 Y and 25 Y of age (B, G, G). During my study, Inger and myself, spent half a year working in the Dominican Republic, where we were infected with the enjoyment of living abroad, which we continued after graduation.
We spend about 8 years abroad in various countries:
- Dominican Republic
- Indonesia
- Dubai

After our time abroad we returned to The Netherlands in 1985 and are now living again in the little town where I spent all of my youth. Living next to the woods enabling us to walk our dogs, 3 English Setters, easilly.

My main activities were in the Shipping Industry, working for the Royal Nedlloyd Group. Abroad I always was second or first in command. After getting back to The Netherlands, Amsterdam, I left the Nedlloyd, as I was not used working in a company of 25.000 people, where I could not get things done within a reasonable stretch of time. In 1986 I stepped over to the IT industry where I had fun, it was good to see how a fast moving indusry was getting on. After a small Dutch firm (2 years) I joined Tandem Computers (presently owned/intergrated by HP) a real US Company with all the things Dutch people don't do. It was a great time !!

But as life goes, the Maritime Industry was still in my vanes. So after 6 years in the IT it was time for me to get back into the Maritime activities, started my own company with which I am still keeping myself busy. Nowadays with a Business Partner who is keeping controle of all Operational matters. He is allowing me to be in Brazil, with the GSE Team, for a month.

Hobby's:

First of all I like to enjoy life to the utmost, having fun is where life is all about. Whether it is fun in your freetime of fun in your Job. In my scarce free time I like, next to spending time with my wife, kids and friends (when they are around): doing Sports like:

- Sailing Flying Dutchman for the competition and Ocean Going Yachts for leisure. Caribbean !, Greece !

- Running, nowadays 10K, I however did the Half-Marathon of Anchorage

- Biking

- Pilates

- Golf

- Swimming

- Field Hockey

- Horse riding

- Etc.

Next to that I like Piloting, which I had to stop a few years back but planning to get it going again when I can find the time. I keep myself rather busy as you can see, but still enjoying everything I do!

So aswell being the team Leader of the Dutch GSE Team 1570 - 4670. The Team members are all very bright youngsters, with whom I will have a great time in the region of Rio Grande Do Sul.

Regards,
Willem Barent

View on the Netherlands

Travel To The Netherlands - The best video clips are right here