From December 6th – 11th Rhodes hosted the AEHT’s Christmas in Europe event – the ninth such celebration following the highly successful festivals held in Kaysersberg (France 1992), Strasbourg (France 1993), Copenhagen (Denmark 1994), Barcelona (Spain 1995), Budapest (Hungary 1996), Espoo (Finland 1997), Podebrady (Czech Republic 1998), Bonneville (France 1999).
The keynote of this version of the event was the sun, and was a success in every respect thanks to the two Rhodes schools, the "Hospitality & Tourism School of advanced studies/Hotel Soleil" and the "Technical Vocational School/Hotel Thermai", under the watchful eye of the "School of tourism Education " of the Greek Republic’s Ministry of Development.
The 17 delegations came from 16 countries : Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Danemark, Estonia, Finland, France, FYROM (Former Yuogslav Republic of Macedonia), Greece, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden. The organisers spared no effort, and gave all of their time to offering their guests the image of their country familiar to us all : smiles, warm welcome, and hospitality at every level. And a vast array of the gastronomic delights and sightseeing of an island blessed by the gods and populated by cats.
An island where hibiscus and bougainvillier are everywhere in sight, and where the blue of the sea vies with the white of the buildings and the ocre colour of the fortifications. Where the noise of motorcycles and the exhaust fumes are everywhere, but where people still take time to live their leisurely lives.
View of the ramparts of the Rhodes fortress
All the delegates (especially those from colder countries) agreed that this stay in Rhodes was a fine opportunity to share human warmth and the warmth of the sun ; to prove it, some of them went so far as to swim in the sea.
But above all they were here to show their respective Christmas traditions - in the magnificent setting of ‘St George’s Bastion’ right in the midst of the fortifications, in a splendid hall which was ideal for a high quality exhibition. How could one not be carried away with enthusiasm in such a setting ?
They came to share their Christmas traditions with all the others in a spirit of friendship and fraternity – a fine example of the best that Europe can create. And was not Europa the mother of Minos, who was carried off by Zeus and turned into a bull and taken off the Crete, an island close to Rhodes ?
So after all this, no wonder that on December 11th the delegatations left for home with heavy hearts, and often with promises to meet again next year, in Poznan in Poland.
Façade of the « Hospitality & Tourism School of Advanced studies/Hotel Soleil
Façade of the « Technical Vocational School/Hotel Thermai
Façade of the « Hospitality & Tourism School of Advanced studies/Hotel Soleil
Façade of the « Technical Vocational School/Hotel Thermai
